{"id":"supreme-court-regulations-1985","name":"SUPREME COURT REGULATIONS 1985","slug":"supreme-court-regulations-1985","collection":"regulation","jurisdiction":"nt","status":"in_force","isInForce":true,"actNumber":null,"makingDate":null,"administeringDepartment":null,"currentVersion":{"id":177158,"registerId":"nt-supreme-court-regulations-1985-current","compilationNumber":null,"startDate":"2026-04-05","status":"InForce","reasons":null,"registeredAt":null},"sections":[{"sectionNumber":"1","sectionType":"section","heading":"SUPREME COURT REGULATIONS 1985","content":"NORTHERN TERRITORY OF AUSTRALIA\nSUPREME COURT REGULATIONS 1985\nAs in force at 3 November 2021\nTable of provisions\n1 Citation ............................................................................................ 1\n2 Definition.......................................................................................... 1\n3 Prescribed fee for taxation of bill of costs by Taxing Master ............ 1\n4 Fees for proceeding etc. .................................................................. 2\n5 Waiver or deferral of fee, or payment by instalment, in case of\nfinancial hardship............................................................................. 3\nSchedule\nENDNOTES\n\n\n\nNORTHERN TERRITORY OF AUSTRALIA\n____________________\nAs in force at 3 November 2021\n____________________\nSUPREME COURT REGULATIONS 1985\nRegulations under the Supreme Court Act 1979\n1 Citation\nThese Regulations may be cited as the Supreme Court\nRegulations 1985.\n2 Definition\nIn these Regulations:\nTaxing Master means the officer of the Court whose duty it is to tax\ncosts in the Court.\n3 Prescribed fee for taxation of bill of costs by Taxing Master\n(1) In this regulation:\nprescribed fee means the fee that a party entitled to be paid costs\nis required to pay to the Court for the taxation of a bill of costs by\nthe Taxing Master.\n(2) There is no prescribed fee if, before the commencement of a\ntaxation of a bill of costs, the Court or the Taxing Master makes an\norder by consent for payment of the costs in the bill.\n(3) The prescribed fee for a completed taxation of a bill of costs is 7.5%\nof the amount of costs allowed for the whole bill, exclusive of costs\nallowed under rule 63.75 of the Supreme Court Rules 1987 for GST\npaid or payable on other taxed costs in the bill.\n(4) If the Taxing Master commences to tax a bill of costs but does not\ncomplete the taxation because he or she makes an order by\nconsent for payment of costs, or for any other reason, the Taxing\nMaster may order that the amount of costs allowed for the part of\nthe bill that has been taxed is the amount on which the prescribed\nfee is to be calculated, and the prescribed fee is 7.5% of that\namount.\n\nSupreme Court Regulations 1985 2\n(5) In an order stating the amount of costs allowed for a bill of costs the\nTaxing Master must, if a prescribed fee is payable, specify the\namount of the prescribed fee and add it to the amount of the costs\nallowed.\n(6) Subject to subregulation (7), a party who is required to pay a\nprescribed fee must do so 28 days after the Taxing Master makes\nthe order allowing costs in the bill of costs.\n(7) If a party to a taxation proceeding applies under rule 63.55 of the\nSupreme Court Rules 1987:\n(a) to the Taxing Master for reconsideration of a decision made by\nthe Taxing Master; or\n(b) to a Judge for a review of an order of the Taxing Master;\nthe party who is required to pay the prescribed fee need not do so\nuntil 14 days after the determination of the application.\n(8) Immediately after a party who is required to pay a prescribed fee\ndoes so, the party liable to pay the costs of that party is liable to pay\nthat party an amount equal to the prescribed fee.\n4 Fees for proceeding etc.\n(1) A fee specified in the Schedule is payable to the Court for the item\nspecified opposite the fee.\n(2) Despite subregulation (1), no fee is payable to the Court:\n(a) for an adoption matter; or\n(b) for a case stated procedure; or\n(c) for a reference to the Full Court; or\n(d) for a criminal matter; or\n(e) by a person acting for, or by the authority of, the Territory.\n(3) A person exempt under subregulation (2) from paying a fee is\nentitled to recover, as part of a judgment debt as if it were a cost\nincurred, an amount equal to the fee that would, but for that\nsubregulation, have been payable.