Domestic Violence (DV) hearings are currently listed in Darwin each Friday at 10.00 am or 2.00 pm. DV Hearings are not double listed, so a minimum of one matter and a maximum of two matters are listed each week.
This has resulted in significant delays in the Court being able to finalise matters, with future hearing dates of around 10 months. In an effort to expedite DV hearings and provide greater certainty for parties the Court is revising the way DV hearings are listed. These changes will only effect matters listed in the Darwin registry.
In 2026 DV hearings will now be listed at 9.30 am, and up to three matters will be listed each Friday at that time. The presiding Judge will hear from the parties in each matter as to the need for a hearing, expected length, readiness to proceed and any other relevant matters. Directions can then be made to facilitate the hearings which are to proceed.
It is hoped this will help address the delays in listing availability. Matters will have a case management inquiry around 2 – 4 weeks prior to the hearing, as is the current process.
In order to commence this new listing procedure there will be a callover of DV matters currently listed in the second half of 2026 to allocate them a new earlier hearing date. The callover will take place before Judicial Registrar Gordon on Tuesday 11 November 2025 at 2.00pm. Parties with affected hearings should receive notice of their callover listing from civil registry by 4 November 2025. If you believe you have an affected hearing and do not receive notice from registry that your matter will appear in the callover by this date, please notify registry.
Matters currently listed at 2.00 pm in the first half of 2026 will also be changed to 9.30 am where possible. Parties affected by this change will be notified in due course. If you have any feedback or queries in relation to the new processes, please direct your correspondence to the Darwin Local Court Civil Registry.