The regulations revolve around a small set of operational concepts that determine how the Appeal Costs Fund operates in practice. Each concept is established by a regulation or through cross-reference to a section of the Act.

Fee-triggering events and prescribed fees: The regulations identify specific events that attract prescribed fees for the statutory scheme. Reg 4 prescribes fees for two distinct Supreme Court/Magistrates Court events, namely sealing of a writ issued out of the Supreme Court (30 fee units) and filing a claim in the Magistrates Court (5 fee units). Reg 5 prescribes a fee of 2 fee units for summary cases under s 5(2) of the Act. Those fees are the prescribed contributions or triggers the Act requires, as the regulations state they are "for the purposes of" the cited sections of the Act, so they convert the Act’s fee authorization into a concrete impost.

Maximum amount payable from the Fund and indexation: Reg 6 defines "CPI figure for Hobart" and "percentage change" for indexation, and sets concrete arithmetic rules. The starting point is $18,000 for the financial year ending 30 June 2024. For each subsequent financial year the maximum is increased by the percentage change defined, using averages of the Hobart CPI for two different four-quarter periods, with a safeguard that if the calculated amount would be less than the immediately preceding year’s maximum, the previous year’s maximum remains. The regulation also imposes a publication obligation for the current maximum on a Department-maintained website.

Taxation, allocatur and certificates: Reg 7 makes clear that the taxing officer must state the outcome of a taxation either via an allocatur written on the bill of costs or by a certificate. The regulation imposes a 48-hour minimum delay before a final allocatur or certificate is signed, requires initialling of alterations, permits interim allocaturs or certificates for parts of a bill, and implicitly sets expectations for finalisation procedures.

Objections and review framework: Reg 8 requires that objections to taxation be in writing, concise, and specify the items or parts objected to plus grounds and reasons. It allows the taxing officer, while considering an objection, to sign allocaturs for the remainder of the bill and makes an allocatur or certificate final and conclusive in respect of matters not objected to.

Internal review and judicial review: Reg 9 obliges the taxing officer to reconsider taxation on an objection, permits receipt of further evidence, and requires the taxing officer to state reasons and special facts if requested. It limits further amendment of an allocatur or certificate after signature except to correct clerical or manifest errors. Reg 10 prescribes a 14-day filing period for an application to a judge to review a taxing officer’s decision and states that, unless the judge orders otherwise, the judge will hear the matter on the same evidence as before the taxing officer.

Administrative inspection and application formalities: Reg 11 empowers the Registrar or authorised officers (authorised in writing) to inspect court fee-transmission records required by s 6 of the Act. Reg 12 requires payment applications to be in writing and to specify the grounds relied upon. These provisions give the administration record access and require applicants to state their case in writing.

Publication and administration: The regulations require public publication of the maximum payable amount (reg 6(3)) and record that the instrument is administered by the Department of Justice (end note). They also note display and notification references under the Rules Publication Act 1953 and Gazette notification.

Taken together, the main concepts fix monetary triggers and caps, set indexation mechanics, create a tightly-specified taxation and review process centred on the taxing officer with a route to judicial review, and impose record-inspection and application-formality requirements.

These regulations affect five discrete groups identified by the source text and the structural roles those groups play in the statutory scheme.

1. Persons who initiate proceedings that engage the statutory fees. The prescribed fees in reg 4 mean that persons who cause a writ to be sealed out of the Supreme Court or who file a claim in the Magistrates Court civil division are liable to pay the specified fee units for the purposes of s 5(1) of the Act. Similarly, parties in summary cases that fall under s 5(2) are liable to pay 2 fee units (reg 5). The regulations therefore place a monetary compliance burden on litigants whose proceedings fall within the fee-triggering sections of the Act.

2. Applicants for payments from the Appeal Costs Fund. Reg 6 sets the maximum amount that the Fund will pay to a person in respect of an indemnity certificate, a certificate under s 15(1)(c) of the Act, or "some other entitlement conferred by the Act" (reg 6(2)). Reg 12 requires that an application for payment from the Fund be made in writing and specify the grounds relied upon. Therefore any prospective beneficiary seeking payment from the Fund must comply with those application formality requirements and will be subject to the maximum payable caps.