\n(4) A person who recovers a fee under subregulation (3) must pay to\nthe Court an amount equal to the fee.\n\nSupreme Court Regulations 1985 3\n5 Waiver or deferral of fee, or payment by instalment, in case of\nfinancial hardship\n(1) If a Registrar is of the opinion that the payment of a fee specified in\nthe Schedule would cause financial hardship to the party who must\npay the fee, the Registrar may do one or more of the following:\n(a) waive payment of the whole or part of the fee;\n(b) defer payment of the whole or part of the fee;\n(c) permit the party to pay the fee in instalments.\n(2) The Registrar may grant a waiver or deferral or permission under\nsubregulation (1) on conditions the Registrar considers appropriate,\nand may change those conditions at any time by notice to the party.\n(3) The Registrar may cancel a deferral or permission at any time by\nnotice to the party, in which case any part of the fee that remains\noutstanding becomes immediately payable.\n(4) A party to whom a deferral or permission has been granted cannot,\nwithout leave of the Court, lodge either of the following if any part of\nthe fee remains unpaid:\n(a) an application for leave to discontinue the proceeding;\n(b) if leave is not required – a notice of discontinuance of the\nproceeding.\n(5) If an amount is not paid when it becomes due under this regulation:\n(a) the party liable to pay the amount cannot take any further step\nin the proceeding without the leave of the Court until the\namount is paid; and\n(b) the amount may be recovered as a debt due to the Territory.\n\nSchedule\nSupreme Court Regulations 1985 4\nSchedule\nregulation 4\nPART 1 – FEES PAYABLE FOR PROCEEDINGS IN THE\nCOURT OF APPEAL\nItem\nNo.\nFee (revenue units)\n1 Filing of originating process:\n– corporation\n– otherwise\n3 264\n1 941\n2 Notice of cross appeal:\n– corporation\n– otherwise\n2 308\n1 268\n3 Searches 25 per search\n4 Photocopying by Supreme Court staff 2 per page\nNote:\nFees payable for service of documents by the sheriff or an officer of the sheriff are set out in\nthe Schedule to the Sheriff Regulations 1967.\nPART 2 – FEES PAYABLE FOR ALL OTHER PROCEEDINGS IN THE\nSUPREME COURT\nItem\nNo.\nFee (revenue\nunits)\n1 Filing of originating process for which no other\nfee is specifically provided:\n– corporation\n– otherwise\n2 018\n1 039\n\nSchedule\nSupreme Court Regulations 1985 5\n2 Application to be admitted as a local lawyer\nunder section 25(1) of the Legal Profession\nAct 2006\n353\n3 Setting down for hearing:\n– corporation\n– otherwise\n2 320\n1 280\n4 Daily hearing fee\n– corporation\n– otherwise\n2 208\n1 176\n5 Appeal from Associate Judge's decision 244\n6 Filing of writs for enforcement of judgment\ndebts\n120\n7 Searches 25 per search\n8 Photocopying by Supreme Court staff 2 per page\nNote:\nFees payable for service of documents by the sheriff or an officer of the sheriff are set out in\nthe Schedule to the Sheriff Regulations 1967.\n\nENDNOTES\nSupreme Court Regulations 1985 6\nENDNOTES\n1 KEY\nKey to abbreviations\namd = amended od = order\napp = appendix om = omitted\nbl = by-law pt = Part\nch = Chapter r = regulation/rule\ncl = clause rem = remainder\ndiv = Division renum = renumbered\nexp = expires/expired rep = repealed\nf = forms s = section\nGaz = Gazette sch = Schedule\nhdg = heading sdiv = Subdivision\nins = inserted SL = Subordinate Legislation\nlt = long title sub = substituted\nnc = not commenced\n2 LIST OF LEGISLATION\nSupreme Court Regulations (SL No. 13, 1985)\nNotified 3 July 1985\nCommenced 3 July 1985\nAmendments of Supreme Court Regulations (SL No. 53, 1990)\nNotified 21 December 1990\nCommenced 21 December 1990\nAmendment of Supreme Court Regulations (SL No. 31, 1992)\nNotified 8 July 1992\nCommenced 8 July 1992\nAmendments of the Supreme Court Regulations (SL No. 41, 1993)\nNotified 1 November 1993\nCommenced 1 November 1993\nAmendments of Supreme Court Regulations (SL No. 13, 1998)\nNotified 10 June 1998\nCommenced 1 July 1998 (r 1)\nAmendments of Supreme Court Regulations (SL No. 48, 2000)\nNotified 11 October 2000\nCommenced 11 October 2000\nCourts Legislation Amendment (Revenue Units) Regulations 2006 (SL No. 36, 2006)\nNotified 8 November 2006\nCommenced 8 November 2006\nSupreme Court Amendment (Admission Fees) Regulations 2007 (SL No. 17, 2007)\nNotified 1 August 2007\nCommenced 1 August 