Extend the jurisdiction of the Koori Magistrates and County Courts

Commencing the work towards implementing Recommendation 150 involved gaining agreement from the Aboriginal Justice Forum in relation to the necessary safeguards for expanding the Koori Court jurisdiction to hear family violence intervention order (FVIO) contraventions.

This was achieved when the Aboriginal Justice Forum endorsed Court Services Victoria’s Jurisdiction Services Report, Koori Court Model Review: Hearing Breach of Family Violence Intervention Orders Hearing of Sexual Offences.

This report, which involved the consultation of over 300 relevant stakeholders, forms the ‘safeguards blueprint’ to allow for the implementation of recommendation 150. These safeguards include:

• develop a Koori family violence strategy and vision statement
• reinstate the Koori Family Violence and Victim Support Program
• develop Koori Family Violence Specialisation in Koori Court
• map external support services to link victims and individuals using family violence to responsive services
• keep people who use violence in view and linked to services
• develop and deliver a community education and awareness program
• conduct an internal evaluation after an agreed period and with further consultation with the Koori community and service providers after the test (pilot) has been completed

The Department of Justice and Community Safety developed legislative amendments to address recommendation 150 for inclusion in the Family Violence Protection Amendment Act 2017. In doing so, the Department of Justice and Community Safety consulted stakeholders, including seeking feedback on the draft Bill to identify technical or policy issues.

After significant preparation for implementation of the necessary safeguards (consistent with the Aboriginal Justice Forum’s endorsement) Chief Magistrate Lauritsen and Chief Judge Kidd both issued notices in the Government Gazette in April 2019 that would enable Mildura’s Magistrates’ Koori Court and Mildura’s County Koori Court (excluding Swan Hill matters) to hear FVIO contraventions which commenced 1 May 2019.

The commencement of these hearings is supported by the implementation of Umalek Balit Mildura (Koori Family Violence and Victim Support Program) to support Aboriginal family members who are involved in family violence related proceedings at the Mildura venue of the Magistrates’ Court. This involves the implementation of Cultural Safety Training for Mildura Court staff.

Umalek Balit also includes the provision of:

• a specialist Koori Men’s Family Violence Practitioner and a Koori Women’s Family Violence Practitioner
• development of Koori Family Violence specialisation in Mildura’s Koori Court through the Mildura FVIO Breaches Pilot Project’s Professional Development and Well-being Program
• delivery of an Aboriginal Family Violence Community Education and Awareness Program
• creation and adaptation of the KFVP’s Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning Framework (MELF) to assist with the completion of an evaluation of the pilot project after 12 months

In May 2019, the first hearings of FVIO contraventions were held in the Mildura Magistrates’ Koori Court. The first hearings of FVIO contraventions held in the County Koori Court were at the end of May 2019, when County Koori Court sat in Mildura.

Implemented.