A new era for Tasmania’s tribunals

Elise Archer,Attorney-General and Minister for Justice

The Tasmanian Government is committed to improving access to justice for all Tasmanians.

Tasmania is one step closer to establishing a single Civil and Administrative Tribunal with today’s official opening of the facility at 38 Barrack Street, Hobart.

This important reform has been discussed by Governments over many years, but we are getting on with making it happen.

As Attorney–General and Minister for Justice, I am pleased to have prioritised this significant reform to establish what will be called the Tasmanian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (TasCAT).

I am confident that TasCAT will deliver a more client-centric focus, particularly for our protective jurisdictions.

The new centre housing TasCAT has been designed and fitted out with state-of-the-art facilities, including 19 new hearing and mediation rooms and advanced audio-visual equipment.

Much of the work at the site was undertaken during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic and I am pleased that this project was able to support numerous Tasmanian jobs in the building and construction industry during these difficult times. There has been a concerted effort to ensure Tasmanian products have been used throughout the entire building.

I wish to particularly thank Nekon Pty Ltd as the owners of the building for their support and Xsquared Architects for their vision on this project.

Nine Tasmanian tribunals are co-locating at the new facility. The co-locating tribunals are:

  • Asbestos Compensation Tribunal;
  • Anti-Discrimination Tribunal ;
  • Forest Practices Tribunal;
  • Health Practitioners Tribunal;
  • Guardianship and Administration Board;
  • Motor Accidents Compensation Tribunal;
  • Mental Health Tribunal;
  • Resource Management and Planning Appeal Tribunal;
  • Workers Rehabilitation and Compensation Tribunal.

Co-location is the first step in the establishment of TasCAT, a significant reform that will streamline assistance to promote alternative dispute resolution programs and provide greater consistency in decision making, while enabling seamless service delivery to clients.

I intend to table legislation in Parliament shortly to formally establish TasCAT, allowing co-locating tribunals to amalgamate and commence operations as a single tribunal in 2021.

We have continued to work closely with existing tribunals and their stakeholders to ensure they are fully consulted throughout this transition phase.

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