{"id":"sr:supreme-court-library-rules-2024","name":"Supreme Court Library Rules 2024","slug":"supreme-court-library-rules-2024","collection":"regulation","jurisdiction":"vic","status":"in_force","isInForce":true,"actNumber":null,"makingDate":null,"administeringDepartment":null,"currentVersion":{"id":184268,"registerId":"vic-sr:supreme-court-library-rules-2024-current","compilationNumber":null,"startDate":"2026-04-05","status":"InForce","reasons":null,"registeredAt":null},"sections":[{"sectionNumber":"1","sectionType":"section","heading":"Supreme Court Library Rules 2024","content":"Version No. 001\n\n**Supreme Court Library Rules 2024**\n\n**S.R. No. 36/2024**\n\nVersion as at  \n1 July 2024\n\n**TABLE OF PROVISIONS**\n\n*Rule Page*\n\n1 Object 1\n\n2 Authorising provisions 1\n\n3 Commencement 1\n\n4 Revocations 1\n\n5 Definitions 1\n\n6 Supreme Court Library Committee 2\n\n7 Composition of Committee 3\n\n8 Chair of Committee 3\n\n9 Quorum 4\n\n10 Voting 4\n\n11 Secretary 4\n\n12 Subcommittees 4\n\n13 Supreme Court Library Fund 4\n\n14 Rules 5\n\n15 Transitional provisions 5\n\n═════════════\n\nEndnotes 8\n\n1 General information 8\n\n2 Table of Amendments 10\n\n3 Explanatory details 11\n\n**Version No.** **001**\n\n**Supreme Court Library Rules 2024**\n\n**S.R. No. 36/2024**\n\nVersion as at  \n1 July 2024\n\n\t1 Object\n\nThe object of these Rules is to make Rules with respect to the Supreme Court Library and the Supreme Court Library Fund.\n\n\t2 Authorising provisions\n\nThese Rules are made under section 25 of the **Supreme Court Act 1986** and all other enabling powers.\n\n\t3 Commencement\n\nThese Rules come into operation on 1 July 2024.\n\n\t4 Revocations\n\n(1) The Supreme Court Library Rules 2019[[1]](#endnote-1) are **revoked**.\n\n(2) The Supreme Court Library Fund Investment Rules 2021[[2]](#endnote-2) are **revoked**.\n\n\t5 Definitions\n\nIn these Rules—\n\n***Committee*** means the Supreme Court Library Committee established by Rule 6;\n\n***Judge of the Supreme Court*** has the same meaning as ***Judge of the Court*** has in section 3 of the **Supreme Court Act 1986**;\n\n**Note**\n\nThis means a Judge of the Court referred to in section 75(3) of the **Constitution Act 1975** and includes a reserve Judge engaged under section 81B of the **Constitution Act 1975** to undertake the duties of a Judge of the Court during any period of engagement.\n\n***local legal practitioner*** means a legal practitioner whose principal place of practice is Victoria and who is on the local legal profession register maintained under the Legal Profession Uniform Law (Victoria);\n\n***Supreme Court Library Fund*** means the Fund referred to in Rule 13.\n\n\t6 Supreme Court Library Committee\n\n(1) There is a Supreme Court Library Committee.\n\n(2) The Supreme Court Library Committee has the following functions—\n\n(a) the control, management and good governance of the Supreme Court Library; and\n\n(b) by agreement, the control and management of library services—\n\n(i) of Victorian courts or tribunals other than the Supreme Court; and\n\n(ii) for members of the legal profession; and\n\n(c) the control and management of the Supreme Court Library Fund, including being responsible for investing and keeping invested the Fund.\n\n(3) The Supreme Court Library Committee has all powers necessary for the carrying out of its functions.\n\n\t7 Composition of Committee\n\n(1) The Committee shall consist of 10 members being—\n\n(a) the Chief Justice or the Chief Justice's nominee, who shall be a Judge of the Supreme Court; and\n\n(b) the following members appointed from time to time as members by the Council of Judges—\n\n(i) two Judges of the Supreme Court; and\n\n(ii) one Judge of the County Court nominated by the Chief Judge; and\n\n(iii) one magistrate nominated by the Chief Magistrate; and\n\n(iv) one member of VCAT nominated by the President of VCAT; and\n\n(v) four local legal practitioners for a period of two years.\n\n(2) The Board of the Law Institute of Victoria and the Victorian Bar Council may each nominate two local legal practitioners for appointment to the Committee.\n\n(3) In the event of a vacancy, the Council of Judges may fill that vacancy.\n\n\t8 Chair of Committee\n\nThe Chair of the Committee shall be—\n\n(a) the Chief Justice or the Chief Justice's nominee; or\n\n(b) a Judge of the Supreme Court nominated by the Chief Justice as Chair from the Judges appointed under Rule 7(1)(b)(i).\n\n\t9 Quorum\n\nThe Committee shall meet at such times and places as the Chair of the Committee directs and five members shall be a quorum.\n\n\t10 Voting\n\nThe Chair of the Committee present at a meeting of the Committee shall have both a deliberative and a casting vote.