{"id":"F2021L01211","name":"Family Law (State and Territory Courts) Rules 2021","slug":"family-law-state-and-territory-courts-rules-2021","collection":"legislative_instrument","jurisdiction":"commonwealth","status":"in_force","isInForce":true,"actNumber":null,"makingDate":null,"administeringDepartment":null,"currentVersion":{"id":440983,"registerId":"F2021L01211-fast-fetch-1775956423921","compilationNumber":null,"startDate":"2026-04-12","status":"InForce","reasons":null,"registeredAt":null},"sections":[{"sectionNumber":"1","sectionType":"section","heading":"Family Law (State and Territory Courts) Rules 2021","content":"---\nmeta-content-style-type: text/css\nmeta-content-type: application/xhtml+xml; charset=utf-8\n---\n\n?xml version=\"1.0\" encoding=\"utf-8\" standalone=\"no\"?>\n\n![](image.001.jpeg)\n\n \n\nFamily Law (State and Territory Courts) Rules 2021\n\nI, The Honourable William Alstergren, Chief Justice of the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (Division 1), make the following Rules of Court.\n\nDated 26 August 2021\n\nThe Honourable William Alstergren\n\nChief Justice of the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (Division 1)\n\n \n\n \n\n \n\nContents\n\nPart 1—Preliminary\n\n1.01 Name\n\n1.02 Commencement\n\n1.03 Authority\n\n1.04 Court may make orders or dispense with these Rules\n\nPart 2—Application of the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (Family Law) Rules 2021 and the Family Court Rules 2021 (WA)\n\n2.01 Application of the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (Family Law) Rules 2021\n\n2.02 Application of the Family Court Rules 2021 (WA)\n\n \n\nPart 1—Preliminary\n\n \n\n1.01  Name\n\n  These Rules are the Family Law (State and Territory Courts) Rules 2021.\n\n1.02  Commencement\n\n (1) Each provision of these Rules specified in column 1 of the table commences, or is taken to have commenced, in accordance with column 2 of the table. Any other statement in column 2 has effect according to its terms.\n\n \n\n- Commencement information\n- Column 1 Column 2 Column 3\n- Provisions Commencement Date/Details\n- 1. The whole of these Rules 1 September 2021. 1 September 2021\n\n\nNote: This table relates only to the provisions of these Rules as originally made. It will not be amended to deal with any later amendments of these Rules.\n\n (2) Any information in column 3 of the table is not part of these Rules. Information may be inserted in this column, or information in it may be edited, in any published version of these Rules.\n\n1.03  Authority\n\n  These Rules are made under the Family Law Act 1975.\n\n1.04  Court may make orders or dispense with these Rules\n\n (1) The court may, in the interests of justice, dispense with compliance, or full compliance, with any of these Rules at any time.\n\n (2) If, in a proceeding, the court gives a direction or makes an order that is inconsistent with any of these Rules, the direction or order of the court prevails in that proceeding.\n\nPart 2—Application of the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (Family Law) Rules 2021 and the Family Court Rules 2021 (WA)\n\n \n\n2.01  Application of the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (Family Law) Rules 2021\n\n  The Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (Family Law) Rules 2021 (other than rules 1.01 to 1.03) apply to a court exercising jurisdiction under the Family Law Act 1975 as if the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (Family Law) Rules 2021 were provisions of these Rules.\n\nNote: The reference to a court exercising jurisdiction under the Family Law Act 1975 in this rule does not include a reference to the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (see subsection 123(1A) of the Family Law Act 1975).\n\n2.02  Application of the Family Court Rules 2021 (WA)\n\n (1) The Family Court Rules 2021 (WA), as in force at the start of 1 September 2021, apply to the Family Court of Western Australia and the Magistrates Court of Western Australia in exercising jurisdiction under the Family Law Act 1975.\n\n (2) For the purpose of the exercise of jurisdiction under the Family Law Act 1975 by the Family Court of Western Australia or the Magistrates Court of Western Australia, a provision of the Family Court Rules 2021 (WA), as applied by subrule (1) of this rule, prevails over a provision of these Rules to the extent of any inconsistency.\n","sortOrder":0}],"analysis":{"flash_summary":{"complexity_score":4,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"This instrument, as originally made, sets out that other procedural rule-sets apply to state and territory courts and establishes a commencement date and the court’s power to dispense with the Rules. There is no indication within the text provided that the scope of the instrument has been altered from what it originally set out to do; it is the original instrument and the table in rule 1.02 states it relates only to the provisions as originally made."