Chief Industrial Magistrate's Court
| Chief Industrial Magistrate's Court | |
|---|---|
 |
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| Established | 1912 |
| Jurisdiction | New South Wales, Australia |
| Authorized by | Parliament of New South Wales via the Industrial Relations Act 1996 (NSW) |
| Decisions are appealed to | Industrial Court of New South Wales |
| Website | www.localcourt.justice.nsw.gov.au |
| Chief Magistrate | |
| Currently | Judge Graeme Henson |
| Since | 2006 |
The Chief Industrial Magistrate's Court of New South Wales, a division of the Local Court of New South Wales, is a court within the Australian court hierarchy established pursuant to the Industrial Relations Act 1996 (NSW).
The Local Court is the lowest court in the court hierarchy in New South Wales, Australia. The Court deals with the majority of civil and criminal disputes in the State. The role of industrial magistrate allows certain magistrates to deal exclusively with and specialise in certain types of industrial matters in New South Wales including matters covered by both New South Wales and Commonwealth legislation.
Magistrates have been a part of the New South Wales industrial system since the early days of the British colony established in 1788. The first officially appointed Chief Industrial Magistrate was appointed in 1912. Chief Industrial Magistrates have continued to be appointed since that year, and currently, the industrial work of the court is carried out principally by that magistrate, although other magistrates are appointed as Industrial Magistrates on a needs basis.
The role of the justice of the peace regulating the master and servant relation has been a long-standing one in the English common law tradition. This role was carried over into the administration of justice from the early days of the penal settlement established by the British in Port Jackson (now Sydney) in the colony of New South Wales. Employment in the 1900s was regulated using the common law concepts of contract. These concepts provided that an employer and employee were free to bargain as to the nature and the terms of employment. Where either party breached the contract, there was recourse to the law in the normal courts of the land.
In certain situations, it was possible under various “Master and Servant Acts” for employees or employers who broke employment contracts to be prosecuted for a breach of the criminal law. More commonly, this was directed at employees, particularly as wealthier employers would also be the local justice of the peace for the locality. Dr Geoffrey Partington outlines an example in 1858 where German masons who were brought to Australia to work on the Victorian railways. The employees broke their contracts after being persuaded to work for another employer. This was due to a shortage in the supply of experienced masons in Australia. The masons were imprisoned as a result of their breach of contract.
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