\n\n\t11 Secretary\n\nUnless some other person is appointed so to act, the Supreme Court Librarian shall be Secretary to the Committee.\n\n\t12 Subcommittees\n\nThe Committee may establish any subcommittees it considers necessary for the carrying out of its functions in relation to the Supreme Court Library or the Supreme Court Library Fund.\n\n\t13 Supreme Court Library Fund\n\n(1) The Committee shall ensure that the Supreme Court Library Fund as is from time to time available for investment is fully and properly invested in any manner authorised by law.\n\n(2) The Income and Expenditure Account and the Investment Fund, including any amount held for the purposes of awarding prizes, constituted and existing under the Supreme Court Library Fund Investment Rules 2021 before their revocation shall be the Supreme Court Library Fund for the purposes of these Rules.\n\n(3) All investments of money standing to the credit of any investment fund in the Supreme Court Library Fund shall be made in the name of a nominee company, being a company limited by guarantee—\n\n(a) of which all directors are persons nominated by the Chief Justice as directors, of whom at least one shall be a Judge of the Supreme Court or a former Judge of the Supreme Court; and\n\n(b) which engages in no activities other than the holding of securities and other investments comprised in the Supreme Court Library Fund.\n\n\t14 Rules\n\n(1) The Committee may make recommendations to the Judges of the Supreme Court for Rules to be made by the Judges providing for—\n\n(a) the control, management and good governance of the Supreme Court Library and the Supreme Court Library Fund;\n\n(b) the functions of the Committee; and\n\n(c) penalties for breaches of the Rules.\n\n(2) Subject to the Rules, members of the legal profession of Victoria shall have access to the Supreme Court Library.\n\n\t15 Transitional provisions\n\n(1) The members of the Supreme Court Library Committee established by the Supreme Court Library Rules 2019 who were in office immediately before the commencement of these Rules, subject to these Rules—\n\n(a) hold office, as members of the Committee on and after that commencement for the balance of their period of appointment; and\n\n(b) are eligible for re-appointment.\n\n(2) The Committee is taken to be the same body as it was immediately before the commencement of these Rules despite the changes to the constitution or quorum of the Committee made by these Rules, and no decision, matter or thing is to be affected because of those changes.\n\nDated: 23 May 2024\n\nANNE FERGUSON, *C.J.*\n\nKARIN EMERTON, P.\n\nDAVID F. R. BEACH, J.A.\n\nR. NIALL, J.A.\n\nK. WALKER, J.A.\n\nC. MACAULAY, J.A.\n\nL. A. TAYLOR, J.A.\n\nC. B. BOYCE, J.A.\n\nR. J. ORR, J.A.\n\nELIZABETH HOLLINGWORTH, J.\n\nANTHONY CAVANOUGH, J.\n\nJAMES D. ELLIOTT, J.\n\nMELANIE SLOSS, J.\n\nCHRISTOPHER W. BEALE, J.\n\nMICHAEL McDONALD, J.\n\nRITA INCERTI, J.\n\nJANE DIXON, J.\n\nA. J. KEOGH, J.\n\nMICHELLE QUIGLEY, J.\n\nM. N. CONNOCK, J.\n\nMELINDA RICHARDS, J.\n\nS. J. MOORE, J.\n\nANDREW J. TINNEY, J.\n\nJACINTA FORBES, J.\n\nJ. DELANY, J.\n\nKATHRYN STYNES, J.\n\nJAMES GORTON, J.\n\nMICHAEL OSBORNE, J.\n\nS. A. O'MEARA, J.\n\nRICHARD ATTIWILL, J.\n\nAMANDA FOX, J.\n\nANDREA TSALAMANDRIS, J.\n\nP. R. D. GRAY, J.\n\nP. MATTHEWS, J.\n\nI. WALLER, J.\n\nC. M. HARRIS, J.\n\nA. J. WATSON, J.\n\n═════════════\n\nEndnotes\n\n1 General information\n\nSee [www.legislation.vic.gov.au](http://www.legislation.vic.gov.au) for Victorian Bills, Acts and current Versions of legislation and up-to-date legislative information.\n\nThe Supreme Court Library Rules 2024, S.R. No. 36/2024 were made on 23 May 2024 by the Judges of the Supreme Court under section 25 of the **Supreme Court Act 1986**, No. 110/1986 and came into operation on 1 July 2024: rule 3.\n\nThe Supreme Court Library Rules 2024 will sunset 10 years after the day of making on 23 May 2034 (see section 5 of the **Subordinate Legislation Act 1994**).\n\nINTERPRETATION OF LEGISLATION ACT 1984 (ILA)\n\nStyle changes\n\nSection 54A of the ILA authorises the making of the style changes set out in Schedule 1 to that Act.\n\nReferences to ILA s. 39B\n\nSidenotes which cite ILA s. 39B refer to section 39B of the ILA which provides that where an undivided regulation, rule or clause of a Schedule is amended by the insertion of one or more subregulations, subrules or subclauses the original regulation, rule or clause becomes subregulation, subrule or subclause (1) and is amended by the insertion of the expression \"(1)\" at the beginning of the original regulation, rule or clause.