Notices to practitioners issued
by the NSW District Registrar
Migration matters (2002/4)
Introduction
This Notice applies to proceedings
commenced in or transferred to the New South Wales District
Registry of the Federal Court of Australia and the Sydney
Registry of the Federal Magistrates Court of Australia.
In the remainder of this document any reference to 'registry'
or 'Court' means whichever of these Registries or Courts
is relevant and appropriate.
The next two parts of this Notice
('Service of Applications' and 'Bundle of Documents')
apply to proceedings made to the Court under section 39B
of theJudiciary
Act 1903or section 483A
of theMigration
Act 1958 in relation to
decisions made under theMigration
Act 1958, other than applications
filed by or on behalf of the Minister for Immigration
and Multicultural and Indigenous Affairs ('the Minister').
The last part ('Parties in Detention or Custody') applies
to any proceeding in relation to a decision made under
the Migration Act
1958where a party is in
immigration detention or in custody.
A copy of this notice will be provided
for their information to applicants who are not represented
by a legal practitioner and who commence a relevant application
in this registry and to parties in immigration detention
and custody who are not represented by a legal practitioner.
Service of Application
This part of this Notice applies
to proceedings made to the Court under Section 39B of
theJudiciary Act
1903or section 483A of
theMigration Act
1958in relation to decisions
made under theMigration
Act 1958other than applications
filed by or behalf of the Minister.
To ensure that the Minister will have
early notification of application, the registry will,
upon filing, forward a copy of the application and supporting
affidavit (but without any annexures) by facsimile transmission
to a dedicated facsimile number at the Department of Immigration
and Multicultural and Indigenous Affairs ('the Department')
in Canberra. This will allow the bundle of documents which
will be prepared under the next part of this Notice to
be filed and served as soon as possible. On receiving
a facsimile of an application and affidavit from the registry,
the Department will immediately allocate the application
to a firm of solicitors. That firm will then immediately
contact the applicant or his or her legal representatives
and identify itself as having instructions from the Minister
in that proceeding.
The forwarding of the copy of the application
and affidavit to the Department by the registry will not,
however, constitute service on the Minister. Applicants
will need to comply with either Order 4 Rule 11 of the
Federal Court Rules or Rule 6.03 of the Federal Magistrates
Court Rules. They can do so by serving a sealed copy of
the application and affidavit (with all annexures) on
a departmental employee in the NSW Executive Support Section,
Level 5, The Gateway, 26 Lee Street, Sydney or at any
other office of the Department.
Bundle of Documents
This part of this Notice applies
to proceedings made to the Court under Section 39B of
theJudiciary Act
1903or section 483A of
theMigration Act
1958 in relation to decisions
made under theMigration
Act 1958, other than applications
filed by or on behalf of the Minister.
The Minister will, through his or her
solicitors, prepare for the Court a bound or stapled bundle
of documents relevant to the application. The bundle of
documents will consist of legible photocopies of the documents
in the possession or power of the Minister including the
decision under review which, from the application and
any particulars provided, appear to be relevant to the
review. That bundle of documents will not, however, include
a copy of any transcript of proceedings before the Migration
Review Tribunal or Refugee Review Tribunal. The bundle
of documents (usually called the 'Green Book' as it has
a green cover) will:
be arranged
as near as practicable in chronological order from the
earliest to the latest;
have each
page numbered consecutively;
have an
index attached to its front containing a brief description
of each document; and
be filed
in the registry with a copy served on the applicant
as soon as possible after the Department receives a
copy of the application and supporting affidavit.
At the first Directions Hearing in
the proceedings, the Court may give directions with respect
to the filing of any further documents.
Parties in Detention or Custody
This part of this Notice applies
to any proceedings in relation to a decision made under
theMigration Act
1958where a party is in
immigration detention or in custody.
Where a party is in immigration detention
at a detention centre, e.g. Villawood Immigration Detention
Centre, or otherwise held at a remand centre, such as
Long Bay or Silverwater, the registry does not make arrangements
to have that party brought to Court. The Minister's solicitors
will make arrangements with the detention or remand centre
for the party's attendance at Court.
Where the party in detention is represented,
in the absence of agreement between the parties' representatives
or an order or direction of the Court to the contrary,
the party will not be brought to the Court as a matter
of course other than for the final hearing.
If a party is in immigration detention
at a remand centre the Minister's solicitors will notify
the Associate to the Docket Judge or Federal Magistrate
that that party is in such detention and that no order
is required to be made by a Judge or Federal Magistrate
of the Court for the applicant's attendance.
Where a party is in custody serving
a custodial sentence e.g. at Long Bay Correctional Complex,
the Minister's solicitors will notify the registry that
the party is in custody, any reference used by the custodial
authority to identify the party and the name of the custodial
institution. Notification should usually be by letter
addressed to the District Registrar however if, because
of urgency, by telephone it should be directed to the
Duty Registrar with a confirming letter addressed to the
District Registrar to follow.
Adequate time should be allowed to
enable the registry to refer to a Judge or Federal Magistrate
of the Court for consideration of the possible making
of an order that the party in custody be brought to Court;
to give notification of that order, if made, to the relevant
institution; and for that institution to make the necessary
arrangements to act upon any such order.
Where a party in custody is represented,
in the absence of agreement between the parties' representatives
or an order or direction of the Court to the contrary,
that party will not be brought to the Court as a matter
of course other than for the final hearing.
