The Magistrates Court of Tasmania is the main day-to-day court in the

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. With an area of , Australia is the largest country by ...

n state of

Tasmania ) , nickname = , image_map = Tasmania in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Tasmania in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdi ...

and exists in accordance with the laws handed down by the Tasmanian Parliament. The Court is an inferior court to the

Supreme Court of Tasmania The Supreme Court of Tasmania is the highest State court in the Australian State of Tasmania. In the Australian court hierarchy, the Supreme Court of Tasmania is in the middle level, with both an appellate jurisdiction over lower courts, and d ...

and, in terms of the Australian court hierarchy, is at the bottom level.

Jurisdiction of the court

The Court has jurisdiction in a number of areas, including less serious criminal matters, civil claims involving less than $50,000 or where the parties consent, certain administrative appeals, child protection, youth justice, and coronial matter

The majority of the Court's workload is in less serious (or "summary") offences; the Court also has jurisdiction over serious (or "indictable") crimes where the value of the property involved, or the nature of the crime, means that the matter may be heard by the Magistrates Court of Tasmania according to Tasmanian law. Criminal matters in the Magistrates Court are generally heard by a single magistrate sitting alone and do not involve a jury. Serious criminal matters are heard by the

after having been "committed" to the Supreme Court by the Magistrates' Court. This committal no longer involves an examination of whether or not the defendant has a case to answer but is normally a formal procedural step. The Court also deals with civil disputes involving property valued at less than $50,000. Disputes involving $5,000 or less are heard by the Court's Civil Division as a minor civil claim. Appeals from the Magistrates' Court of Tasmania in all matters are to a single judge of the

Structure of the court

The Magistrates' Court of Tasmania operates from four courthouses in Tasmania, located in

Burnie Burnie is a port city on the north-west coast of Tasmania, Australia. When founded in 1827, it was named Emu Bay, being renamed after William Burnie, a director of the Van Diemen's Land Company, in the early 1840s. , Burnie had an urban popu ...

, Devonport, Launceston and

Hobart Hobart ( ; Nuennonne/ Palawa kani: ''nipaluna'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian island state of Tasmania. Home to almost half of all Tasmanians, it is the least-populated Australian state capital city, and second-small ...

. All of these courthouses operate on a full-time basis and provide circuit courts to more regional and remote parts of the state of Tasmania. The current list of magistrates of the Magistrates' Court of Tasmania are:Magistrates Court of Tasmania homepage
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Burnie Courthouse

*Magistrate T K Jago SC

Devonport Courthouse

*Magistrate A R McKee *Magistrate D R Fairley

Hobart Courthouse

*Chief Magistrate C J Geason *Deputy Chief Magistrate M Daly *Magistrate S F Mollard *Magistrate O McTaggart *Magistrate C P Webster *Magistrate G A Hay *Magistrate S J Cooper *Magistrate R Chandler *Magistrate R J Marron

Launceston Courthouse

*Magistrate S E Cure *Magistrate S J N Brown *Magistrate K Stanton

References

{{Australian Courts Tasmanian courts and tribunals