Commonwealth Numbered Regulations - Explanatory Statements

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FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA REGULATIONS (AMENDMENT) 1992 NO. 405

Statutory Rules 1992 No. 405

Issued by the authority of the Minister for Justice for and on behalf of the Attorney-General

Federal Court of Australia Act 1976

Federal Court of Australia Regulations (Amendment)

Regulation 1 provides that regulation 7 is taken to have commenced on 1 April 1992. The fees referred to in regulation 7 were prescribed, with 1 April 1992 as the commencement date, in the Federal Court of Australia (Amendment) Regulations (the Fees Regulations) (SR 1991 No. 448) and the effect of this regulation and regulation 7 is to incorporate the application provision in the body of the principal regulations.

Regulation 2 provides that the proposed regulations amend the Federal Court of Australia Regulations (the Regulations).

Regulation 3 provides that, unless the contrary intention appears, a reference to a 'registrar' in the Regulations means the Deputy Registrar, a District Registrar and a Deputy District Registrar, in addition to the Registrar of the Federal Court who is appointed under section 18C of the Federal Court of Australia Act 1976

Subregulation 4.1 corrects a drafting error by amending subregulation 2(2) of the Regulations to remove paragraph (k), which provided that a fee was not payable for an application for issue of a certificate under subregulation 2(4). This paragraph is now unnecessary as subregulation 2(4) no longer provides for the issue of a certificate that a fee is not payable.

Subregulation 4.2 amends regulation 2 of the Regulations by adding subregulations 2(2A) and 2(213). The new subregulations apply to the following types of appeal:

•       an appeal under section 14ZZ of the Taxation Administration Act 1953; or

•       an appeal from a decision of the Taxation Appeals Division of the Administrative Appeals Tribunal; or

•       an appeal from a single Judge to the Full Court of the Federal Court in relation to an appeal under section 14ZZ of the Taxation Administration Act 1953.

No fee is payable in relation to these appeals ('relevant appeal') if the Registrar is satisfied that the appeal meets the following criteria:

•       the person lodging the relevant appeal has lodged another appeal and has paid a fee in relation to it. That is, a fee has been paid on a first appeal;

•       each appeal is of the same type. That is, each appeal is described by the same dot-point above; and

•       each appeal raises substantially the same issue (apart from a procedural issue).

Subregulation 4.3 provides that the Registrar, when considering whether to waive a fee, is to have regard to the income, day to day living expenses, liabilities and assets of the person liable to pay the fee.

Subregulation 4.4 provides that the Registrar may defer payment of a fee in respect of an application or appeal if, in the opinion of the Registrar, the application or appeal is attended by urgency that overrides the requirement for payment of a fee at the time of filing. If the fee is deferred, the fee becomes payable within 30 days and may be recovered as a debt due to the Commonwealth.

Subregulations 5.1, 5.4, 5.5 and 5.6 are drafting amendments, which provide for the generic use of 'registrar' in the Regulations.

Subregulation 5.2 amends subregulation 2A(1) of the Regulations to provide that the payment of a hearing fee will be subject to subregulations 2(2A) and (2B), so that where subregulations 2(2A) and (B) are satisfied, only one hearing fee will be payable.

Subregulation 5.3 provides that the Registrar, when considering whether to waive a hearing fee, is to have regard to the income, day to day living expenses, liabilities and assets of the person liable to pay the fee.

Subregulation 5.7 amends the Regulations to provide that where, although a notice has been given that a matter will not proceed to hearing, the matter is listed for the purposes of making formal orders only, a hearing fee that has been paid may be refunded.

Subregulation 6 amends the regulations to provide that a waiver decision is subject to review by the Administrative Appeals Tribunal.

Subregulation 7 provides that a fee in respect of an application for review of a decision of a registrar, a fee on filing a notice of motion or a hearing fee is not payable in proceedings commenced on or before 1 April 1992.