3. Taxing officers and judicial officers. Reg 7 through reg 10 set duties for taxing officers who staff the taxation process under s 19A of the Act and for judges who hear reviews of taxation. Taxing officers must record allocaturs or certificates, respect the 48-hour delay before signing final allocaturs, initial alterations, and may issue interim allocaturs (reg 7). The taxing officer must receive and reconsider objections (regs 8 and 9). Judges may receive applications for review within the prescribed timeframe and will normally hear the matter on the same evidence (reg 10). The regulations therefore affect the procedural work and decision-making responsibilities of these officers.

4. Court Registrars and authorised officers. Reg 11 permits the Registrar or an authorised officer (an officer of the Supreme Court authorised in writing by the Registrar) to inspect records relating to fees payable for transmission to the Registrar under s 6 of the Act. That gives court administration a specific investigatory and record-access role, and requires the Registrar to manage authorisations for authorised officers.

5. The Department of Justice and the public. The Department is identified as the administering agency (instrument note), and reg 6(3) requires publication of the maximum payable amount on a publicly accessible Department-maintained website. This creates an information duty for the Department and affects the public and stakeholders who must consult that published cap to understand Fund entitlements.

Who pays and who receives. Fees prescribed in regs 4 and 5 are payable by litigants engaging the specified court actions for the purposes of the Act, while Fund payments are paid to persons who receive indemnity certificates or other entitlements under the Act, subject to the caps in reg 6. The taxing officer, Registrar, authorised officers and judges act as decision-makers. The Department of Justice is the administrative custodian responsible for publication and ongoing administration.

The regulations do not change eligibility criteria in the Act for access to the Fund nor do they define "fee unit" in this instrument, so fee-unit monetary value and eligibility rules remain matters governed elsewhere. The regulations also do not create criminal offences or civil penalties; their effects are procedural, monetary and administrative.

The regulations allocate duties and rights across court officers, applicants, litigants and the Department. Below are the principal duties and the correlative rights grounded in the text.

Duties on litigants and applicants

• Payment of prescribed fees: Persons engaging the events in reg 4 or reg 5 must pay the specified fee units for the purposes of the referenced sections of the Act. The regulation directly prescribes the fee quantum linked to particular court filings (reg 4 and reg 5).
• Application formalities for Fund payment: Any person seeking payment from the Fund must make an application in writing and specify the grounds on which the applicant relies (reg 12). That is a strict formal duty to disclose the applicant’s case in writing.

Duties on taxing officers

• Form of outcome: After taxing a bill of costs under s 19A of the Act the taxing officer must state the result by an allocatur written on the bill of costs or by a certificate (reg 7(1)).
• Waiting period: The taxing officer must not sign a final allocatur or certificate until at least 48 hours after the conclusion of the taxation (reg 7(2)).
• Interim and partial allocaturs: The taxing officer may make an interim allocatur or certificate in respect of any part of a bill pending the conclusion of the taxation (reg 7(4)). The taxing officer may also sign allocaturs for unobjected remainder while an objection is considered (reg 8(2)).
• Alteration protocol: Any interlineation, alteration or erasure in a certificate must be initialled by the taxing officer (reg 7(3)).
• Obligation to review on objection: On an application for review under s 19A(5) of the Act the taxing officer must reconsider and review the taxation on the objection (reg 9(1)), may receive further evidence (reg 9(2)) and, if required by the applicant, must state grounds and any special facts relating to the objection (reg 9(2)(a)-(b)).
• Limitation on post-signature amendment: A taxing officer must not review or amend a signed allocatur or certificate except to correct a clerical or manifest error before payment (reg 9(3)).

Rights and procedural protections for objectors and applicants

• Right to serve a written objection: A person seeking review under s 19A(5) of the Act must serve a written objection specifying items objected to and the grounds and reasons (reg 8(1)(a)-(b)). The objector may serve that objection before the final allocatur or at an earlier time fixed by the taxing officer.
• Finality for unobjected matters: An allocatur or certificate is final and conclusive as to all matters not objected to under reg 8(1) (reg 8(3)). This gives objectors an incentive to identify contested items precisely and to do so within the timing directed by the taxing officer.
• Right to further consideration: The objector has a right to have the taxing officer reconsider the taxation on the objection, including presenting further evidence (reg 9).
• Right to judicial review within set timeframes: An application to a judge for review of a taxing officer’s decision must be filed within 14 days of the allocatur or certificate, subject to extension by the judge or the taxing officer (reg 10(1)). The presumption is that the judge will hear the matter on the same evidence as before the taxing officer unless the judge orders otherwise (reg 10(2)).

