Review of a Registrar's Decision (family law)

Senior Judicial Registrars (“SJR”) and Judicial Registrars (“JR”) hold delegated powers as listed within Clause 2 of Schedule 4 of the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (Family Law) Rules 2021 (Cth) (“the Rules”). The Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia Act 2021 (Cth) (“the FCFCOA Act”) provides for the review of the exercise of such delegated power pursuant to section 100 of the FCFCOA Act for matters within Division 1 of the FCFCOA and section 256 of the FCFCOA Act with respect to proceedings within Division 2 of the FCFCOA.

Where a party seeks to review a decision, an ‘Application for Review - Family Law’ must be filed within 21 days of the order in accordance with rule 14.05 of the Rules. All parties to the proceeding must be served with a sealed copy of the application within 7 days after it has been filed pursuant to rule 14.05(3) of the Rules. The application is heard as an original hearing as opposed to an appeal, as confirmed by rule 14.07(1) of the Rules which states that “A court must hear an application for review of an exercise of power by a Senior Judicial Registrar or Judicial Registrar as an original hearing”. The ‘Note’ for rule 14.07(1) of the Rules further clarifies that “In an original hearing, the court rehears the whole matter and does not simply review the decision of the original court”. No appealable‑error threshold is required. Practically, the party must establish that different orders to those made by the SJR or JR should now be made.

Although parties have the right to seek a review of a decision, judges have cautioned parties against doing so without good reason merely because they are dissatisfied with the decision. Where an application is made without merit, the FCFCOA has indicated a clear willingness to dismiss such an application potentially with costs. In Lawson & Glenning [2021] FedCFamC2F 118, his Honour Riethmuller J dismissed a review application on the basis of it being futile and ordered costs against the applicant. His honour stated at [27] that “The new Court system of having Registrars undertake interlocutory work should not be treated as an invitation to simply lodge review applications without careful consideration of the need for a review application, and the importance of properly using the Court’s resources. A Registrar’s hearing should not be used as a ‘dry run’ or a ‘practice run’ at a case, but rather the main event, with a review application there in the background, in a similar way to that of an appeal if it were a judge dealing with the matter. If the system is not approached in this manner, then litigants and practitioners can expect costs and other consequential orders, to ensure that the processes of the Court are not misused or wasted”.

Conclusion

The review is heard afresh, meaning the judge exercises their own discretion and judgment rather than just reviewing the previous decision for errors. The review process is commenced by filing an ‘Application for Review - Family Law’ pursuant to rule 14.05 of the Rules, with a merits‑based re‑determination under the applicable property or parenting framework.

17/02/2026