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County Court of Victoria | |
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37°48′48″S 144°57′27″E / 37.8132°S 144.9575°E | |
Established | 1852 |
Jurisdiction | Victoria |
Location | Headquartered in Melbourne, with 12 circuit courts located in Bairnsdale, Ballarat, Bendigo, Geelong, Horsham, Mildura, Morwell, Sale, Shepparton, Wangaratta, Warrnambool and Wodonga |
Coordinates | 37°48′48″S 144°57′27″E / 37.8132°S 144.9575°E |
Composition method | Appointed by Governor on the advice of the Executive Council |
Authorised by | County Court Act 1958 (Vic) |
Appeals to | Supreme Court of Victoria |
Appeals from | Magistrates' Court of Victoria |
Judge term length | Mandatory retirement by age 70 |
Website | www.countycourt.vic.gov.au |
Chief Judge | |
Currently | Peter Kidd |
Since | 8 September 2015 |
The County Court of Victoria is the intermediate court in the Australian state of Victoria. It is equivalent to district courts in the other states.
The County Court is the principal trial court in the state, having a broad criminal and civil jurisdiction. The court hears indictable offences (with the exception of murder, manslaughter, and treason), and has unlimited civil jurisdiction, though it generally only hears cases where the statement of claim exceeds the Magistrates' Court limit of $100,000. The court also possesses appellate jurisdiction for cases from the Magistrates' Court, while decisions of the County Court may be appealed to the Supreme Court.
With approximately 70 sitting judges, the court hears up to 12,000 cases annually. Peter Kidd was named Chief Judge of the County Court on 8 September 2015.