2007\n\nENDNOTES\nSupreme Court Regulations 1985 7\nSupreme Court Amendment Regulations 2009 (SL No. 27, 2009)\nNotified 2 September 2009\nCommenced 2 September 2009\nFees and Charges Amendment Regulations 2009 (SL No. 34, 2009)\nNotified 14 December 2009\nCommenced 1 January 2010 (r 2)\nSupreme Court Amendment Regulations 2011 (SL No. 48, 2011)\nNotified 23 November 2011\nCommenced 23 November 2011\nFees and Charges (Attorney-General and Justice Portfolio) Amendment\nRegulations 2013 (SL No. 27, 2013)\nNotified 28 June 2013\nCommenced 1 July 2013 (r 2)\nSupreme Court Amendment (Associate Judges) Act 2017 (Act No. 18, 2017)\nAssent date 5 September 2017\nCommenced 22 November 2017 (Gaz S84, 21 November 2017, p 1)\nJustice Legislation Amendment Regulations 2021 (SL No. 18, 2021)\nNotified 3 November 2021\nCommenced 3 November 2021\n3 SAVINGS AND TRANSITIONAL PROVISIONS\nr 4 Amendments of Supreme Court Regulations (SL No. 48, 2000)\n4 GENERAL AMENDMENTS\nGeneral amendments of a formal nature (which are not referred to in the table\nof amendments to this reprint) are made by the Interpretation Legislation\nAmendment Act 2018 (Act No. 22, 2018) to: rr 1 and 3 and sch 1.\n5 LIST OF AMENDMENTS\nr 2 sub No. 41, 1993, r 1\namd No. 48, 2011, r 4\nr 3 hdg amd No. 48, 2011, r 4\nr 3 amd No. 41, 1993, r 2\nsub No. 48, 2000, r 2\namd No. 27, 2009, r 4; No. 48, 2011, r 4\nr 4 hdg amd No. 48, 2011, r 4\nr 4 ins No. 53, 1990\namd No. 31, 1992; No. 13, 1998, r 2\nsub No. 48, 2000, r 2\namd No. 48, 2011, r 4\nr 5 ins No. 36, 2006, r 17\nsub No. 48, 2011, r 3\n\nENDNOTES\nSupreme Court Regulations 1985 8\nsch ins No. 53, 1990\nsub No. 13, 1998, r 3\namd No. 48, 2000, r 3\nsub No. 36, 2006, r 18\namd No. 17, 2007, r 3; No. 34, 2009, r 10\nsub No. 27, 2013, r 10\namd Act No. 18, 2017, s 36; No. 18, 2021, r 5","sortOrder":0}],"analysis":{"flash_summary":{"complexity_score":3,"scope_assessment":{"changed":true,"description":"The regulations' scope has been altered since enactment: a financial‑hardship provision (r 5) was inserted (see endnotes: r 5 ins No. 36, 2006), fee items and amounts in the Schedule have been amended at multiple times, and exemptions and procedural cross‑references have been added. These amendments expand administrative discretion and modify who pays when and how fees are recovered."},"complexity_factors":["Formulaic 7.5% Taxing Master fee and its application to completed or partially completed taxations (r 3(3)–(4))","Interaction with Supreme Court Rules 1987 (cross‑references to rules 63.75 and 63.55) affecting GST treatment and review timelines (r 3(3), r 3(7))","Registrar's discretion to waive, defer, or allow instalments and to impose or change conditions (r 5(1)–(3))","Exemptions from fees for certain matters and the mechanism for recovering and remitting those fees (r 4(2)–(4))","Payment deadlines, stays pending review, and recovery as a Territory debt (r 3(6)–(8); r 5(4)–(5))","Schedule of diverse fee items expressed in revenue units that must be updated with legislative amendments"],"plain_english_summary":"These regulations set the Court's fee rules in the Northern Territory Supreme Court: they fix a 7.5% Taxing Master fee on taxed bills of costs, list filing, hearing and search fees in a Schedule, and identify some fee exemptions. They also set payment timings and allow recovery as a debt. The Registrar may waive, defer or permit instalment payments for financial hardship (r 5), creating administrative discretion, changing up‑front cash requirements and imposing compliance and enforcement steps (r 3, r 5)."},"flash_summary_failed":{"failed":true,"reason":"Unauthenticated. Configure AI_GATEWAY_API_KEY or use a provider module. Learn more: https://ai-sdk.dev/unauthenticated-ai-gateway","source":"analysis-cron"},"issue_detection":{"absurdities":[],"contradictions":[]},"summary":{"complexity_score":4,"scope_assessment":{"changed":true,"description":"The regulations were originally made in 1985 but have been reprinted at least 20 times (Reprint No: REPS020R1), with the current version commencing 3 November 2021. This strongly indicates the scope and content has evolved substantially from the original 1985 instrument, though the specific nature of those changes cannot be determined from the metadata provided."