Judicial Conduct Commissioner Act 2015

Subject to subsection (2), a person may make a complaint to the Commissioner about any conduct of a judicial officer.

A person who is subject to an order of the Supreme Court (whether under section 39 of the Supreme Court Act 1935 or the inherent jurisdiction of the Court) prohibiting the person from instituting proceedings (or proceedings of a particular class) may not make a complaint under this Act.

Subject to subsections (4) and (4a), the Commissioner must give notice to the judicial officer and the relevant jurisdictional head of a complaint under subsection (1).

If section 15 applies to a complaint, the Commissioner must not give any notices under subsection (3) on receipt of the complaint but may give such notices if consideration of the complaint under this Act is resumed following the referral under section 15.

The Commissioner may, if the Commissioner thinks fit, determine not to give any notices under subsection (3) in relation to a complaint until the Commissioner has determined whether the complaint is one that must be dismissed under section 17(1).

A complaint under subsection (1) must—

be in writing; and

identify the judicial officer who is the subject of the complaint; and

identify the complainant; and

set out the matters to which the complaint relates; and

include any other material, and be verified in any manner, required by the Commissioner.

The Attorney‑General may, by notice in writing, refer to the Commissioner any matters regarding the conduct of a judicial officer.

A jurisdictional head may, by notice in writing, refer to the Commissioner any matters regarding the conduct of a judicial officer in relation to whom he or she would be the relevant jurisdictional head (in accordance with the definition in section 4).

The Commissioner may, on his or her own initiative, treat as a complaint any matters concerning the conduct of a judicial officer.