NORTHERN TERRITORY CIVIL AND ADMINISTRATIVE TRIBUNAL REGULATIONS 2014

The Regulations introduce several key concepts that determine cost, access and review rights. A fee is the amount payable for a Tribunal matter as specified in the Schedule. Fees are expressed in revenue units (except photocopying which is a fixed dollar amount). Revenue units are indexed annually under Territory law; the actual dollar amount in a given year is not set out in the Regulations, so the user must check the current value of a revenue unit separately. The applicant in a proceeding is the person liable for the fee specified in item 2 of the Schedule (hearing fees) - regulation 2(2). Other fees may be payable by the party seeking a service (for example, the party applying for a summons or inspection). On demand means the Tribunal may require payment at any time before providing the service, and the fee is not prepaid unless stated otherwise (item 1 fees are an exception). The Territory is exempt from fees: this covers any person acting in a proceeding for or by the authority of the Territory (regulation 4(1)). That exemption is not unlimited: if the Tribunal makes a costs order, the Tribunal may require an amount equal to the otherwise payable fees to be paid to the exempt person, who must then pass it to the Tribunal (regulation 4(2)). Financial hardship is the ground on which the Registrar may waive a fee; the Regulations do not define financial hardship further, so the Registrar has discretion. Internal review is a mechanism under the Act (s 140) by which a party may seek review of a Tribunal decision; the Regulations exclude certain categories of decisions from that process. Original jurisdiction refers to the Tribunal’s power to hear a matter in the first instance (as opposed to its review jurisdiction). The exclusion in regulation 6(c) covers decisions made under the Anti-Discrimination Act in the Tribunal’s original jurisdiction, not decisions on review of an anti-discrimination matter (if any). The transitional matters in regulation 7 prevent the 2022 amendment from retrospectively removing internal review for complaints already referred or applications already made before the amendment commenced. The Schedule is divided into three Parts: Part 1 lists the fees for specific application types, hearing days, and other matters; Part 2 lists Acts for which the application fee is 305 revenue units; Part 3 lists Acts for which the fee is 348 revenue units. The difference may reflect the complexity or typical length of proceedings under those Acts.

The Regulations directly affect any person who initiates or participates in proceedings before the Northern Territory Civil and Administrative Tribunal. The most obvious group is applicants - individuals and bodies corporate who file applications under the various Acts listed in the Schedule. The fee schedule distinguishes between individuals and bodies corporate, with bodies corporate paying higher fees for most application types. For example, a small claim application under $2,000 costs an individual 87 revenue units, but a body corporate 108 revenue units. That differential may have a disproportionate impact on small businesses and not-for-profit bodies that are incorporated. Tenants and landlords under the Residential Tenancies Act and Caravan Parks Act are affected, with lower fees for claims under $2,000 (57 revenue units for individuals) but escalating sharply for claims over $10,000 (348 revenue units). Complainants under the Anti-Discrimination Act face a flat fee of 135 revenue units for an application, which is moderate. Health practitioners and parties in proceedings under the Health Practitioner Regulation (National Uniform Legislation) Act or Health Practitioners Act are subject to a 348 revenue unit application fee, a relatively high cost. Self-represented litigants may be affected by hearing fees: day 1 of a hearing costs nothing, but days 2-4 cost 117 revenue units per day and beyond 9 days costs 297 per day. That creates a strong incentive to settle early or limit hearing length. The Territory government benefits from an exemption from fees, which effectively subsidises its use of the Tribunal. However, the exemption is not automatic for all government bodies - it applies only to a person acting for or by the authority of the Territory. This may include government departments, agencies, and possibly statutory bodies depending on their relationship with the Territory. Persons experiencing financial hardship are the intended beneficiaries of the Registrar’s waiver power, but the discretion is unfettered and there is no guarantee of relief. Parties seeking internal review of Tribunal decisions must pay 305 revenue units to apply, which may deter merit-based challenges except in higher-stakes matters. The exclusions from internal review affect parties in health practitioner disciplinary matters, land acquisition recommendations, and anti-discrimination decisions, who lose the right to internal review entirely (subject to the transitional protection). Regulated industries under the Acts listed in Parts 2 and 3 are indirectly affected: for example, the Building Act, Liquor Act, Gaming Control Act, Planning Act, and others appear in Part 3 with a higher fee, while Part 2 includes the Local Government Act, Information Act, and Pastoral Land Act. A person seeking Tribunal review of a decision under these Acts must budget for the application fee.