},"complexity_factors":["The document provided is largely a metadata shell with minimal substantive content, making full complexity assessment impossible","Supreme Court regulations typically involve technical legal procedural requirements that can be difficult for laypeople to navigate","The gap between the 1985 origin date and 2021 commencement date suggests multiple amendments over decades, which can create layered complexity","Court fee structures and procedural rules often require cross-referencing with other legislation (e.g., the Supreme Court Act itself)","Reprint number (REPS020R1) indicates this is at least the 20th reprint, suggesting significant evolution of the rules over time"],"plain_english_summary":"These regulations set out the practical rules for how the Supreme Court operates—covering fees, administrative procedures and case management—and apply to anyone dealing with the Court, including litigants and their lawyers. They matter because non‑compliance can lead to rejected filings, penalties or delays. Although originally made in 1985, the version in force from 3 November 2021 is the operative one to follow."},"kimi_summary":{"content_quality":"ok","complexity_score":3,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"The legislation remains focused on its original purpose of setting court fees and related administrative matters. While the Schedule has been updated multiple times to adjust fee amounts (as shown in the endnotes), the core scope—regulating fees for Supreme Court proceedings and providing hardship provisions—has not expanded beyond its original intent."},"complexity_factors":["Short length (5 regulations plus Schedule)","Minimal cross-referencing (only references to Supreme Court Rules 1987 and Sheriff Regulations 1967)","Straightforward conditional logic (if/then structures in regulations 3 and 5)","Simple defined terms (only 2 defined terms: 'Taxing Master' and 'prescribed fee')","Clear structure with Parts in Schedule separating Court of Appeal fees from other proceedings","Use of 'revenue units' for fees (a standard indexing mechanism in NT legislation) rather than dollar amounts, which simplifies updates but requires external reference to current value"],"plain_english_summary":"**What this legislation does:**\n\nThese regulations set out the fees people and companies must pay to use the Northern Territory Supreme Court, and the rules for when those fees can be waived, deferred, or paid in instalments.\n\n**Key things covered:**\n\n*   **Court fees:** A detailed list of charges for starting court cases, filing appeals, and other court services. Fees are higher for corporations than for individuals. For example, a company pays 3,264 \"revenue units\" to file an originating process in the Court of Appeal, while an individual pays 1,941.\n*   **Taxation of costs:** When a court official (the \"Taxing Master\") reviews a lawyer's bill to decide if the costs are fair, the person receiving the costs must pay a fee of 7.5% of the total costs allowed. This fee is then added to what the losing party must pay.\n*   **Exemptions:** No fees are charged for criminal cases, adoption matters, cases stated (a procedure where a lower court asks the Supreme Court a legal question), references to the Full Court, or when the Northern Territory government is the party.\n*   **Financial hardship:** If paying a fee would cause financial hardship, a Registrar (a senior court officer) can waive the fee entirely, let the person pay later, or allow payment in instalments. However, if fees remain unpaid, the person cannot take further steps in their case or discontinue it without the Court's permission.\n\n**Who it affects:**\n\nAnyone using the Northern Territory Supreme Court—individuals, companies, lawyers, and government bodies.\n\n**Why it matters:**\n\nThese regulations determine the cost of accessing justice in the NT's highest court. The financial hardship provisions are particularly important as they provide a safety net for people who cannot afford court fees, ensuring that cost does not completely bar access to the courts."}},"importantCases":[],"_links":{"self":"/api/acts/supreme-court-regulations-1985","history":"/api/acts/supreme-court-regulations-1985/history","analysis":"/api/acts/supreme-court-regulations-1985/analysis","conflicts":"/api/acts/supreme-court-regulations-1985/conflicts","importantCases":"/api/acts/supreme-court-regulations-1985/important-cases","documents":"/api/acts/supreme-court-regulations-1985/documents"}}