Coronavirus update for the ACT legal profession

Thursday, 2 July 2020

Coronavirus update for the ACT legal profession

Last update: Thursday 2 July 2020, 10am.

The Society is monitoring the COVID-19 situation closely and will update this page as necessary.

The offices of the Society are now closed to external visitors. Only staff will be admitted except by prior arrangement. To contact the Law Society, please phone us on 6274 0300 or email mail@actlawsociety.asn.au.

Members are encouraged to refer to the following resources:

ACT Law Society updates

Continuing Professional Development (CPD)

COVID and face to face CPD sessions: For the comfort and safety of our members, many of our upcoming CPD sessions will now be available either online or in-person. When you register, please let us know if you'd prefer to watch the CPD online (either live, or at a later date). If you choose the live-stream option you can still interact, ask questions, and be a meaningful participant at the seminar. The safety of our members is our biggest priority during this time. If you are sick please stay at home and request a recording or live-stream link. If you have any questions or concerns please contact Carissa on carissa.webster@actlawsociety.asn.au.

X3 Free CPD: As part of the COVID-19 financial support being offered by the Society, all members can claim up to three hours of CPD free of charge during the period 1 July 2020 to 30 June 2021. [read more]

Extensions: Any member who was unable to attend training in the lead-up to the 31 March 2020 CPD deadline should apply for an extension of time to complete their CPD requirements. Extensions will be granted until 30 September 2020. We encourage members to complete online training and webinar options over the coming months. Please email extension forms to carissa.webster@actlawsociety.com.au. [application form]

Settlements Office

In order to allow the settlements room to keep functioning, a maximum of 25 people are permitted in the room at any one time, and government-mandated social distancing and cleanliness must be maintained. Practitioners are requested to use agents where possible to achieve this reduction. The priority for the Society is the health of those using the room. Please do not attend Settlements if you, or anybody you are in close contact with, is experiencing even mild cold or flu symptoms.

Room hire

No room hire bookings will be taken until further notice.

Legal advice services

The Legal Advice Bureau will not operate until further notice.

Appointments with the Pro Bono Clearing House will be conducted by phone.

ACT Community Legal Centres

ACT Community Legal Centres are continuing to deliver essential legal assistance and other support to the most vulnerable members of the Canberra community during the current COVID-19 outbreak. All ACT Community Legal Services are currently delivering services by phone, video or online.

Canberra Community Law have launched a website covering common legal areas that have been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Courts updates

ACT Supreme Court and ACT Magistrates Court

Commencing 15 June 2020, the Supreme Court will resume jury trials in cases where Court facilities and resources mean that social distancing and other health safety measures can be achieved for jurors, accused persons, witnesses, legal practitioners, and Court staff. All Court attendees will be required to cooperate with measures deemed appropriate by Court and security staff, including temperature testing. For a significant number of matters (including matters involving multiple accused), it will not be feasible to conduct jury trials in the near future.

Commencing 2 June 2020, Magistrates Court operations will resume significantly, with hygiene and social distancing measures remaining in place. People attending the ACT Law Courts building should allow extra time to pass through security noting there may be considerable delays due to physical distancing measures.

ACT Civil and Administrative Tribunal (ACAT)

To prevent the spread of COVID-19, we have closed our ACAT counter. The level 4 entry to our premises is also closed. Unless you are advised otherwise cases that are already listed for a conference, hearing or mediation will continue and you need to organise to attend the tribunal by telephone or videolink for these listings. There will be listing delays for some new cases.

You can contact us by email at tribunal@act.gov.au or by phone on (02) 6207 1740. 

High Court of Australia

The High Court of Australia will not be sitting in Canberra or on circuit in the months of April, May and June. The question of future sittings will be reviewed in June. The Court will continue to deliver judgments and deal with special leave applications including hearings as necessary at individual registries and will hear any urgent matters that may arise by video link between registries and Canberra. Any enquiries should be directed to enquiries@hcourt.gov.au.

From Tuesday 24 March 2020, no face to face services will be provided at the counter. 

Federal Court of Australia

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Federal Court has modified its practices to minimise in-person attendance on Court premises, with the Court’s priority being the health and safety of the community, parties, practitioners, judges and staff, and the families of all of these groups. Limits on the number of people within the Court precinct are in place and all of the Court’s buildings have been assessed and prepared to ensure appropriate physical distancing can be maintained.

If practitioners are involved in current proceedings before the Court that are impacted by COVID-19, they are encouraged to direct enquiries for assistance, such as necessary adjournments, variations to timetables or preparation for hearings, to Tuan Van Le, National Judicial Registrar, Phone (03) 8600 334.

Family Court of Australia and Federal Circuit Court of Australia

The Courts have established a court list dedicated to dealing exclusively with urgent family law disputes that have arisen as a direct result of the COVID-19 pandemic. A streamlined filing process has been established, where cases that meet the criteria will be allocated a first Court date within 3 business days.

The Courts have been closely monitoring the Government’s announcements and advice concerning COVID-19 and its management. Recommendations regarding the Courts’ response to COVID-19 are underpinned by the need to ensure the health and safety of all involved in running and attending Court, as well as maintaining access to justice and ensuring the effectiveness of the Courts’ operations.

If practitioners are involved in current proceedings before the Court that are impacted by COVID-19, they are encouraged to direct enquiries for assistance, such as necessary adjournments, variation to timetables or preparation for hearings, to Michael Raine Legal Assistant (Paralegal) on (08) 8219 1641 or michael.raine@familycourt.gov.au.

Administrative Appeals Tribunal

The President has issued five special measures practice directions that set out how the AAT will operate while COVID-19 impacts our services. These are in effect from 29 April 2020 for the following divisions:

Webinars
Guidelines