South Australian Consolidated Acts South Australian Consolidated Acts (1) If—
(a) a
matter for determination in a proceeding that is pending in the Supreme Court
is a special federal matter; and
(b) the
court does not make an order under subsection (3) in respect of the
matter,
the court must transfer the proceeding in accordance with this section to the
Federal Court or a court mentioned in subsection (2)(b).
(1a) However, the
court must only transfer so much of the proceeding as is, in the opinion of
the court, within the jurisdiction (including the accrued jurisdiction) of the
Federal Court, or the court mentioned in subsection (2)(b), as the case
may be.
(2) If the court
orders that a proceeding or part of a proceeding be transferred, the
proceeding or part of the proceeding must be transferred—
(a) if
the matter for determination in the proceeding is a matter mentioned in
paragraph (a), (b), (c), (d) or (e) of the definition of
"special federal matter" in section 3(1) of the Jurisdiction of Courts
(Cross-vesting) Act 1987 of the Commonwealth—to the Federal Court;
or
(b) if
the matter for determination in the proceeding is a matter mentioned in
paragraph (ab) of that definition—to whichever of the Family Court, the
Family Court of Western Australia or the Supreme Court of the Northern
Territory, in the opinion of the court, is appropriate in the circumstances.
(3) The Supreme Court
may order that the proceeding be determined by that court if it is satisfied
that there are special reasons for doing so in the particular circumstances of
the proceeding other than reasons relevant to the convenience of the parties.
(4) Before making an
order under subsection (3), the court must be satisfied that—
(a) a
written notice specifying the nature of the special federal matter has been
given to the Attorney-General of the Commonwealth and the Attorney-General of
the State; and
(b) a
reasonable time has elapsed since the giving of the notice for the
Attorneys-General to consider whether submissions to the court should be made
in relation to the proceeding.
(5) For the purposes
of subsection (4), the court—
(a) may
adjourn the proceeding for such time as the court thinks necessary and may
make such order as to costs in relation to an adjournment as it thinks fit;
and
(b) may
direct a party to the proceeding to give a notice in accordance with that
subsection.
(6) In considering
whether there are special reasons for the purposes of subsection (3), the
court must—
(a) have
regard to the general rule that special federal matters should be heard by the
Federal Court or a court mentioned in subsection (2)(b), whichever is
appropriate in the particular case; and
(b) take
into account any submission made in relation to the proceeding by an
Attorney-General mentioned in subsection (4).
(7) Nothing in this
section prevents the court granting urgent relief of an interlocutory nature
if it is in the interests of justice to do so.
(8) If, through
inadvertence, the Supreme Court determines a proceeding of the kind mentioned
in subsection (1) without—
(a) the
court making an order under subsection (3) that the proceeding be
determined by the court; or
(b) a
notice mentioned in subsection (4) being given,
nothing in this section invalidates the decision of the court.
(9) This section does
not apply to a proceeding by way of an appeal that is instituted in the
Full Court of the Supreme Court if the court the decision of which is the
subject of the appeal had made an order under subsection (3), or under
section 6(1) as in force before the commencement of Part 3 of the
Statutes Amendment (Attorney-General's Portfolio) Act 1993 , in relation
to the special federal matter.