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They are available from the Registry of the Local Court. If you tell the person at the Registry what you want to do, they will give you the right forms. The forms change often so you should get the forms from the court instead of from a friend or non-legal community agency. You can also get the forms off the internet at www.lawlink.nsw.gov.au and then following the links to local court forms. When you have filled them out, most of the time they will need to be signed and witnessed. The people who are able to witness your signature are usually justices of the peace, solicitors, and clerks of the court.
If you require assistance in preparing documents other than court forms, eg a letter to your creditor, you will find sample documents at www.cclcnsw.org.au
Take the completed and signed form to the Local Court where the matter will be heard and tell the person at the Registry that you want to file the document. Make sure you have enough copies with you so that they can be stamped by the Court and then given to all the people in the case. You will need at least three copies plus the original. That means you will have one for yourself, one for the other party or their solicitor, one for the Magistrate on the day and the original (which the Court may keep).
When you file the forms you might have to pay a filing fee. Not all forms have filing fees and the fees can vary. If you are in financial hardship and cannot afford the fee, ask at the Registry if you are eligible to apply for an exemption. Often people who receive benefits from Centrelink do not have to pay the filing fee.
Serving documents means giving them to the other people in the case. This is so the parties are not surprised by new information on the day of court and everyone has time to prepare their response to the other side's arguments. There are rules about how to serve someone properly.
If the rules of service are not followed, the documents will sometimes be taken not to have been received by the other side and you may be unable to rely on them in making your case.
If the other person in your case has a solicitor acting for them, you must serve the documents on that solicitor. Usually there will be contact details on the Statement of Liquidated Claim (for a plaintiff) or the Statement of Defence (for a defendant) for the person who you are to serve. Some of the time you will have to arrange for the document to be served in person, which means it has to be handed to the other party in the case. Sometimes you are allowed to mail the document by regular or registered mail. Sometimes the Court can arrange services but you will have to pay for this. You can also pay a process server to do it for you. Ask the people at the Registry at the Local Court when you pick up the forms or talk to a solicitor or the Chamber Magistrate about the rules for each document you have to serve.
You can apply to the court for 'substituted service'. This means you can try to bring the document to the person's attention in some other way. For example, it can be delivered to someone who has regular contact with the person you have to serve, such as other family members (as long as they are at least 18 years of age). However, in such cases, an "Affidavit of Service" will usually have to be prepared. If you think you need to apply for substituted service, talk to the Chamber Magistrate and they will help you make the application.
Produced by Redfern Legal Centre.
This factsheet is no substitute for legal advice. If you have a problem
please seek legal advice from your local community legal centre
Last updated January 2006