Procedures
2002 Civil Procedure Rules with Island Courts applying custom
The Civil Procedure Rules 2002 govern the Supreme Court, with Magistrates Courts below, Island Courts for custom matters, and the Court of Appeal as the final court.
Key rules
- Deadline — Most contract and tort claims are barred after six years
- Deadline — Appeals to the Court of Appeal are generally filed within 30 days in civil matters
Governing law
- Civil Procedure Rules 2002, r. 1.2
- Judicial Services and Courts Act 2000
- Island Courts Act 1983
- Limitation Act 1991
In practice
The Civil Procedure Rules 2002 replaced the parallel English and French procedural inheritance with a single modern code containing an overriding objective — a practical necessity in a jurisdiction where two legal traditions remained in force. The Court of Appeal sits in sessions rather than continuously, with judges drawn from other Commonwealth jurisdictions, so appellate timing depends on the sitting calendar. Island Courts, constituted with custom chiefs, deal with custom and minor civil matters, and appeals from them on custom land ownership follow the route set by the Custom Land Management Act rather than the ordinary civil appeal path.