\n\nInterpretation\n\nAs from 1 January 2001, amendments to section 36 of the ILA have the following effects:\n\n• Headings\n\nAll headings included in a Statutory Rule which is made on or after  \n1 January 2001 form part of that Statutory Rule. Any heading inserted in a Statutory Rule which was made before 1 January 2001, by a Statutory Rule made on or after 1 January 2001, forms part of that Statutory Rule.  \nThis includes headings to Parts, Divisions or Subdivisions in a Schedule; Orders; Parts into which an Order is divided; clauses; regulations; rules; items; tables; columns; examples; diagrams; notes or forms.  \nSee section 36(1A)(2A)(2B).\n\n• Examples, diagrams or notes\n\nAll examples, diagrams or notes included in a Statutory Rule which is made on or after 1 January 2001 form part of that Statutory Rule. Any examples, diagrams or notes inserted in a Statutory Rule which was made before 1 January 2001, by a Statutory Rule made on or after 1 January 2001, form part of that Statutory Rule. See section 36(3A).\n\n• Punctuation\n\nAll punctuation included in a Statutory Rule which is made on or after  \n1 January 2001 forms part of that Statutory Rule. Any punctuation inserted in a Statutory Rule which was made before 1 January 2001, by a Statutory Rule made on or after 1 January 2001, forms part of that Statutory Rule.  \nSee section 36(3B).\n\n• Provision numbers\n\nAll provision numbers included in a Statutory Rule form part of that Statutory Rule, whether inserted in the Statutory Rule before, on or after  \n1 January 2001. Provision numbers include regulation numbers, rule numbers, subregulation numbers, subrule numbers, paragraphs and subparagraphs. See section 36(3C).\n\n• Location of \"legislative items\"\n\nA \"legislative item\" is a penalty, an example or a note. As from 13 October 2004, a legislative item relating to a provision of a Statutory Rule is taken to be at the foot of that provision even if it is preceded or followed by another legislative item that relates to that provision. For example, if a penalty at the foot of a provision is followed by a note, both of these legislative items will be regarded as being at the foot of that provision. See section 36B.\n\n• Other material\n\nAny explanatory memorandum, table of provisions, endnotes, index and other material printed after the Endnotes does not form part of a Statutory Rule. See section 36(3)(3D)(3E).\n\n2 Table of Amendments\n\nThere are no amendments made to the Supreme Court Library Rules 2024 by statutory rules, subordinate instruments and Acts.\n\n3 Explanatory details\n\n1. Rule 4(1): S.R. No. 20/2019 as amended by S.R. No. 95/2023. [↑](#endnote-ref-1)\n\n2. Rule 4(2): S.R. No. 104/2021. [↑](#endnote-ref-2)","sortOrder":0}],"analysis":{"kimi_summary":{"content_quality":"ok","complexity_score":3,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"The legislation maintains its original scope. It replaces and consolidates the Supreme Court Library Rules 2019 and the Supreme Court Library Fund Investment Rules 2021, but does not expand beyond the established purpose of governing the library and its fund. The Committee's functions remain essentially unchanged, with minor updates to composition (adding VCAT representation and clarifying lawyer appointments)."},"complexity_factors":["Short instrument: only 15 rules across 5 pages of substantive content","Minimal defined terms: only 4 definitions in Rule 5, with straightforward cross-references to other Acts","Simple governance structure: clear membership rules, quorum (5 members), and voting procedures","Limited conditional logic: no nested exceptions or complex triggering conditions","Single layer of subordinate legislation: made under clear authority (Supreme Court Act 1986, section 25)","Straightforward transitional provisions: preserves existing Committee members and treats the body as continuous"],"plain_english_summary":"**What this legislation does:**\n\nThese Rules set up the governance structure for the Supreme Court Library in Victoria — the main law library for the state's highest court. They establish a **Supreme Court Library Committee** to run the library and manage its investment fund.