Duties on the Registrar and authorised officers

• Record inspection: The Registrar or an authorised officer (authorised in writing by the Registrar) may inspect any records kept by the proper officer of a court relating to fees payable for transmission to the Registrar under s 6 of the Act (reg 11). That creates an administrative duty to maintain and make available records for inspection.

Duties on the Department

• Publication: The Department must publish the maximum amount payable on a website accessible to the general public while the amount is in force (reg 6(3)). The instrument identifies the Department of Justice as the administering agency.

Duties in relation to the Fund’s quantum

• Setting the cap and indexation: Reg 6 imposes a formula-based approach to setting the annual maximum payable per person, starting at $18,000 for the year ending 30 June 2024 and indexed by the Hobart CPI-based percentage change for subsequent financial years, with a non-decreasing safeguard (reg 6(2)).

Rights not created

• The regulations do not create criminal sanctions, express monetary penalties or new substantive eligibility criteria; they are procedural and numeric in operation. Rights to payment from the Fund depend on the Act’s substantive entitlements, while these regulations set the timeframes, forms and limits that apply to those statutory rights.

In short, the regulations assign procedural duties to court officers and administration, formal requirements and fee liabilities to applicants and litigants, publication duties to the Department, and a review pathway to a judge with defined time limits.

The instrument itself, read in full, does not introduce express criminal offences, monetary fines, or administrative penalties. Instead it establishes procedural controls, administrative powers and finality rules that collectively function as the enforcement architecture for taxation and Fund payments under the Act. The statutes and regulations cited in the instrument are the source of those procedural enforcement mechanisms.

Finality and conclusive effect

• Allocatur or certificate finality: Reg 8(3) provides that an allocatur or certificate of a taxing officer is final and conclusive as to all matters not objected to under reg 8(1). This confers legal finality on the taxation process for unobjected items and reduces subsequent avenues for challenge for matters that were not timely objected to.

Time-limited review rights

• Judicial review timeframe: Reg 10(1) sets a 14-day filing period from the date of the allocatur or certificate for an application to a judge to review a taxation under s 19A(6) of the Act, unless the judge or the taxing officer allows another period. The short prescribed window concentrates challenge activity into an early period after taxation.

Administrative controls and record inspection

• Inspection power: Reg 11 permits the Registrar or an authorised officer to inspect records relating to fees payable for transmission to the Registrar under s 6 of the Act. The power applies to records kept by the proper officer of a court, giving the court administration oversight and a mechanism to verify compliance with fee transmission obligations.

Signatory and procedural constraints

• Delay before final signature: Reg 7(2) requires that the taxing officer must not sign a final allocatur or certificate until at least 48 hours after the conclusion of the taxation. This is an internal procedural control designed to ensure a brief cooling-off window and an opportunity to lodge objections or for any final administrative matters to be attended to.
• Initialling of alterations: Reg 7(3) requires initialling of any interlineation, alteration or erasure in a certificate by the taxing officer. This records who made amendments and deters unauthorised changes.

Limits on post-signature amendment

• Reg 9(3) constrains further review of a signed allocatur or certificate, permitting amendment only to correct a clerical or manifest error before payment. This reduces the scope for revisiting determinations after finalisation.

Enforcement by outcome rather than penal sanction

• The regulations’ enforcement is achieved through constraining procedural rights, defining finality, setting timetables, and authorising record inspection, rather than through express penal provisions. The risk of non-compliance for parties lies principally in procedural loss (for example, loss of opportunity to object, or being bound by an allocatur) rather than in specified fines.

