The Australia-Pacific Judicial Partnership (APJP)  is a collaboration between the Federal Court of Australia and the courts of 15 Pacific Island Nations Cook Islands, Fiji, Federated States of Micronesia, Kiribati, Nauru, Niue, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Republic of the Marshall Islands, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tokelau, Tonga, Tuvalu, and Vanuatu. The Partnership is designed to respond to our partners’ reform and development priorities and is funded by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. Commencing in December 2025, the Partnership will run for four years to December 2029 and is a continuation of long-term and related collaborations with Pacific courts and has two objectives which aim to continue supporting:

1. The resilience and quality Pacific judicial services; and
2. The accessibility, efficiency, and effectiveness of Pacific court services.

In addition to unprecedented challenges related to climate change and justice; issues related to judicial independence; customary law and legal pluralism; gender equality; resource and economic fragility for example, require collegial and novel consideration. The Partnership will facilitate related activities with the region’s Chief Justices and judges.

To maximise the accessibility of and the efficiency with which justice is served, the Partnership will conduct regional workshops with judges, registrars and senior court staff. These activities are designed to strengthen policies, systems and processes related to case management, court administration and digital readiness.

While focussed on regional priorities, the Partnership will also offer to ODA-eligible partners limited bilateral assistance and a small Mana Grants facility. Both are interned to enable individual countries to refine solutions discussed regionally to meet their domestic needs and environment.