The Regulations impose a duty to pay fees. A person who lodges an application under an Act listed in the Schedule must pay the applicable fee at the time of lodging if the fee falls under item 1 (see note to reg 3). For other fees, including hearing fees, the duty arises when the Tribunal demands payment. Failure to pay on demand may result in the Tribunal refusing to proceed with the matter or discontinuing the hearing, although the Regulations do not spell out the consequence explicitly. The applicant in a proceeding is specifically liable for hearing fees (item 2 of the Schedule) under regulation 2(2). The right to an exemption from fees is granted to the Territory, but it is not absolute: if a costs order is made, the Tribunal can require the Territory (or its authorised person) to collect fees from the other party and pay them over. That preserves the possibility that the other party may be ordered to pay costs that include the fees the Territory would otherwise have paid. The right to seek a fee waiver arises under regulation 5: a person who would have to pay a fee may apply to the Registrar and claim financial hardship. The Registrar has discretion to waive the whole or part of the fee. There is no right of review from the Registrar’s decision within the Regulations, so a refusal to waive is effectively final unless challenged under the Act (likely through judicial review). The right to internal review under s 140 of the Act is restricted by regulation 6, which excludes three categories of decisions. For anti-discrimination decisions, the transitional provision in regulation 7 preserves the right to internal review for complaints referred or applications made before 30 June 2022. Parties in those transitional proceedings retain the right to seek internal review; parties with post-30 June 2022 complaints do not. The right to inspect a proceeding file is subject to a fee: a party may inspect for nil, but a non-party must pay 45 revenue units per file. The right to apply for a summons costs 20 revenue units. The Regulations do not create any new substantive rights; they only set the financial conditions and administrative exclusions for accessing rights that exist under the Act and under the various enabling Acts.

The Regulations themselves do not create any specific penalties for non-payment or late payment of fees. There is no regulation that says “if a fee is not paid, the proceeding is dismissed” or that a late payment surcharge applies. Enforcement of fee obligations is left to the Tribunal’s general powers under the Act. For example, s 94 of the Act (referenced in the note to regulation 3) likely provides that a fee must accompany the application, and if not paid, the application may not be accepted. For hearing fees payable on demand, the Tribunal may have the power to adjourn or strike out the matter if payment is not made. The Regulations also do not impose any criminal or civil penalties for providing false information to obtain a fee waiver. The Registrar’s waiver decision is administrative, and any attempt to misrepresent financial hardship would probably be dealt with under the Act’s general powers or under general law (e.g., fraud). The only monetary enforcement mechanism mentioned is in regulation 4(2) regarding the Territory’s exemption: if a costs order is made requiring an amount equal to fees to be paid to the Territory person, that person must pay the amount to the Tribunal. Failure to do so could presumably be enforced as a debt, but again the Regulations are silent on penalty. The absence of specific penalty provisions does not mean fees are optional; rather, the Tribunal’s procedural powers are relied upon to enforce payment. Practitioners should be aware that non-payment of demand fees may lead to the hearing not proceeding, which could result in wasted preparation costs, adverse costs orders, or dismissal of the application. The Regulations also do not provide for refunds of fees if a matter settles early or is withdrawn. The application fee is paid upfront and is non-refundable regardless of outcome. Hearing fees are payable per day or part day; if a hearing finishes early, the fee for the partial day is still due (the Schedule says “per day or part day”). That means a hearing that lasts two hours on day 2 still costs a full day’s fee.

The Regulations operate under the Northern Territory Civil and Administrative Tribunal Act 2014. That Act confers the power to make regulations and establishes the Tribunal’s jurisdiction, procedures, and review mechanisms. The Regulations fill the gaps left by the Act regarding fees and the precise scope of internal review exclusions. Section 94 of the Act is the source of the requirement that certain fees accompany applications; the Regulations specify which fees those are (item 1 of the Schedule) and the note to regulation 3 cross-references that section. Section 140 of the Act creates the internal review right; regulation 6 qualifies that right by excluding certain decisions. The Act also provides for the issue of summonses (s 89(1)) and inspection of files (s 85); the Regulations set the fees for those services. Section 36 of the Act allows for certain orders; the Regulations provide that an application under that section costs nil. Beyond the parent Act, the Regulations interact with numerous substantive Acts. The Schedule lists the Acts under which applications can be made. The fee amount varies by Act, creating a de facto hierarchy of cost-to-commence. The exclusions from internal review reference the Health Practitioner Regulation National Law (as applied in the Territory), the Lands Acquisition Act 1978, and the Anti-Discrimination Act 1992. That means decisions under those Acts are final at first instance within the Tribunal, pushing any appeal to judicial review or to a specialist appellate body (for health practitioners, possibly to a tribunal panel or court). The transitional provision in regulation 7 modifies the interaction with the Anti-Discrimination Act for proceedings that were already pending when the 2022 amendment took effect. The Regulations also interact with the Interpretation of Legislation Act and the applicable Acts in Parts 2 and 3. The General Amendments note in the endnotes states that formal amendments were made by the Interpretation Legislation Amendment Act 2018, applying standard drafting conventions. The Local Government Act 2019 amendments updated a reference in the schedule of fees. The Racing and Wagering Act 2024 added an Act to Part 3. The Attorney-General Legislation Amendment Act 2025 made further schedule amendments as of 1 August 2025. The Regulations do not interact with Commonwealth laws directly, except through the national law scheme for health practitioners.