What the regulations do not do

• They do not prescribe fines, imprisonment, or administrative penalties for failure to pay or to comply with application formalities. They do not set fee-unit monetary value within this instrument. Enforcement of fee payment obligations, and the consequences of failing to pay, are matters the Act or other court rules may address; the regulations themselves are limited to procedural prescription and numeric caps.

When enforcement matters arise, the practical consequences specified by the regulations are procedural: the operation of allocatur finality, time-limited judicial review, the taxing officer’s limited post-signature amendment power, and administrative inspection rights. Those constructs operate as the main levers of enforcement and certainty in taxation and Fund payment processes under the instrument.

The regulations operate as subordinate legislation under the Appeal Costs Fund Act 1968, and they explicitly cross-reference sections of that Act. In addition, the instrument references other Commonwealth statutes and the Rules Publication Act 1953 in relation to display and notification. The interactions fall into three categories: (1) operationalising the Act, (2) referencing statistical measures under Commonwealth law for indexation, and (3) publication and display formalities.

Operationalising the Act

• The regulations are framed to give effect to specific provisions in the Act. They state they are "for the purposes of" particular sections of the Act and thereby provide the numerical and procedural particulars that the Act either authorises or requires. Examples include:
  • Reg 4 prescribes the fee amounts for the purposes of s 5(1) of the Act.
  • Reg 5 prescribes the fee amount for the purposes of s 5(2) of the Act.
  • Reg 6 sets the maximum payable amount for the purposes of s 7A of the Act and refers to certificates in s 15(1)(c).
  • Regs 7-10 provide procedural detail for taxation and review under s 19A of the Act.
  • Reg 11 provides for inspection of records in relation to fees payable for transmission under s 6 of the Act.
  • Reg 12 prescribes how applications for payment from the Fund must be made in writing, a formal requirement feeding into the Act’s payment mechanics.

Indexation and reliance on Commonwealth statistical law

• Reg 6(1) defines the "CPI figure for Hobart" as the Consumer Price Index (All Groups) Number for Hobart "published by the Australian Statistician under the authority of the Census and Statistics Act 1905 of the Commonwealth". This expressly imports a Commonwealth-produced statistical series as the indexation base for the Fund’s maximum payable amount. The regulation therefore depends on the Commonwealth statistical apparatus for its annual percentage change calculation.
• The regulation defines "percentage change" by reference to averages of four-quarter CPI figures ending on 31 December for two successive multi-year periods. That creates a mechanical link between the national statistical output and the Tasmanian Fund cap.

Publication and statutory instrument display

• Reg 6(3) requires publication of the maximum amount payable on a website maintained by or on behalf of the Department. The instrument’s display and notification are linked to the Rules Publication Act 1953, under which it is displayed and numbered. The instrument also records notification in the Gazette on 29 November 2023. Those references place the regulations within the standard statutory instrument publication framework.

Interplay with court rules and administrative roles

• Reg 11 speaks to records "kept by the proper officer of a court" for fees payable for transmission to the Registrar under s 6 of the Act, thereby linking the regulations to existing court administrative record-keeping practices. This implies operational interaction with court rules and registry processes, although the regulations do not specify or amend court rules themselves.

Limits and boundaries

• The regulations do not purport to define or alter substantive eligibility criteria under the Act; rather they provide monetary amounts, procedural steps and administrative powers. The regulations do not define "fee unit" or other court-wide definitions, so interaction with any statute or instrument that defines fee units is implicit and necessary for implementation.

In sum, the regulations function as subordinate operational detail to the Act, import Hobart CPI figures from Commonwealth statistical output for indexation, and sit within the formal publication regime under the Rules Publication Act 1953. They presuppose interaction with court administrative records and with whatever instruments set the monetary value of a fee unit.

The regulations themselves include only a short recorded provenance and no history of amendment within the text provided.

Original instrument and commencement

• The regulations are titled the Appeal Costs Fund Regulations 2023 (reg 1) and they commenced on 11 December 2023 (reg 2). The instrument records that it was notified in the Gazette on 29 November 2023, and that it has been displayed and numbered in accordance with the Rules Publication Act 1953. The instrument also records that it is administered in the Department of Justice.

