Section 47B Family Law Act discusses the leave to appeal for child support matters. Navigating the various courts in New South Wales (NSW) is important when going through court proceedings. The NSW Court Of Appeal is the highest and final court of appeal. Moreover, they are the highest court for civil matters and have appellate jurisdiction in NSW.
Appealing a decision is a costly and complex procedure. Essentially, individuals should note that they can apply for special leave to appeal if they’re unhappy about a court decision. As a result, the High Court acts as a court of final appeal. Read this article to obtain information about Section 47B of the Family Law Act 1975 and how a leave to appeal works.
Section 47B Family Law Act: Appealing For Child Support Matters
Everyone who is seeking to appeal a child support matter must establish their rights. This entitlement depends on the type of situation that an individual is appealing to. Furthermore, timing is also essential as some cases may only have a short window of time to appeal a decision. For instance, an individual has 28 days to appeal a decision.
A party that is dissatisfied with a Children’s Court decision may appeal to the District Court of NSW. However, a party must make an appeal to the Supreme Court to contest the decision of the Children’s Court president. The Children and Young Persons (Care and Protection) Act 1998 contains a varied combination of both judicial and administrative powers.
Moreover, the Act establishes decision-making for children with the Children’s Court or the District Court. The Care Act contains a small number of key concepts including:
- The need for the child’s care and protection
- Removal of children (Removal of children refers to the situation where the custodial parent moves away from the non-custodial parent.)
- Parental responsibility
- Permanency planning involving restoration, out-of-home care, guardianship, and adoption
- Child contact
Commencing An Appeal
- Filing A Notice Of Appeal
First, parties must file Form 105 (Notice Of Appeal). Lodging this notice will require a filing fee. Further, parties will need to file the Notice Of Appeal with the court and serve the notice on the respondent. Respondents are the other party in the child support dispute.
- Seeking Leave To Appeal
Secondly, parties will need to seek leave or ask the Court’s permission to appeal. Next, the party will need to file Form 104 (Summons Seeking Leave To Appeal). Moreover, parties will need to supply a ‘White Folder’ which is a collection of documents containing the following:
- The summons seeking leave to appeal (A summons is an order to appear before a judge or magistrate);
- A draft notice of appeal (Form 105 with the word ‘DRAFT’ on it);
- The argument’s summary (This document is no more than 10 pages that outline the reasons for the leave to appeal);
- Reasons from the court or Tribunal that delivered the decision the party wished to appeal; and
- Any necessary documents for the court to decide whether to grant leave or not.
Note: Parties will need to pay filing fees to lodge their summons
- Filing Written Submissions
Finally, parties must provide an outline of the arguments they wish to make at the court. The written submissions cannot be longer than 20 pages unless the court has granted a party the leave. Importantly, if parties submit a leave application, their written submission will be the Summary Of Argument. This is included in the ‘White Folder’.
FAMILY LAW ACT 1975 – SECT 47B
Leave to appeal needed for child support matters
(1) Leave of a single Judge of the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (Division 1) is required to appeal to the Court from a decree of a court of summary jurisdiction of a State or Territory exercising jurisdiction under:
(a) the Child Support (Assessment) Act 1989; or
(b) the Child Support (Registration and Collection) Act 1988.
(2) Leave of the Supreme Court of a State or Territory is required to appeal to the Court from a decree of a court of summary jurisdiction of that State or Territory exercising jurisdiction under:
(a) the Child Support (Assessment) Act 1989; or
(b) the Child Support (Registration and Collection) Act 1988.
(3) An application for leave to appeal must be made within:
(a) in the case of leave of the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (Division 1):
(i) the time prescribed by the Federal Circuit and Family Court (Division 1) Rules; or
(ii) such further time as is allowed in accordance with those Rules; and
(b) in any other case:
(i) the time prescribed by the standard Rules of Court; or
(ii) such further time as is allowed in accordance with those Rules.
(4) The applicable Rules of Court may make provision for enabling applications for leave to be dealt with, subject to conditions prescribed by the Rules, without an oral hearing.
How JB Solicitors Can Help
Seeking a leave to appeal for child support matters will require an experienced lawyer to represent you in court. Our lawyers at JB Solicitors can provide needed documents and legal advice for parties that have child support disputes. Furthermore, we have mediation services for parties that want to come to terms outside of court.
Contact a family lawyer today.