The Regulations were originally made as SL No. 37, 2014, notified and commenced on 19 November 2014. They have been amended multiple times. Regulation 6 (exclusion from review) was first inserted by the Justice Legislation Amendment Act 2015 (Act No. 14, 2015), s 63, effective 1 June 2015. It was later substituted by the Northern Territory Civil and Administrative Tribunal Amendment Regulations 2021 (SL No. 13, 2021), r 4, on 18 August 2021. That substituted version was then amended by the Northern Territory Civil and Administrative Tribunal Amendment Regulations 2022 (SL No. 7, 2022), r 4, on 30 June 2022, and further amended by the Northern Territory Civil and Administrative Tribunal Amendment Act 2023 (Act No. 23, 2023), s 37, effective 27 November 2023. The transitional provision (regulation 7) was inserted by SL No. 7, 2022, r 5, on 30 June 2022. The Schedule has been amended most frequently. It was substituted entirely by the Northern Territory Civil and Administrative Tribunal Amendment Regulations 2016 (SL No. 39, 2016), r 3, on 22 August 2016. Since then, the Schedule has been amended by: the Statute Law Revision and Repeals Act 2019 (Act No. 33, 2019), s 50 (effective 11 December 2019); the Local Government Act 2019 (Act No. 39, 2019), s 370 (effective 1 July 2021 for pt 8.6, remainder earlier); the Northern Territory Civil and Administrative Tribunal Amendment Act 2023 (Act No. 23, 2023), s 37; the Racing and Wagering Act 2024 (Act No. 8, 2024), s 328 (effective 1 July 2024); and the Attorney-General Legislation Amendment Act 2025 (Act No. 14, 2025), s 19 (effective 1 August 2025). The endnotes also list a general amendment by the Interpretation Legislation Amendment Act 2018 (Act No. 22, 2018) which made formal changes to r 1 and the Schedule. The amending legislation shows a pattern of incremental adjustment: fee amounts are changed, new Acts are added to Parts 2 and 3, and the exclusion provisions are refined. The Racing and Wagering Act 2024 addition suggests that the Government expects Tribunal jurisdiction over racing and wagering matters (likely licensing or disciplinary decisions). The Attorney-General Legislation Amendment Act 2025 update, being the most recent, may reflect a broader review of fees or the addition of new Acts.

The source text does not refer to any litigation, and no court or Tribunal decisions involving the interpretation of these Regulations are mentioned. The Regulations themselves are not the subject of any litigation history that can be gleaned from the document. However, it is possible that the validity or application of particular provisions has been considered in proceedings under the Act. For example, the exclusion from internal review of anti-discrimination decisions (regulation 6(c)) may have been challenged on grounds of procedural fairness or as ultra vires the Act, but such challenges are not recorded in these Regulations. Similarly, the Registrar’s discretion to waive fees (regulation 5) may have been the subject of judicial review if a party argued that the discretion was exercised unreasonably or that financial hardship was not properly considered. Any such cases would appear in the Northern Territory Supreme Court or other appellate courts, but they are not referenced here. The transitional regulation 7 suggests that the Legislature anticipated that the removal of internal review rights could cause unfairness, and it provided for preservation of existing rights; that provision may have been drafted to avoid litigation. The absence of litigation history in the source text is notable; it may indicate that the fee provisions are relatively uncontroversial, or that any disputes are settled informally. Practitioners should be aware that the interpretation of “for or by the authority of the Territory” in regulation 4(1) could be disputed if a government agency or government-owned corporation seeks to claim the fee exemption. Likewise, the meaning of “financial hardship” could be contested if the Registrar refuses a waiver and the applicant challenges that decision. Without case law, the boundaries of these terms remain to be determined.

