Semple review: will the FMC be split?
Wednesday August 27, 2008

Semple review: will the FMC be split?

Wednesday, August 27, 2008

The Australian reported two days ago that the Semple review into the operation of the Family and Federal Magistrates Courts is considering three options: splitting the Federal Magistrates Court into arms of the Federal and Family Courts respectively, changing the standing of the Federal Magistrates Court, or the creation of a Federal Courts Authority.

Federal Attorney-General Robert McClelland has commissioned former Attorney-General’s Department guru to undertake a review of the operation of the Family Court, the Family Court of Western Australia and the Federal Magistrates Court.

I am only a little fish in a big pond. From this Brisbane family lawyer’s point of view, the current administrative arrangement between the Family Court and the Federal Magistrates Court is crazy. Federal Magistrates have far too much work to do. There seems to be duplication between those courts in some of the administrative positions.

But to create a Federal Courts Authority? Madness. This is an authority that would be beholden to no court and to no one but the Attorney-General. Each court should have the resources that it needs. The media has taken great pleasure in repeating the gossip about lack of teabags in Adelaide. Do we want to repeat those fights with more bureaucracy?

Stephen Page, Harrington Family Lawyers, Brisbane spage@harringtonfamilylawyers.com 61(7) 3221 9544

Request an Appointment
Fill in the form below to find out if you have a claim.
Request an Appointment - Stephen Page
Things to Read, Watch & Listen
Australia Surrogacy Statistics: Children at Risk of Statelessness

Shocking Surrogacy Numbers: What Australia Isn’t Telling You

Why the data matters Numbers have a way of cutting through opinion. When it comes to surrogacy, statistics reveal risks that law and policy sometimes miss. Recent figures presented at a national surrogacy forum show a pattern that should worry intended parents, practitioners and policymakers alike: dozens of children born through overseas surrogacy may be… Read More »Shocking Surrogacy Numbers: What Australia Isn’t Telling You

ART Update from Australia: Stephen Page Presents at South African Family Law Conference

On 11–13 March 2026, Stephen Page, Director at Page Provan Family and Fertility Lawyers, presented remotely at the prestigious 28th Annual MDT/UWC Global Family Law Conference in Cape Town, South Africa. As Australia’s leading surrogacy lawyer and an Accredited Family Law Specialist since 1996, Stephen delivered “ART Update from Australia”—a comprehensive overview of Australia’s evolving… Read More »ART Update from Australia: Stephen Page Presents at South African Family Law Conference

3 Countries to Avoid for Surrogacy: Albania, North Cyprus & Kenya

3 Countries You Should Never Use for Surrogacy

When intended parents consider international surrogacy, the legal and ethical landscape can be treacherous. One government has taken a blunt but pragmatic approach: rather than issuing a blanket prohibition on overseas commercial surrogacy, it has published a short list of specific countries where surrogacy arrangements will almost certainly jeopardise a child’s legal status. That list… Read More »3 Countries You Should Never Use for Surrogacy

Family Law Section Law Council of Australia Award
Member of Queensland law society
Family law Practitioners Association
International Academy of Family Lawyers - IAFL
Mediator Standards Board