Northern Territory Consolidated Acts Northern Territory Consolidated Acts(1) The President may make an order (a transfer order ) that a matter be transferred to the Local Court or the Supreme Court (the recipient court ).
(2) The President may make a transfer order if satisfied that:
(a) the matter is not within the Tribunal's jurisdiction; or
(b) because of the circumstances of the case, the proceeding would be more appropriately heard by the recipient court.
Example for subsection (2)(b)
Circumstances that might be relevant include the following:
(a) the complexity of the matter, or the proceeding;
(b) the difficulty or novelty of the issues raised;
(c) the unsuitability of the Tribunal's powers and procedures for dealing with the matter;
(d) that the matter is closely related to a cause of action between the same parties that is before the Local Court .
(3) The President may make a transfer order on application by a party or on the President's own initiative.
(4) The President may make a transfer order:
(a) even if the matter is not within the Tribunal's jurisdiction; but
(b) only if it appears to the President that the matter is, or when transferred will be, within the jurisdiction of the recipient court.
Note for subsection (4)(b)
In relation to the jurisdiction of the Local Court or Supreme Court for transferred matters, see section 13A of the Local Court Act 2015 or section 16A of the Supreme Court Act 1979 .
(5) The President must not make a transfer order unless satisfied that doing so would be in the interests of justice.
(6) The President, when making a transfer order, and the recipient court when dealing with the transferred matter, may make any orders the President or court thinks appropriate for facilitating the orderly transfer of the matter to the court.
(7) A recipient court may refuse to accept the transfer of a matter if:
(a) the matter is within the Tribunal's jurisdiction; and
(b) the recipient court is satisfied that:
(i) because of the circumstances of the matter, the proceeding would be more appropriately heard by the Tribunal; and
(ii) it is in the interests of justice to do so.
(8) If a recipient court refuses to accept a transfer of a matter:
(a) the transfer order is of no effect; and
(b) the President must not make another transfer order in relation to the matter.
(9) For section 13A of the Local Court Act 2015 , if a transfer order is made to transfer to the Local Court a matter that is within the Tribunal's jurisdiction:
(a) jurisdiction to deal with the claim mentioned in that section is taken to be conferred on the Local Court as well as the Tribunal; and
(b) the Act under which the jurisdiction is conferred on the Tribunal applies:
(i) as if references in it to the Tribunal were references to the Court; and
(ii) with any other necessary changes.
Note for section 99A
For the transfer of proceedings from the Local Court or Supreme Court to the Tribunal, see section 44A of the Local Court Act 2015 or section 16 of the Supreme Court Act 1979.