No recorded subsequent amendments in the instrument

• The text provided contains no amending provisions, savings, transitional arrangements beyond the indexation rules, or later commencements. There is no schedule of amendments and no history of consolidation within the instrument. Absent further legislative instruments or later amending regulations, the instrument’s original provisions as printed are the operative text.

Indexation mechanism that reduces need for frequent amendment

• Reg 6 includes a built-in mechanism for adjusting the maximum amount payable from the Fund for subsequent financial years. It sets a base amount of $18,000 for the financial year ending 30 June 2024 and prescribes a formula, based on the Hobart CPI, for subsequent years with an explicit non-decreasing safeguard (reg 6(2)). That automatic indexation reduces the need for frequent legislative amendment to adjust annual maximums, provided the policy intention is to maintain purchasing-power parity in line with Hobart CPI movements. The regulation also mandates publication of the maximum amount on a Department-maintained website while it is in force (reg 6(3)), creating an administrative path for notifying stakeholders of indexation-driven changes without formal amendment to the regulations themselves.

Potential amendment triggers not in the instrument

• The instrument does not set out a mechanism for changing the prescribed fees in regs 4 and 5 or the other procedural obligations; such changes would require a formal amending regulation. The instrument also does not specify whether the Department will review the indexation methodology or the base amount in future; any change would appear as an amendment to these regulations or to the Act, not by administrative notice alone.

Administrative record

• The instrument’s end-note assigns administration to the Department of Justice, which is the agency responsible for implementing and publishing the cap and for managing the administrative functions created by the regulations. Any future administrative adjustments that do not require regulation amendment (for example, publication of a new maximum as calculated under reg 6) will be carried out by that Department in accordance with reg 6(3).

In short, the instrument records its original making and notification but contains no recorded amendments. It includes an internal indexation rule designed to obviate year-by-year legislative changes to the Fund cap. Any future changes to prescribed fees or procedural rules will require formal amendment to the regulations.

The text provided contains no cases, judicial decisions, or prior litigation that have interpreted these regulations. The instrument cites various sections of the Appeal Costs Fund Act 1968 and references judicial review mechanisms available under s 19A(6) of the Act, but it does not document any litigation applying or construing these regulations.

Procedural paths to litigation envisaged by the regulations

• The regulations themselves provide the procedural pathway for litigated review. Reg 8 allows a person to object to a taxation in writing and to have the taxing officer reconsider it under reg 9. Reg 10 expressly provides for a person to apply to a judge to review a taxing officer’s decision under s 19A(6) of the Act, with a 14-day filing window from the date of the allocatur or certificate, unless extended by the judge or by the taxing officer. The regulation also states that, unless the judge otherwise directs, the judge will hear the matter on the same evidence as was before the taxing officer. These rules describe the procedural steps that would be involved in any litigation but do not themselves reference any prior cases.

No reported decisions in the instrument

• There are no named cases or citations in the regulations. The instrument therefore contains no litigation history. Any case law that may in future construe the allocation of duties, the meaning of finality, the application of allocatur mechanics, or the indexation formula is beyond the instrument and is not cited here.

Practical implication for research

• To locate litigation that might subsequently interpret these provisions, a reader will need to search Tasmanian Supreme Court decisions or other relevant case law databases for appeals or challenges that reference the Appeal Costs Fund Act 1968 or these regulations, and for judicial consideration of s 19A taxation processes. The regulations, as drafted, provide the procedural scaffolding that litigation would engage, particularly in disputes about the taxing officer’s determinations, objections, and the application of the 48-hour rule or the 14-day review period.

In summary, the instrument contains no litigation history and sets out the statutorily-prescribed procedural routes by which disputes may be brought, updated and reviewed, should litigation arise.

The regulations are short but contain several details and timing rules that can produce practical traps for practitioners if overlooked. These "gotchas" are direct consequences of the instrument’s language.

Fee quantum versus fee-unit value

• The instrument prescribes fees in "fee units" (regs 4 and 5) but does not define the monetary value of a fee unit. Practitioners must therefore identify separately the current monetary value of a fee unit under the relevant fees instrument or legislation. Failure to convert fee units to their monetary equivalent may result in underpayment or non-compliance.

