The District Court is where most civil disputes in Papua New Guinea are decided: unpaid wages, damaged property, unpaid loans, evictions, family maintenance. Its jurisdiction is wide in subject matter and narrow in amount.
The conferring section
Subject to this Act, in addition to any jurisdiction conferred by any other law, a Court has jurisdiction in all personal actions at law or in equity where the amount of the claim or the amount or value of the subject matter of the claim does not exceed (a) where the Court consists of one or more Principal Magistrates, K10,000.00; and (b) where the Court consists of one or more Magistrates, K8,000.00.
“Personal actions” means claims between persons about obligations and property, as opposed to actions about title to land, which section 21(4)(f) removes. “At law or in equity” means the Court can hear equitable claims, such as for an account or specific relief, not only common law claims for debt and damages. Section 21(3) adds that the limit does not restrict cases where another law allows money to be recovered before a District Court irrespective of amount. The figures, and the 2009 amendment that would raise them, are dealt with in the money limit.
Typical claims
| Claim | Source |
|---|---|
| Debt, unpaid invoices, loans | s 21(1); default summons under s 156 for liquidated sums |
| Damages for breach of contract, negligence, trespass, defamation, nuisance | s 21(1); the Manual notes that defamation, other than slander of title, is within jurisdiction |
| Unpaid wages and entitlements | s 21(1); the Employment Act also confers recovery jurisdiction |
| Recovery of premises from a former tenant or a person without right | Summary Ejectment Act ss 3–6 |
| Maintenance, custody, child protection | Lukautim Pikinini Act 2015, sitting as the Family Court |
| Family protection orders | Family Protection Act 2013 |
| Adultery and enticement compensation | Adultery and Enticement Act 1988 |
| Damages for wrongful refusal of police bail | Bail Act s 25 |
| Certificate of dissolution of a customary marriage | s 22A |
| Appeals and reviews from Village Courts | Village Courts Act 1989 |
The excluded cases
Section 21(4) provides that a Court has no jurisdiction where the validity or effect of a devise, bequest or limitation under a will or settlement is in dispute; in the infringement of trade names; in slander of title; in an action for illegal arrest, false imprisonment or malicious prosecution; for seduction or breach of promise to marry; or when the title to land is bona fide in dispute. Each is explained in which claims the District Court cannot hear; the land exclusion, which is the one that arises daily, has its own article.
What relief it can give
Subject to this Act, a Court as regards a cause of action for the time being within its jurisdiction, shall grant such relief, redress or remedy, or combination of remedies, whether absolute or conditional, and give the same effect to every ground of defence or counterclaim, whether equitable or legal, as ought to be granted or given in a similar case by the National Court and in as full and ample a manner.
This is the ancillary jurisdiction. On a claim within its jurisdiction the District Court can order payment, delivery of goods, an account, or a restraining order. What it cannot do is use section 22 to reach a cause of action outside section 21; Ngan v Yai (2016) N6381 upheld the dismissal of a complaint framed as a claim for equitable relief under section 22 that was in truth a claim to title to land. See injunctions and equitable relief.
Which District Court
Section 21(5) gives a Court jurisdiction when the defendant, or one of them, usually resides or carries on business, or the cause of action wholly or partly arose, or the defendant gave a written promise to pay at a specified place, in the area for which the Court is constituted. Section 21(6) to (8) extend jurisdiction to a defendant in Australia. See which District Court do I sue in.
Claims against the State
Section 2 of the Claims By and Against the State Act 1996 allows a claim in contract or tort against the State to be brought in any court in which such a suit could be brought between other persons, which includes the District Court, subject to the section 5 notice and the special rules on defence time and execution. See suing the State.
Why choose the District Court
The Magistrates’ Manual observes that for many claims that exceed K10,000 by some amount it can be to a claimant’s practical advantage to sue in the District Court before a Principal Magistrate, abandoning the excess under section 38, because the costs and delay of a National Court action would outweigh the amount foregone. The District Court needs no pleadings, no discovery and no lawyer; fees are small; and enforcement machinery is in the same building. The price is the cap, the excluded subjects, and a decision under section 152 that is final as to the debt or damages claimed.
The District Courts Act is not on PacLII; it is available on vLex.
Before relying on anything here, read the current text of the District Courts Act (Chapter 40) and check for later amendments. The Act is not on PacLII; the figures and time limits quoted in this series come from the consolidation to No 8 of 2000, and the District Courts (Amendment) Act 2009 changes some of them once it is brought into operation. If a decision matters to you, get advice — start with the Office of the Public Solicitor, or find a firm in the law firms directory.