News

SACAT Federal Diversity Jursidiction Bill

The recent high court decision 'Burns v Corbett' has had huge ramifications across the country when it ruled that a 'Tribunal' does not have the legislative powers to hear and resolve disputes when the parties reside in different states.

If you haven't been listening to the news, what this means is that if you have an investment property in a different state to where you reside, a 'Tribunal' (in South Australia known as SACAT - South Australian Civil & Administrative Tribunal) is unable to deal with these disputes.  To make matters worse, as we experienced for one our landlords, the Magistrates court does not have jurisdiction over the Residential Tenancies Act to enforce vacant posession of a property.  This has left our landlord and possibly hundreds of others across the country in limbo with no legal avenue to obtain vacant possession.

As you can imagine, the financial burden of this is huge.  The good news is, a resolution is the SA Attorney Generals office have acted quickly to draft new legislation (SACAT Federal Diversity Jurisdiction Bill 2018) to reform the system and remedy the impact on landlords and others affected by the High Court Decision.

The bill was introduced into Parliament on the 7th June and passed in the Lower House.  It is anticipated it will pass through the Upper House this week which is great news for all, particularly for those landlords currently affected.

The new legislation will ensure that in situations where SACAT is unable to exercise its jurisdiction because a party resides interstate, the Magistrates Court will be able to exercise the jurisdiction to resolve the dispute, with the same powers and fees as SACAT, and with the use of the SACAT bailiff to enforce orders for vacant possession. Further it is anticipated that SACAT will have an Auxiliary Magistrates Court with federal powers, located in the same building as SACAT - simplifying the process. 

The finalisation of this bill will resolve the issue for all parties, ensuring the ongoing protection for landlords and tenants.