},"complexity_factors":["Cross-references to external rule instruments (Federal Circuit and Family Court (Family Law) Rules 2021 and Family Court Rules 2021 (WA)) that must be read to understand detailed procedure (rule 2.01; rule 2.02(1)).","Precedence rules between competing rule-sets (WA rules prevail to the extent of inconsistency) requiring conflict resolution (rule 2.02(2)).","Judicial discretion to dispense with or override the Rules in individual proceedings, which reduces rule determinacy and requires case-specific attention (rule 1.04(1)–(2)).","A specific exclusion when importing the Federal Circuit and Family Court (Family Law) Rules 2021 (the exclusion of rules 1.01–1.03), creating an extra exception to track (rule 2.01).","Notes and limited definitions contained in the instrument that direct the reader to other statutory provisions for precise coverage (note to rule 2.01 referencing the Family Law Act 1975)."],"plain_english_summary":"This instrument tells state and territory courts which family‑law procedural rules to use when exercising jurisdiction under the Family Law Act 1975: it imports the Federal Circuit and Family Court (Family Law) Rules 2021 (excluding their rules 1.01–1.03) and, for WA courts, applies the Family Court Rules 2021 (WA), with WA rules prevailing on conflict. It affects parties and lawyers in those courts and preserves each court’s power to excuse compliance or make overriding directions."},"kimi_summary":{"content_quality":"ok","complexity_score":2,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"The legislation maintains its original narrow purpose: to specify which procedural rules apply to state and territory courts exercising federal family law jurisdiction. It has not expanded beyond this technical, procedural bridging function."},"complexity_factors":["Extremely short — only 2 substantive parts with 2 rules total","No defined terms section — relies entirely on external legislation (*Family Law Act 1975*, *Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (Family Law) Rules 2021*, *Family Court Rules 2021 (WA)*)","Simple mechanical operation — essentially 'apply these other rules here' with one exception for Western Australia","No conditional logic, exceptions to exceptions, or nested provisions","Single cross-reference mechanism (incorporation by reference) rather than complex interlocking provisions"],"plain_english_summary":"**What this legislation does:**\n\nThese Rules create a bridge between federal family law and state/territory courts. They don't set up a whole new set of procedures from scratch. Instead, they **import** (bring in) the existing Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (Family Law) Rules 2021 and apply them to state and territory courts that hear family law matters.\n\n**Who it affects:**\n\n- **State and territory courts** that exercise jurisdiction under the *Family Law Act 1975* (mainly dealing with divorce, parenting arrangements, and property settlements)\n- **Western Australian courts** specifically — the Family Court of WA and Magistrates Court of WA — which operate under a slightly different system\n- **People using these courts** for family law matters, who will now follow the same procedural rules as the federal family courts\n\n**Why it matters:**\n\nBefore these Rules, state and territory courts hearing family law cases might have operated under different procedural rules than the federal family courts. This creates **consistency** — if you're in a state court for a family law matter, the process will largely mirror what happens in the federal family courts. This makes it easier for:\n- Lawyers who practise in multiple jurisdictions\n- Self-represented litigants (people representing themselves) who can rely on familiar procedures\n- Courts to manage cases efficiently\n\n**Key features:**\n- **Rule 2.01**: Imports the federal Family Law Rules into state/territory courts (except for the federal courts themselves)\n- **Rule 2.02**: Special arrangement for Western Australia — WA has its own Family Court Rules 2021, which take precedence over the imported federal rules\n- **Rule 1.04**: Courts can override these Rules if justice requires it — the court's directions always win if there's a conflict"}},"importantCases":[],"_links":{"self":"/api/acts/family-law-state-and-territory-courts-rules-2021","history":"/api/acts/family-law-state-and-territory-courts-rules-2021/history","analysis":"/api/acts/family-law-state-and-territory-courts-rules-2021/analysis","conflicts":"/api/acts/family-law-state-and-territory-courts-rules-2021/conflicts","importantCases":"/api/acts/family-law-state-and-territory-courts-rules-2021/important-cases","documents":"/api/acts/family-law-state-and-territory-courts-rules-2021/documents"}}