Law and Justice Legislation Amendment (New South Wales Local Court) Bill 2026

# Law and Justice Legislation Amendment (New South Wales Local Court) Bill 2026 ## What it does New South Wales changed its Local Court laws in 2025, and this federal bill tidies up the loose ends—updating Commonwealth laws to match. It makes technical changes to 16 different federal acts so they all work properly with NSW's new court system. ## Why it matters When one state changes its court rules, the Commonwealth laws that reference those courts can break or become confusing. This stops legal problems down the track and keeps the court system running smoothly across state and federal levels. ## Key details - **Who's affected:** Judges in the NSW Local Court, people going through bankruptcy or federal court cases, and anyone dealing with federal agencies that reference NSW courts - **What changes:** The bill updates references to NSW Local Court judges in federal laws covering bankruptcy, customs, extradition, marriage registration, and anti-corruption investigations—basically anywhere the old law said "magistrate" or referenced court judges - **When it starts:** The changes kick in on the same day NSW's new court laws take effect (1 July 2025). If NSW's changes don't actually happen, this bill doesn't come into effect either

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