Different fees for different filings

• Reg 4 prescribes two distinct fees for events under s 5(1) of the Act: 30 fee units for sealing a writ to be issued out of the Supreme Court, and 5 fee units for filing a claim in the Magistrates Court (Civil Division). Reg 5 prescribes 2 fee units for summary cases under s 5(2). These are not interchangeable; the specific event determines the fee. Misidentifying the correct triggering event may lead to paying the wrong fee.

Strict written objection form and timing constraints

• An objection to taxation must be served in writing, specifying the items objected to and the grounds and reasons, and it must be served before the final allocatur or at an earlier time fixed by the taxing officer (reg 8(1)). If an item is not objected to in that written form and within that timing, reg 8(3) makes the allocatur final and conclusive as to that item. Practitioners should ensure objections are concise, itemised and filed within the specified window.

48-hour rule before final signature

• Reg 7(2) bars the taxing officer from signing a final allocatur or certificate until at least 48 hours after the conclusion of taxation. This period may be relevant for those seeking to perfect service of objections or to secure further information before the allocatur becomes final. However, the taxing officer may issue interim allocaturs for parts of the bill (reg 7(4)) and may sign allocaturs for the remainder while considering an objection (reg 8(2)), so partial finality can occur.

Interim allocatur and partial finality risk

• The taxing officer may make an interim allocatur or certificate for a part of the bill pending completion of taxation (reg 7(4)). Similarly, the taxing officer may sign an allocatur for the remainder of the bill while an objection remains pending (reg 8(2)). These powers create the risk that some components become final while contested parts remain in play. Objectors should be careful to preserve rights over individual items.

Limited post-signature amendment

• Reg 9(3) restricts a taxing officer from reviewing or amending an allocatur or certificate after it is signed, except to correct a clerical or manifest error before payment. Parties should therefore ensure that objections are fully articulated before final signature, because opportunities to revisit signed outcomes are tightly confined.

Short judicial review window

• An application to a judge for review of a taxing officer’s decision must ordinarily be filed within 14 days of the allocatur or certificate (reg 10(1)). This is a short window for preparing an application for judicial review, and practitioners should plan accordingly. Although the judge or the taxing officer can allow another period, reliance on that extension is a procedural risk.

Requirement to specify grounds when applying to the Fund

• Reg 12 requires that an application for payment out of the Fund be in writing and must specify the grounds relied upon. An application that fails to set out the legal or factual basis may be defective. The regulation provides no express right to cure, so drafting must be precise and complete.

Publication requirement does not equal direct notice to claimants

• Reg 6(3) requires publication of the maximum payable amount on a public Department website. However, the regulation does not require direct notice to individuals or applicants, nor does it specify the mechanism for alerting applicants to any indexation-driven increase. Reliance only on website publication risks that stakeholders may be unaware of the current cap.

CPI calculation specifics may yield delays or anomalies

• The indexation formula in reg 6 uses averages of four-quarter Hobart CPI figures ending on 31 December immediately preceding the financial year and the preceding four quarters. The precise averaging and timing could produce a lag between CPI movement and the maximum payable figure, and initial users must compute the percentage change carefully according to the regulation’s definitions. The regulation also includes a non-decrease safeguard, but computing the percentage change requires access to Australian Statistician data and the correct averaging windows.

Registrar authorisation for inspections

• Reg 11 allows only the Registrar or an authorised officer (authorised in writing by the Registrar) to inspect records. Practitioners seeking access to fee-transmission records must ensure that the inspecting individual is properly authorised in writing; otherwise access may be denied.

No penalties within the instrument

• The regulations do not specify penalties for non-payment of the prescribed fees or for non-compliance with application formalities. Enforcement consequences may therefore depend on the Act or other instruments. Parties should not assume that absence of a penalty in the regulations means there is no legal consequence; it simply means the regulation itself does not set one.

In sum, practitioners should convert fee units to money, treat the written objection and application requirements as binding, respect the tight timing windows for objections and judicial review, and ensure any inspection requests are made to properly authorised court officers.

The regulations set a concise set of compliance actions for parties, court officers and administrators. Below is a practical, source-grounded checklist to comply with the instrument.

