Supreme Court of the Australian Capital Territory

Supreme Court of the Australian Capital Territory
Arms of the City of Canberra, as used by the court
ACT Law Courts building
35°16′52″S 149°07′38″E / 35.281015°S 149.127245°E / -35.281015; 149.127245
Established	1 January 1934 (1934-01-01)
Jurisdiction	Australian Capital Territory
Location	London Circuit at Canberra
Coordinates	35°16′52″S 149°07′38″E / 35.281015°S 149.127245°E / -35.281015; 149.127245
Composition method	Executive appointment following advice of the Attorney-General
Authorized by	ACT (Self-Government) Act 1988 (Cth) Supreme Court Act 1933 (ACT)
Appeals to	High Court of Australia
Appeals from	Magistrates Court of the ACT
Judge term length	Mandatory retirement by age of 70
Number of positions	5
Website	www.courts.act.gov.au/supreme
Chief Justice of the Australian Capital Territory
Currently	Lucy McCallum
Since	8 March 2022 (2022-03-08)

The Supreme Court of the Australian Capital Territory is the highest court of the Australian Capital Territory (ACT). It has unlimited jurisdiction within the territory in civil matters and hears the most serious criminal matters.

The court has the jurisdictional power to hear matters that relate to the Jervis Bay Territory, the Australian Antarctic Territory and the Heard Island and McDonald Islands, although it has never heard a case exercising its power over the Heard and McDonald Islands.^[1] It also hears matters on appeal from the Magistrates Court of the Australian Capital Territory.

Whilst the Supreme Court is the highest Australian Capital Territory court in the Australian court hierarchy, an appeal by special leave can be made to the High Court of Australia. Matters of appeal can also be submitted to the ACT Court of Appeal, which is constituted by members of the Supreme Court.

The Supreme Court consists of 5 permanent judges, including the chief justice of the Australian Capital Territory (as of 2022^[update], Lucy McCallum), 1 associate judge, 11 additional judges and 4 acting judges. The court has three main administrative units: Registry, Sheriff's Office and the Russell Fox Library.^[2]

The court is located on Knowles Place near London Circuit at Civic, in Canberra, in the new ACT Law Courts building that it shares with the Magistrates Court.