Structure

Since 1990, the Federal Court has been self-administering, with a separate reporting arrangement to the Parliament and budget appropriation. These arrangements recognise that court administration should be 'independent from day to day control' by the Executive, and that the Federal Court is best placed to make decisions about how to 'enhance [the] efficient and effective operation' of the Court.

The Chief Justice is responsible for ensuring the effective, orderly and expeditious discharge of the business of the Court. The Chief Justice is also responsible for managing the Court’s administrative affairs. In managing those affairs, the Chief Justice is assisted by the Chief Executive Officer and Principal Registrar (the Principal Registrar).

The Chief Justice may delegate any of their administrative powers to judges, and the Principal Registrar may exercise powers on behalf of the Chief Justice in relation to the Court’s administrative affairs.

In practice, there are key administrative arrangements intended to encourage the collegiate involvement of all judges in the Court’s administration:

• judicial committees assist in managing areas of the Court’s administration. In particular, an overarching Operations and Finance Forum provides advice to the Chief Justice about managing the Court’s finances and budget. Generally these committees consider standing items of business, as well as matters referred to them by the Chief Justice, other judges, registrars or executive staff;
• judges’ conferences provide an opportunity for judges to discuss, and make decisions about, matters important to the Court; and
• project groups are established from time to time to deal with specific issues as they arise. Often these groups will be established at a judges’ conference. In the months that follow, group members will research, investigate or consult on a particular issue in detail, then prepare a report and recommendations for consideration by other judges. At the next conference, the judges will discuss and decide on an outcome. Where projects will benefit from specialised skills or knowledge (such as expertise in information technology issues, library management or data collection), registrars or staff with such skills or knowledge will be involved with the group.

Participation in committees, conferences and project groups is an important part of judges’ contribution to the administration of justice at an institutional level. It is through these processes that many of the Court’s innovations have originated, been carefully designed and considered, endorsed by judges collectively, and implemented and evaluated.

As at March 2026