\n\n**Who it affects:**\n\n- **Judges and court staff** — the Committee includes Supreme Court, County Court, and Magistrates' Court judges, plus VCAT members\n- **Victorian lawyers** — four practising lawyers sit on the Committee, and all Victorian legal practitioners get access to the library\n- **Other courts and tribunals** — the Committee can (by agreement) manage library services for them too\n\n**Key features:**\n\n- **The Committee** has 10 members: the Chief Justice (or their nominee), two other Supreme Court judges, one County Court judge, one magistrate, one VCAT member, and four local lawyers appointed for two-year terms\n- **The Fund** — the Committee manages the Supreme Court Library Fund, which holds investments for the library's benefit. These must be held through a special nominee company controlled by judges\n- **Continuity** — existing Committee members keep their jobs when the new Rules start, and the Committee is treated as the same body despite the rule changes\n- **Access** — Victorian lawyers have a right to use the library (subject to any rules the Committee recommends)\n\n**Why it matters:**\n\nThis ensures the Supreme Court Library — a critical resource for justice in Victoria — has proper oversight, sustainable funding through managed investments, and remains accessible to the legal profession. It consolidates previous separate rules about the library and its investment fund into one instrument."},"flash_summary_failed":{"failed":true,"reason":"A positive credit balance is required for all requests, including BYOK, so fallback providers remain available. Add credits at https://vercel.com/d?to=%2F%5Bteam%5D%2F%7E%2Fai%3Fmodal%3Dtop-up to continue.","source":"analysis-cron"},"issue_detection":{"absurdities":[],"contradictions":[]},"summary":{"complexity_score":2,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"Based on the limited information available, there is no indication that the scope of this statutory rule has changed from its original intent. It appears to be a straightforward consolidation or remake of rules governing Supreme Court Library operations, likely replacing an earlier version of similar rules."},"complexity_factors":["Institutional/administrative rules are generally straightforward in structure","Narrow subject matter confined to library administration","Likely contains procedural rather than substantive legal obligations","Insufficient legislative text was provided to identify any hidden complexity","Statutory rules of this type typically follow standard templates, reducing interpretive difficulty"],"plain_english_summary":"These rules set out how the Supreme Court Library in Victoria is run — who may use it, how its services and materials are managed, and the standards of conduct and administration that apply. They affect judges, court staff, legal practitioners, library staff and public users, shaping access to a key legal research resource and the everyday practice of law in the state."},"flash_summary":{"complexity_score":3,"scope_assessment":{"changed":true,"description":"These Rules replace the 2019 Library Rules and the 2021 Investment Rules (Rule 4) and consolidate library governance and fund investment under the Supreme Court Library Committee (Rules 6, 13). They add a specified nominee-company structure for holding investments (Rule 13(3)), formalise appointment sources and practitioner access (Rules 7, 14), and preserve existing members by transitional provision (Rule 15)."},"complexity_factors":["Multiple appointing authorities and member types (Chief Justice, Council of Judges, Chief Judge, Chief Magistrate, VCAT President, Law Institute and Bar Council) — Rule 7","Combined governance and investment role concentrated in a single Committee with broad powers — Rule 6(3)","Mandatory investment structure requiring a nominee company with directors nominated by the Chief Justice and at least one (former) Judge — Rule 13(3)","Procedural rules (quorum, chair casting vote, secretary, power to create subcommittees) affecting decision-making and discretion — Rules 8–12","Revocation of prior rules and transitional provisions preserving incumbents, affecting continuity and implementation — Rules 4, 15","Ability to recommend additional Rules (including penalties) to the Judges, allowing future delegation of detail — Rule 14(1)"],"plain_english_summary":"These Rules create a Supreme Court Library Committee to manage the Supreme Court Library and its investment fund, replacing earlier rules. The Committee controls governance, may run services for other courts by agreement, and is responsible for investing Fund money (Rules 6, 13). Appointments combine judges, court nominees and four local practitioners; investments must be held via a nominee company with directors nominated by the Chief Justice (Rules 7, 13). Victorian legal practitioners retain access to the Library (Rule 14)."}},"importantCases":[],"_links":{"self":"/api/acts/supreme-court-library-rules-2024","history":"/api/acts/supreme-court-library-rules-2024/history","analysis":"/api/acts/supreme-court-library-rules-2024/analysis","conflicts":"/api/acts/supreme-court-library-rules-2024/conflicts","importantCases":"/api/acts/supreme-court-library-rules-2024/important-cases","documents":"/api/acts/supreme-court-library-rules-2024/documents"}}