tribunals

Question 1

what is a tribunal?

Answer 1

a dispute resolution body that resolves civil disputes and is intended to be a less costly, more informal and faster way to resolve disputes than courts

Question 2

role of tribunals in resolving disputes

Answer 2

• obtain their power to resolve certain types of disputes from parliament
• develop expertise in particular types of disputes
• make decisions that are binding on the parties
• cannot hear every type of dispute (e.g. class actions)

Question 3

purpose of tribunals

Answer 3

• provide individuals with a low-cost, efficient and speedy method of dispute resolution
• an alternative to court

Question 4

commonwealth tribunals

Answer 4

• administrative appeals tribunal (reviews decisions made by commonwealth government bodies such as the Australian taxation office or passports Australia)
• fair work commission (resolves workplace disputes)
• native title tribunal (determines native title applications from aboriginal people)

Question 5

victorian tribunals

Answer 5

• victorian civil and administrative tribunal (hears very broad range of civil disputes, such as residential tendency disputes)
• mental health tribunal (protects people with mental illnesses