From 1 January 2026, significant changes to the High Court Rules came into effect. The High Court (Improved Access to Civil Justice) Amendment Rules 2025 reshape how a civil litigation case is prepared and run, and seeks to streamline proceedings and reduce the costs of resolving disputes.
These changes affect how quickly your case progresses, what you must prepare early, and how the Court expects parties to conduct themselves.
A new over-riding objective and duty to co‑operate
At the heart of the reforms is a new over-riding objective to ensure the resolution of proceedings through proportionate, speedy, and inexpensive means. Judges must now actively consider proportionality, fairness, efficiency, and the Court’s resources when managing a case.
Parties and their lawyers also have a strengthened duty to co‑operate, including engaging early on procedural matters, disclosure, and preparation for conferences.
For you, as the client, this will mean an early emphasis in your case on collaboration between legal counsel to plan an efficient and sensible pathway to hearing or settlement – aiming to avoid procedural issues delaying resolution.
Discovery becomes disclosure
The discovery process that previously occurred after the filing of the parties’ positions has now been replaced with a more comprehensive initial disclosure duty. Initial disclosure must accompany a party’s first substantive pleading.
Parties must provide:
- All documents referred to in the pleading.
- Additional key documents used in preparing it.
- Documents which will be relied on at trial.
- Any and all adverse documents that may undermine their case or support another party.
This disclosure must be verified by way of affidavit.
To file a well-considered and complete case, you should locate and provide all the principal documents to the issues from the outset. This will be key in the presentation of your case in the initial pleadings.
This will increase transparency and clarity of matters in dispute early on in the proceedings and seeks to reduce any evidence-related disputes or disclosure requests during the process.
The obligation to provide documents is an ongoing and continuing obligation on both the client and their counsel. The duty of co-operation applies where further disclosure is requested.
Standard directions now apply in every case
Once pleadings are filed and that portion of the process has come to a close, standard directions automatically apply unless otherwise altered by a judge. These set out tight timeframes for:
- Exchanging factual witness statements.
- Preparing a draft chronology.
- Notifying and filing certain interlocutory applications.
The new rules also schedule a judicial issues conference (JIC), where parties file short position papers, provide key documents, and work with the judge to refine the issues, plan expert evidence, and timetable the case toward trial.
This is highly beneficial for clarifying the issues, having some certainty in relation to the timeline for settlement, and ensuring that procedural delays are reduced.
Evidence and trial preparation cleaner and earlier
Witness statements must be in their own words, limited to relevant, admissible evidence, and must avoid submissions or document summaries. Non‑compliant statements may be excluded or amended by the court. Only one expert per topic may be called, unless otherwise directed by the Court. Expert conferencing is generally to be ordered, and joint statements may be required without the presence of lawyers.
Parties must finalise their own chronologies, before being merged into a single chronology for trial.
Because documents the parties intend to rely on at trial have already been identified early in the pleadings or provided under continuing disclosure obligations, new documents require the Court’s leave to be included in the common bundle. Once in the common bundle, documents are presumed admissible, streamlining trials considerably.
These refinements aim to shorten and focus trials on the issues and prevent ongoing and technical procedural disputes.
Early interlocutory applications and compliance
Applications for strike‑out, summary judgment, security for costs and jurisdiction protests must be notified and filed within strict deadlines, with the Registrar required to allocate an in‑person hearing.
The Court also has reinforced powers to enforce compliance with rules or orders.
There is an emphasis on reducing delays to ensure prompt determination.
What clients should expect going forward
- Earlier preparation of documents and evidence.
- Increased focus on proportionality.
- Faster identification of the core issues, assisting resolution.
- Streamlined trial processes and more predictable timetables.
The reforms are designed to make civil litigation more accessible, cost‑effective, and efficient. Our team can guide you through the new requirements, ensure compliance, and help you use these changes to your advantage.
