Family Court Rules 2021

If a court issues a warrant for a person’s arrest, the court may order that the person arrested —

be held in custody until the hearing of the case; or

be released from custody on compliance with a condition, including a condition that the person enter into a bond.

A person who arrests another person under a warrant must —

arrange for the person to be brought before the court that issued the warrant or another court having jurisdiction, before the end of the holding period; and

take all reasonable steps to ensure that, before the person is brought before a court, the person on whose application the warrant was issued is advised about —

the arrest; and

the court before which the person arrested will be brought; and

the date and time when the person arrested will be brought before the court.

When a person arrested under a warrant is brought before a court, the court may —

if the court issued the warrant —

make any of the orders mentioned in subrule (1); or

adjourn the case and direct the Registry Manager to take all reasonable steps to ensure that the person on whose application the warrant was issued is advised about the arrest and the date and time when the person must attend before the court if the person wishes to bring or continue an application; or

if the application for which the warrant was issued is before the court or the court allows another application, hear and determine the application; or

if there is no application before the court, order the person’s release from custody;

if the court did not issue the warrant —

order that the person be held in custody until the person is brought before the court specified in the warrant; and

make any of the orders mentioned in subrule (1); and

make inquiries of the court that issued the warrant (for example, inquiries about current applications and hearing dates).

A person arrested under this rule who is still in custody at the end of the holding period must be released from custody unless otherwise ordered.

This rule does not apply to a person who is arrested —

under a warrant issued under the Act section 99(2) or the Family Law Act section 65Q; or

without a warrant, under a recovery order; or

without a warrant, under the Act section 236 or the Family Law Act sections 68C and 114AA.