ACAT Practice Note 2 and Case Management — How the New Civil Dispute Process Works

ACAT's civil dispute process has undergone significant procedural changes. Practice Note 3 of 2023 introduced the New Civil Dispute Process Trial, and Practice Note 2 of 2024 refined and formalised it. If you are responding to an ACAT civil dispute today, the pathway your matter follows is governed by Practice Note 2 of 2024, and it looks different from what older online guides describe.

What Changed

Under the previous system, after a response was filed, matters were listed directly for a preliminary conference (essentially mediation). The new framework inserts a Directions Hearing as the mandatory first listing after the response deadline passes.

The Directions Hearing is presided over by a Member or Registrar who reviews both parties' filed documents, identifies the disputed issues, and makes active case management decisions. It is not a passive scheduling exercise — the presiding official can push for settlement, refer the matter to alternative dispute resolution, or set binding procedural directions on the spot.

The Three Pathways Out of a Directions Hearing

After the Directions Hearing, the matter takes one of three routes:

Consent orders. If the parties reach agreement during or before the hearing, the Member formalises it as binding consent orders. The dispute ends there. This happens more often than people expect — the formality of appearing before a tribunal concentrates minds.

Referral to a preliminary conference. The matter is sent to a facilitated conference, usually before a Registrar, where the parties attempt to resolve the dispute with structured mediation. This is the route most contested matters take. If the conference succeeds, consent orders are issued. If it fails, the matter comes back for further directions or is listed for a final hearing.

Procedural directions for a final hearing. For matters where the Registrar or Member assesses that settlement is unlikely (entrenched positions, complex factual disputes, credibility contests), the Directions Hearing produces a timetable: deadlines for filing evidence, witness statements, and any expert reports, plus a listing date for the hearing itself.

What Happens at the Directions Hearing

Both parties (or their authorised representatives) must attend, either in person at ACAT's premises at 15 London Circuit or via approved remote technology under Practice Note 1 of 2026.

The presiding official will:

1. Confirm who is present and their authority to act
2. Review the application and response to understand each side's position
3. Ask clarifying questions about the disputed issues
4. Explore whether any part of the claim can be agreed or narrowed
5. Decide the appropriate next step and issue orders

If you do not attend and have not arranged representation, the tribunal can proceed without you. The applicant's claims go unchallenged, and the Member can make final orders in your absence.

How to Prepare

The Directions Hearing is your first opportunity to make an impression on the tribunal. Arrive knowing:

• The specific facts you dispute — not vague disagreement, but point-by-point responses to the applicant's claim
• What evidence you have and what you still need — so you can propose realistic deadlines when the Member asks
• Whether you are open to settlement and on what terms — the Member will ask directly
• Your availability over the coming months — the Member will schedule next steps on the spot

Bring a copy of the application, your response, and any key documents you have already gathered. You do not need a full evidence bundle at this stage, but having your core documents shows you are taking the process seriously.

Practice Note 3 of 2024: Lodgement Rules

A companion document, Practice Note 3 of 2024, governs how you lodge documents with the tribunal. Email submissions to [email protected] may be accepted when the total bundle, including required service copies, is under 40 pages, contains no more than three attachments, and arrangements have been made to pay any applicable fee or a request about payment has been made. Larger bundles may need to be lodged in person or by post. When using Online Forms for a civil dispute application, use Google Chrome, keep attachments within the 7MB total file-size limit and each filename to 20 characters or fewer; a saved form is retained for 45 days after it was last modified.

The Bigger Picture

The shift to Directions Hearings reflects ACAT's move toward active case management — getting involved earlier, narrowing issues sooner, and reducing the number of matters that reach a full hearing. For respondents, this means the first substantive interaction with the tribunal comes faster and carries more weight than it used to.

The ACAT Response Guide walks through each stage of the current process, including what to prepare for every hearing type and how to comply with Practice Note lodgement rules.

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