Registry committals
To lodge applications for matters in Brisbane, Cairns and Rockhampton Magistrates Courts, please use the Legal Practitioner Portal.
A registry committal is an administrative process completed by the registrar or clerk of the court. It can save time and costs because it replaces the need for a Magistrates Court committal hearing.
When you can apply for a registry committal
- The offence must be serious: Registry committals apply to indictable offences only and parties must ensure the charges are indictable before applying.
- The parties must agree: The defendant must be legally represented and the parties must agree to the charge(s) being committed to the Supreme Court or District Court for sentencing or trial. The registrar can’t decide whether there’s enough evidence to put the defendant on trial for the indictable charge.
When you can’t apply for a registry committal
Registry committals don’t apply to minor or summary offences—a less serious offence or charge punishable on conviction by a Magistrates Court—or matters in the Childrens Court.
Additionally, you can’t use a registry committal if the defendant:
- is not legally represented
- is on bail but is in breach of bail conditions relating to the charges
- has been referred to a specialist court or program relating to the charges
- intends to give evidence or call witnesses.
If charges don’t meet these conditions, they can’t be included in the registry committal.
Important deadlines
At the committal callover, the defendant’s charges should have been adjourned for 28 days to allow time for briefs to be prepared and documents to be filed.
The registry committal may be refused if the prosecution’s full brief of evidence (i.e. all the evidence they will rely on) is not correctly filed in the registry within 14 days and/or you don’t submit this form within 28 days.
If the registry committal is refused, the matter will be heard in court on the date set at the committal callover.
How to apply
The Legal Practitioner Portal is currently available for defence lawyers to apply for registry committals for relevant matters listed in the Brisbane, Rockhampton or Cairns Magistrates Courts. Additional information is contained within user guides within the portal.
If the matter is listed outside of these locations, defence lawyers can still apply for a registry committal by filing one or both of the below forms at the relevant Magistrates Court: