Why QCAT is under review and what’s at stake

The Queensland Civil and Administrative Tribunal (QCAT) handles thousands of everyday disputes, from tenancy problems to consumer complaints, making it one of the most important parts of the state’s civil justice system. Now, a major review is taking a fresh look at whether the tribunal is still meeting community needs.

Over the past decade, however, QCAT has grown into one of the busiest institutions in Queensland’s civil justice system. QCAT now manages multiple specialist jurisdictions, increasingly complex cases and a heavy administrative workload. Government background papers released for the current review show mounting strain on staff, digital systems and the tribunal’s capacity to deliver timely decisions.

Why is the QCAT Act being reviewed now?

Under the QCAT Act, the State Government must review the legislation every five years to ensure the tribunal is still working as intended. The 2025 review is being led by former Supreme Court and Federal Court judge, AAT President and QCAT President, the Honourable David Thomas, with support from a departmental team.

This review takes what the government describes as a “genuine look” at whether:

• QCAT’s legislated objectives remain appropriate;
• its processes continue to serve users well;
• parts of the Act are now hindering, rather than supporting, efficiency.

The review is also examining systemic pressures such as backlogs, resourcing constraints, procedural bottlenecks and the increasing complexity of matters.

Consultation will run across 2025 and 2026. Issues Paper 1, released in late 2025, focuses on QCAT’s objects and procedures and invites feedback from legal bodies, community organisations and individual users.

What the Queensland Law Society has recommended in response to Issues Paper 1

In its response to Issues Paper 1, the Queensland Law Society (QLS) has delivered one of the most comprehensive reform proposals to date. While acknowledging QCAT’s importance to the state’s justice system, the Society says the tribunal is no longer operating as efficiently or as accessibly as originally intended.

QLS’s submission is available here.

QLS’s 10 recommendations include:

1. Upgrade QCAT’s digital systems, ensuring QCase is properly funded and fully implemented;
2. Reduce delays in filing across all registries;
3. Allow legal representation as a right, or at least in matters involving power imbalances or human rights;
4. Reform the costs regime, with more tailored approaches and alignment with court processes;
5. Improve communication with parties about QCAT processes;
6. Increase resourcing across the Tribunal and supporting agencies;
7. Strengthen case management, using more directions hearings, conferencing and mediation;
8. Improve access to the registry, with dedicated contacts for urgent or complex matters;
9. Reduce decision delays, especially for written reasons;
10. Clarify registry powers while avoiding overly rigid administrative rejection of applications.

Digital capability – a critical pressure point

QCAT’s slow transition to digital operations is one of the review’s most urgent issues. The tribunal’s electronic case management system, QCase, has been rolling out gradually, and most users still cannot lodge documents online. This has left registries heavily reliant on paper files and manual processing.

QLS argues this approach is no longer acceptable in a modern justice system. It says that without a fully implemented, properly funded digital platform, delays and inefficiencies will continue to compound.

Digital lodgement is essential to creating better access to justice. Paper‑based filing:

• slows down processing;
• increases costs;
• creates unnecessary barriers for users.

A fully implemented and fit-for-purpose electronic case management system would allow parties to track matters online, reduce delays and significantly improve efficiency.

Right to legal representation and legal assistance

Under the current rules, parties generally require leave to be legally represented in many of QCAT’s jurisdictions. QLS says this is a significant disadvantage for parties, particularly when facing government agencies or experienced industry professionals.

QLS also acknowledges the increase in AI‑generated material being lodged in QCAT, which is contributing to longer, more complex filings and an increased workload for tribunal members. Allowing people to represented by a lawyer and, ensuring legal assistance services are appropriately funded so people can see a lawyer and get assistance to draft documents, will help QCAT to deal with these issues.  

Delays

There are often significant delays between the time a matter is started in the tribunal and when it reaches the final hearing stage. In some cases, a matter is discontinued because one of the parties cannot cope with the burden of having their matter unresolved.

Ongoing delays in the delivery of decisions – especially written reasons – continue to frustrate parties who have already been waiting for several months or years to get to this point. The delivery of a decision and/or reasons will often trigger the next step in a process and it is therefore critical these delays are addressed.

Case management and communication

QLS highlights overloaded case officers, registry communication challenges and the lack of clear contact points for urgent matters. It recommends specialised case managers for each division and improved communication about procedural steps, particularly where matters are heard “on the papers”.

Registry powers and vexatious litigants

While supporting greater powers for registrars to manage meritless matters, QLS cautions against rejecting applications over minor errors without giving parties an opportunity to correct them. It also supports giving QCAT powers similar to the courts to declare vexatious litigants.

Resourcing remains the core issue

QLS says the challenges facing QCAT stem largely from resourcing issues. The submission highlights backlogs, heavy workloads for case officers, delays in obtaining expert reports, particularly in guardianship matters, and limited digital capacity as signs of a system under strain. QLS argues that meaningful improvement will require sustained, long‑term funding not only for QCAT, but also for legal and related services that support the tribunal’s operations.

Remote hearings and decisions on the papers

QLS supports remote hearings as a tool for accessibility,especially for regional users and short appearances. But it warns against mandating remote hearings and stresses that hearings on the papers (i.e. without an oral hearing) should not proceed without giving parties enough time to obtain advice.

Other operational Issues

The submission also highlights:

• confusion from overlapping jurisdictions
• the need for more guidance materials
• privacy issues related to published hearing lists

Where to from here?

The review will continue into 2026, with the final report to be provided to the government by 31 July 2026. The review’s background and issues papers can be accessed here.  

QLS has expressed its willingness to keep contributing to the process, emphasising that QCAT is central to the state’s justice system, but without modern systems, clear legislative settings and adequate funding, the tribunal will struggle to deliver the fast, fair and accessible justice it was built to provide.

All of QLS’s submissions to the review are available here.