For litigants who trigger prescribed fees (regs 4 and 5)

• Identify which event under the Act you are engaging: sealing of a writ to be issued out of the Supreme Court attracts 30 fee units; filing a claim in the Magistrates Court (Civil Division) attracts 5 fee units; summary cases under s 5(2) attract 2 fee units (regs 4 and 5). Do not assume the same fee applies to different filings.
• Determine the current monetary value of a fee unit from the relevant fees schedule or instrument outside these regulations, then pay the correct total amount at the time required by the Act or court rule. The regulation prescribes fee units but does not state their monetary conversion.

For persons applying to the Fund (reg 12 and reg 6)

• Prepare the application in writing and specify the grounds on which you rely, including the factual and legal basis for the claim to payment from the Fund (reg 12). The regulation requires the grounds to be specified; ambiguous or incomplete applications may be rejected or delayed.
• Check the maximum amount payable from the Fund for the financial year in which the application is made. Reg 6 sets $18,000 for the year ending 30 June 2024, and prescribes indexation for subsequent years. The Department-maintained website must publish the applicable cap while it is in force (reg 6(3)). Confirm the current cap on the Department of Justice website before lodging the application.

For objectors to taxation and applicants for review (regs 7-10)

• If you intend to object to a taxing officer’s taxation under s 19A(5), serve a written objection before the allocatur or certificate is finally signed, or at any earlier time fixed by the taxing officer. Your written objection must specify succinctly the items or parts objected to and must set out the grounds and reasons for the objection (reg 8(1)(a)-(b)).
• Be prepared to present further evidence to the taxing officer if required, since the taxing officer may receive further evidence on review and, if requested, must state the grounds and any special facts relating to the objection either in the allocatur or by reference to the objection (reg 9(2)).
• Note the 48-hour restriction on signing final allocaturs. The taxing officer must not sign a final allocatur or certificate until at least 48 hours after the conclusion of the taxation (reg 7(2)). Use that period to ensure any objections are lodged in writing, and that any missing material is supplied if necessary.
• If you seek to take the matter to a judge under s 19A(6), file the application for review within 14 days from the date of the allocatur or certificate, unless you obtain an extension from the judge or the taxing officer (reg 10(1)). Prepare your materials on the basis that, unless the judge orders otherwise, the hearing will proceed on the same evidence that was before the taxing officer (reg 10(2)).

For taxing officers and court registry staff (regs 7, 8, 9, 11)

• When completing taxation, state the result as an allocatur written on the bill of costs or as a certificate (reg 7(1)). Do not sign a final allocatur until at least 48 hours have elapsed after the conclusion of the taxation (reg 7(2)).
• Initial any interlineations, alterations or erasures in a certificate (reg 7(3)). If there are interim matters, consider whether an interim allocatur or certificate is appropriate for parts of the bill (reg 7(4)).
• On receipt of a written objection, review the taxation and be prepared to receive further evidence and, if required, to record the grounds and special facts in the allocatur or by reference to the objection (reg 9(1)-(2)). If a taxing officer signs an allocatur, be mindful that post-signature amendments are limited to correction of clerical or manifest errors before payment (reg 9(3)).
• For record-keeping obligations under s 6 of the Act, ensure that the proper officer maintains records in a form that can be inspected by the Registrar or an authorised officer. Provide written authorisation for any officer the Registrar delegates as an authorised officer (reg 11(1)-(2)).

For administrators in the Department of Justice (reg 6(3))

• Maintain a publicly accessible website and publish the maximum amount payable while it is in force, updating it annually or as required under the indexation mechanism (reg 6(3)). Ensure the published figure reflects the reg 6 computation method based on Hobart CPI averages, and retain records of the calculation.
• Ensure processes exist to advise stakeholders of the current maximum payable, even though the regulation requires publication rather than direct notice.

General record and process hygiene

• Keep clear contemporaneous records of taxation proceedings, objections, allocaturs and certificates. Given the limited scope for post-signature amendment and the finality for unobjected matters, accurate records are essential to protect rights and preserve avenues for review.
• Be aware of the interplay between fees prescribed in these regulations and any other instruments that set fee-unit monetary values or court filing procedures.

Following these steps will align practice with the procedural and numerical obligations set out in these regulations and reduce the risk of procedural default.