APS Commission Home page
> Foundations of Governance
> Constitutional, legal and Government framework > Judicial power > Next: The rule of law
‹ Previous page
Last updated: March 2008
Constitutional, legal and Government framework
Judicial power
skip further information boxInformation supplied by:
For more information :
Chapter III of the Constitution establishes the federal Judicature. The role of the courts is to interpret the law and apply it. The High Court is Australia’s court of final appeal. Its functions are to interpret and apply the law of Australia, to decide cases of special federal significance including challenges to the constitutional validity of laws and to hear appeals, by special leave, from Federal, state and territory courts. The other federal courts are the Federal Court of Australia, the Family Court of Australia and the Federal Magistrates Court of Australia.
