OF countycourt.vic.gov.au

Document Type Practice Note

Reference No. PNCO 3 – 2015

Subject/List Commercial Division

Title Commercial Division cases in Circuit Courts

Authorised By Her Honour Judge Kennedy and His Honour Judge Anderson

Date 2015

Supersedes N/A Reference No.

Introduction 1. The Court recognises that the services offered to litigants in the Commercial Division’s specialist divisions may not presently be fully available for cases issued in circuit court registries, rather than in the Registry.

2. The purpose of this Practice Note is to ensure that practitioners and litigants are aware that the Commercial Division, so far as its limited judicial resources permit, offers flexible arrangements in relation to circuit matters to ensure that litigants issuing in those courts are not disadvantaged.

3. At present, the court generally allocates 5 judges each half year to hear cases in the Commercial Division. One of these judges (rotating monthly) acts as the Commercial Division Duty Judge. A Judicial Registrar experienced in commercial law also assists the judges of the Commercial Division, principally in relation to interlocutory matters, ADR and the administration of the Division.

Interlocutory applications in commercial cases

4. All interlocutory applications should be made in accordance with the procedures set out in ‘Operation and Management of the General List of the Commercial Division’ Practice Note 2015 [located here]

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5. If the applications cannot be resolved by an order made “on the papers”, and a hearing is required, the hearing may be conducted:

a. in Melbourne, with the parties appearing at a date and time fixed by the Directions Group;

b. in Melbourne, with the parties appearing via video link from the circuit court at a date and time to be fixed by the Directions Group or, in special circumstances, by telephone, provided the hook-up is previously arranged with the associate to the Commercial Division Duty Judge or Judicial Registrar and the circuit court;

c. at the circuit court, by a judge conducting a scheduled civil circuit at the court where the judge, through the associate, has indicated a preparedness to hear the application and has fixed a date and time for the hearing;

d. at the circuit court by way of special hearing, if the application cannot be heard by the circuit judge and the matters in dispute justify a judge travelling to the circuit court to hear the application (see paragraph 7).

6. Any application for a special hearing should be made to the Associate to the Head of the Commercial Division, Her Honour Judge Kennedy (or in her absence to the Associate to the Commercial Division Duty Judge). The application should be made by email and must be copied to all other parties. The application must state:

a. the identification of the proceeding;

b. the proposed application;

c. the estimated time for the hearing of the application;

d. the attitude of all other parties to the application and to the hearing of the application at a special hearing.

7. Examples of applications which may justify a special interlocutory hearing include:

a. a summary judgment or similar application, if such application would determine the proceeding;

b. a judicial resolution conference where mediation is not appropriate;

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c. a directions hearing where the proceeding requires significant judicial intervention to ensure that the matter can proceed expeditiously to trial.

Fixing trial dates

8. At present, the overwhelming majority of civil cases requiring to be tried before a judge at a circuit court are cases in the Common Law Division.

9. Litigants and practitioners in Commercial Division cases can continue to have their cases fixed for hearing at the next appropriate circuit sitting. The timing of the trial will generally be determined by the parties’ estimate of when the case will be ready for trial and the number of earlier issued civil cases awaiting trial.

10. Cases will generally be called over by the judge who will be conducting the circuit sitting, and any Commercial Division case will be fixed at a time considered by the Judge to be appropriate having regard to the other matters in the list ready to be tried.

11. Alternatively, litigants or practitioners may seek a special trial listing as follows:

a. by transferring the case for hearing in Melbourne, in which case the trial will be fixed by the Directions Group. Usually, the delay from the date a request is made to the date fixed for trial will be approximately six months. If the transfer is opposed, the application to have the trial fixed in Melbourne would be heard by a judge as an interlocutory application. The applicant would ordinarily need to show that justice for all parties would be better served by the trial being conducted in Melbourne;

b. by a special fixture at the circuit court, or a circuit court in the vicinity (see paragraph 13).

12. Any application for a special trial fixture should be made to the Associate to Her Honour Judge Kennedy (or in her absence to the Associate to the Commercial Division Duty Judge). The application should be made by email and must be copied to all other parties. The application must state:

a. the identification of the proceeding;

b. the date the proceeding was commenced;

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c. a brief summary of the issues in dispute including the claim, defence and counterclaim and any third party proceeding;

d. the estimate of the length of the trial;

e. the suggested circuit court at which the trial might be conducted;

f. the proposed range of dates when the parties wish to conduct the trial, and when a courtroom is available;

g. the attitude of all other parties to the application for a special trial fixture.

Other matters

13. If litigants or practitioners with actions commenced in the Commercial Division at circuit courts consider that there are other issues the Court needs to address in order to provide appropriate access to justice in relation to their proceeding, they are invited to write to the Associate to Her Honour Judge Kennedy, Head of Commercial Division, County Court of Victoria, 250 William Street, Melbourne 3000.

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