GOING TO COURT A DISCUSSION PAPER ON CIVIL JUSTICE IN VICTORIA PETER A SALLMANN, CROWN COUNSEL AND RICHARD T WRIGHT, ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR, CIVIL JUSTICE REVIEW PROJECT APRIL, 2000 How to make comments and submissions We would encourage comments and submissions on the discussion paper. They can be sent to the Department of Justice at the address below: Civil Justice Review Project GPO Box 4356QQ Melbourne, Victoria, 3001 Comments and submissions can also be sent by e-mail to: [email protected] The discussion can be read and downloaded from the Department of Justice homepage www.justice.vic.gov.au Adobe Acrobat® Reader will be required. Peter Sallmann LLB (Melbourne), M.S.A.J. (The American University), M.Phil (Cambridge) is Victorian Crown Counsel, formerly Director of the Civil Justice Review Project, Executive Director of the Australian Institute of Judicial Administration and a Commissioner of the Law Reform Commission of Victoria. Peter is admitted to practise as a Barrister and Solicitor of the Supreme Court of Victoria. He has held a number of academic posts in law and criminology, and served on a variety of Boards and Inquiries, including the Premier’s Drug Advisory Council (the Penington Inquiry) and has published widely on judicial administration and related topics. Richard Wright B.Ec (Hons) (La Trobe) LLB (Melbourne) is Associate Director of the Civil Justice Review Project, formerly Chairman of the Residential Tenancies Tribunals and Senior Referee of the Small Claims Tribunal, Executive Director of the Law Reform Commission of Victoria, Management Consultant in the public and private sectors and has held policy advisory positions in the Australian Tariff Board, Prices Justification Tribunal and the federal Departments of Industrial Relations and Prime Minister and Cabinet. Richard is admitted to practise in the Supreme Court of Victoria and the High Court of Australia. CONTENTS CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ...........................................................................................1 SUMMARY...................................................................................................................1 1. INTRODUCTION...............................................................................................13 BACKGROUND TO THE REVIEW.............................................................................................13 CIVIL JUSTICE IN PERSPECTIVE .............................................................................................14 CONSULTATIVE COMMITTEE .................................................................................................16 PURPOSE OF THE PAPER...........................................................................................................18 STRUCTURE AND CONTENT OF THE PAPER........................................................................18 2. CIVIL JUSTICE IN VICTORIA.......................................................................20 INTRODUCTION ..........................................................................................................................20 CHANGE IN THE SYSTEM .........................................................................................................21 SUPPORT FOR CHANGE.............................................................................................................23 THE URGENCY OF FURTHER CHANGE..................................................................................24 A CLEAR SENSE OF DIRECTION..............................................................................................27 A FRAMEWORK FOR ACTION..................................................................................................31 3. STRUCTURE, JURISDICTION AND MANAGEMENT OF THE COURTS. INTRODUCTION ..........................................................................................................................35 STRUCTURE OF THE COURTS..................................................................................................35 QUESTIONS OF JURISDICTION ................................................................................................40 ISSUES OF GOVERNANCE.........................................................................................................44 4. DISPUTE RESOLUTION AND THE COURTS .............................................55 INTRODUCTION ..........................................................................................................................55 GROWTH OF ADR .......................................................................................................................55 CONSULTATIONS ON ADR .......................................................................................................57 DISPUTE RESOLUTION POLICY IN VICTORIA......................................................................58 EXPANDING THE RANGE OF OPTIONS..................................................................................59 OPTIONS AND DEFINITIONS ....................................................................................................60 A MATTER FOR THE COURTS..................................................................................................64 5. CASEFLOW MANAGEMENT.........................................................................66 INTRODUCTION ..........................................................................................................................66 PARADIGM SHIFT .......................................................................................................................67 VICTORIAN DEVELOPMENTS..................................................................................................68 IMPORTANCE OF LOCAL LEGAL CULTURE.........................................................................69 NECESSARY INGREDIENTS......................................................................................................70 VARIATION IN APPROACHES ..................................................................................................72 BEST PRACTICE ..........................................................................................................................73 COMMENTS ON CASEFLOW MANAGEMENT IN VICTORIA..............................................74 A DIFFERENT APPROACH.........................................................................................................78 THE MAGISTRATES’ COURT ....................................................................................................83 i CONTENTS 6. LITIGATION PROCEDURE AND PRACTICE ............................................85 INTRODUCTION ..........................................................................................................................85 A LITIGATION SYSTEM ROUND TABLE ................................................................................87 LITIGATION PROTOCOLS .........................................................................................................88 A QUIET REVOLUTION..............................................................................................................89 COURTS AS PROVIDERS OF DISPUTE RESOLUTION INFORMATION AND ADVICE....91 PRE-ISSUE MEDIATION .............................................................................................................93 LITIGATION NOTIFICATION PROCEDURES..........................................................................94 PLEADINGS ..................................................................................................................................96 DISCOVERY................................................................................................................................105 SUMMARY JUDGMENT ...........................................................................................................113 ALTERNATIVE DISPUTE RESOLUTION................................................................................121 7. TRIAL MANAGEMENT.................................................................................132 INTRODUCTION ........................................................................................................................132 TRIAL MANAGEMENT AS AN EVOLVING PHENOMENON..............................................133 TRIAL CONTROL.......................................................................................................................134 TRIAL MANAGEMENT EDUCATION.....................................................................................138 EXPERT EVIDENCE ..................................................................................................................138 TRIAL MANAGEMENT CONFERENCES................................................................................145 WITNESS STATEMENTS ..........................................................................................................147 ALTERNATIVES TO A FULL TRIAL.......................................................................................151 THE CONCEPT OF A CONTINUOUS TRIAL ..........................................................................152 8. THE COST OF LITIGATION ........................................................................154 INTRODUCTION ........................................................................................................................154 COMMONWEALTH ACCESS TO JUSTICE ADVISORY COMMITTEE ..............................158 COMMONWEALTH