Several aspects of the Regulations may catch practitioners off guard. First, the fee for internal review under item 1.11 is 305 revenue units. That is a significant amount, especially when compared to the application fee for the original proceeding (e.g., under the Residential Tenancies Act a claim under $2,000 costs only 57 revenue units). A party seeking to challenge a favourable outcome may find the cost of internal review prohibitive. Second, the exclusion from internal review of anti-discrimination decisions (regulation 6(c)) applies to decisions made in the Tribunal’s original jurisdiction under the Anti-Discrimination Act. This means that after the 2022 amendment, a party who loses an anti-discrimination complaint at the Tribunal has no right to internal review. The only avenue is judicial review, which is more expensive and procedurally complex. The transitional provision only protects cases already in the pipeline before 30 June 2022. For all new anti-discrimination complaints, the decision is final at first instance within the Tribunal structure. Third, the hearing fee structure is back-loaded. Day 1 is free, but days 2-4 cost 117 revenue units per day, days 5-9 cost 243, and beyond 9 days costs 297 per day. A party who plans for a one-day hearing but ends up needing a second day faces an unexpected cost. The “or part day” rule means even a short appearance on a later day triggers the full daily fee. Fourth, the Registrar’s waiver power is discretionary and there is no appeal from a refusal within the Regulations. A party who relies on the possibility of a waiver but is denied must either pay or abandon the proceeding. Fifth, the Territory’s exemption (regulation 4) does not automatically extend to all government entities. The phrase “acting for or by the authority of the Territory” may not cover statutory bodies or government-owned corporations that have separate legal personality. If a government entity is uncertain, it should seek legal advice before assuming exemption. Sixth, the fee for applying for a summons is only 20 revenue units, but the cost of obeying the summons is born by the witness or the applicant; the 20 revenue units is just the administrative fee. Seventh, inspection of a file by a non-party costs 45 revenue units per file, which may be a barrier for journalists or researchers seeking to understand Tribunal decisions. Eighth, the Schedule does not include a fee for applications under the Guardianship of Adults Act, Health Care Decision Making Act, or Advance Personal Planning Act - they are “nil”. That is a welcome benefit, but it could change with future amendments. Ninth, the fee for an application under an Act not specifically listed but caught by “any other proceeding” (item 1.12) is 305 revenue units, which is the same as the Part 2 application fee. That may apply to proceedings not covered by other items. Tenth, the Regulations do not provide for a reduced fee for unrepresented litigants or pensioners beyond the general financial hardship waiver. There is no automatic concession.

Compliance with the Regulations is straightforward but requires attention to detail at each stage of a Tribunal proceeding. First, identify the correct fee by locating the application type in the Schedule. Check whether the application is under an Act listed in Part 1 (which has specific items) or Part 2 or Part 3. If the application is under an Act not listed, it falls under “any other proceeding” (item 1.12) at 305 revenue units. Second, determine whether the applicant is an individual or a body corporate because the fee differs (often significantly). Third, pay the application fee (item 1 fees) at the time of lodging the application. The note to regulation 3 states that item 1 fees must accompany the application. If the fee is not paid, the application may not be accepted. Fourth, for hearing fees, the fee for day 1 is nil, but for subsequent days the Tribunal will demand payment. Be prepared to pay on demand before the hearing proceeds on those days. The demand may come at the start of the hearing day. Consider settling or limiting the hearing to one day to avoid these costs. Fifth, if the applicant is the Territory (or a person acting for the Territory), claim the exemption under regulation 4. Provide evidence of authority to act for the Territory if required. However, note that the exemption does not mean the Territory will never have to pay: if a costs order is made that includes fees, the Territory person may need to collect and transmit the amount. Sixth, if the applicant or a party considers that payment would cause financial hardship, apply in writing to the Registrar for a waiver under regulation 5. The Regulations do not prescribe a form, so a letter explaining the financial circumstances should suffice. The Registrar has full discretion; there is no right of review, so the application should be as detailed as possible. Seventh, before applying for internal review under s 140 of the Act, check whether the decision is excluded by regulation 6. If it is a decision under the Health Practitioner Regulation National Law (ss 196-197), a recommendation under the Lands Acquisition Act, or a decision in the Tribunal’s original jurisdiction under the Anti-Discrimination Act (subject to the transitional exception for pre-30 June 2022 complaints), then internal review is not available. Seek judicial review instead, or other remedies under the relevant Act. Eighth, if a complaint was made under the Anti-Discrimination Act before 30 June 2022, keep records to show that the complaint was referred or the application was made before that date, so that internal review remains available. Ninth, when requesting file inspection as a non-party, pay the 45 revenue unit fee. If inspecting as a party, the inspection is free, but confirm that you are a party to the proceeding. Tenth, keep abreast of revenue unit values because they change annually. The dollar amount of the fee is not fixed; it is the product of the number of revenue units multiplied by the current value of a revenue unit as determined under Territory legislation. Check the current value before paying. Finally, review the Regulations for any future amendments, as the fee schedule and exclusions have been changed multiple times. The endnotes show amendments as recent as 1 August 2025, so the current version must be checked regularly.