The High Court of Australia is the apex court of the Australian legal system. It exercises original and appellate jurisdiction on matters specified in the Constitution of Australia and supplementary legislation.
The High Court was established following the passage of the Judiciary Act 1903 (Cth). Its authority derives from chapter III of the Australian Constitution, which vests it (and other courts the Parliament creates) with the judicial power of the Commonwealth. Its internal processes are governed by the High Court of Australia Act 1979 (Cth).
The court consists of seven justices, including a chief justice, currently Stephen Gageler. Justices of the High Court are appointed by the governor-general on the formal advice of the attorney-general following the approval of the prime minister and Cabinet. They are appointed permanently until their mandatory retirement at age 70, unless they retire earlier.
Typically, the court operates by receiving applications for appeal from parties in a process called special leave. If a party's application is accepted, the court will proceed to a full hearing, usually with oral and written submissions from both parties. After conclusion of the hearing, the result is decided by the court. The special leave process does not apply in situations where the court elects to exercise its original jurisdiction; however, the court typically delegates its original jurisdiction to Australia's inferior courts.
The court has resided in Canberra since 1980, following the construction of a purpose-built High Court building, located in the Parliamentary Triangle and overlooking Lake Burley Griffin.
Sittings of the court previously rotated between state capitals, particularly Melbourne and Sydney, and the court continues to regularly sit outside Canberra.
The High Court exercises both original and appellate jurisdiction.
Sir Owen Dixon said on his swearing in as Chief Justice of Australia in 1952:
The High Court's jurisdiction is divided in its exercise between constitutional and federal cases which loom so largely in the public eye, and the great body of litigation between man and man, or even man and government, which has nothing to do with the Constitution, and which is the principal preoccupation of the court
The broad jurisdiction of the High Court means that it has an important role in Australia's legal system.
Its original jurisdiction is determined by sections 75 and 76 of Australia's Constitution. Section 75 confers original jurisdiction in all matters:
Section 76 provides that Parliament may confer original jurisdiction in relation to matters:
Constitutional matters, referred to in section 76(i), were conferred on the High Court by section 30 of the Judiciary Act 1903. While the conferral of constitutional matters might be removed by amending the Judiciary Act, section 75(iii) (suing the Commonwealth) and section 75(iv) (conflicts between states) are broad enough that many constitutional matters would still be within original jurisdiction. The original constitutional jurisdiction of the High Court is now well established; the Australian Law Reform Commission has described the reference to constitutional matters in section 76 rather than in section 75 as "an odd fact of history". The 1998 Constitutional Convention recommended an amendment to the constitution to prevent the possibility of the jurisdiction being removed by Parliament.
The word "matter" in sections 75 and 76 has been understood to mean that the High Court is unable to give advisory opinions.
The court is empowered by section 73 of the Constitution to hear appeals from the supreme courts of the states and territories; as well as any court exercising federal jurisdiction. It may also hear appeals of decisions made in an exercise of its own original jurisdiction.
The High Court's appellate jurisdiction is limited by the Judiciary Act, which requires special leave to be granted before the hearing of an appeal. Special leave may only be granted where a question of law is raised which is of public importance, involves a conflict between courts or "is in the interests of the administration of justice".
Since November 2023, the High Court has adopted the practice of deciding the majority of special leave applications on the basis of written submissions only. In adopting this practice, the High Court also made the decision to publish decisions in special leave applications on its public website rather than in open court.
Appeals to the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council