Editing Australian Capital Territory (section)

=== Judiciary and policing ===
{{See also|Crime in the Australian Capital Territory}}
[[File:New Law Courts of the Australian Capital Territory.jpg|thumb|The Law Courts in Civic houses the Supreme Court and the Magistrates' Court]]
The judicial power of the territory is exercised by the territory courts. These are the [[Supreme Court of the Australian Capital Territory]] the [[Magistrates Court of the Australian Capital Territory]] (with summary jurisdiction) and the [[ACT Civil and Administrative Tribunal]]. From 2001, appeals from the Supreme Court are heard by a panel of Supreme Court judges sitting as the Court of Appeal.<ref>{{Cite web |last= |first= |date=2019-12-13 |title=Court of Appeal |url=https://courts.act.gov.au/supreme/about-the-courts/court-of-appeal |access-date=2023-01-26 |website=ACT Supreme Court |language=en}}</ref> The current Chief Justice is [[Lucy McCallum]] and the current Chief Magistrate is [[Lorraine Walker]].

The [[Federal Court of Australia|Federal Court]] has concurrent jurisdiction over civil matters arising under territory law, a fact which has become increasingly important to the practice of [[Defamation|defamation law]] across Australia.<ref>[https://www.legislation.act.gov.au/View/a/1993-60/current/html/1993-60.html ''Jurisdiction of Courts (Cross-vesting) Act 1993'' (ACT)] s 4</ref><ref>''Crosby v Kelly'' 203 FCR 451; [http://www8.austlii.edu.au/cgi-bin/viewdoc/au/cases/cth/FCAFC/2012/96.html <nowiki>[2012] FCAFC 96</nowiki>] (Full Court of the Federal Court of Australia).</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Schrapel |first=Sanjay |date=2020-09-02 |title=A 'non-colourable assertion' – litigating "pure" defamation claims in the Federal Court |url=https://commbarmatters.com.au/2020/09/02/a-non-colourable-assertion-litigating-pure-defamation-claims-in-the-federal-court/ |access-date=2023-01-26 |website=CommBar Matters |publisher=Commercial Bar Association of Victoria |language=en-AU |archive-date=26 January 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230126145110/https://commbarmatters.com.au/2020/09/02/a-non-colourable-assertion-litigating-pure-defamation-claims-in-the-federal-court/ |url-status=dead }}</ref>

Policing services are provided by the [[ACT Policing]] unit of the [[Australian Federal Police]] under agreements between the territory government, the federal government, and the police force.<ref>[https://www.legislation.gov.au/Latest/C2021C00480 ''Australian Federal Police Act 1979'' (Cth)] s 8(1A)</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last1=ACT Government |url=https://www.justice.act.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0008/2072168/Arrangement_FINAL_Signed_reduced.pdf |title=An ongoing arrangement between the Minister for Justice of the Commonwealth and the ACT Minister for Police and Emergency Services for the provision of policing services to the ACT |last2=Australian Government |year=2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221017231154/https://www.justice.act.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0008/2072168/Arrangement_FINAL_Signed_reduced.pdf |archive-date=2022-10-17 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last1=ACT Government |url=https://www.justice.act.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0012/2112600/2022-2026-Purchase-Agreement-Signed.PDF |title=Agreement between the ACT Government and the Australian Federal Police for the provision of policing services to the Australian Capital Territory, 2022–2026 |last2=Australian Federal Police |publisher=ACT Government |year=2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230121130919/https://www.justice.act.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0012/2112600/2022-2026-Purchase-Agreement-Signed.PDF |archive-date=2023-01-21}}</ref> [[Canberra]] had the lowest rate of crime of any capital city in Australia {{as of|lc=yes|February 2019}}.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://police.act.gov.au/crime |title=Crime |website=Australian Federal Police. ACT Policing |date=7 March 2016 |access-date=23 February 2019 |archive-date=28 February 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190228133000/https://police.act.gov.au/crime |url-status=dead }}</ref> 
[[File:AFP-ACT VW.jpg|alt=|thumb|AFP vehicle in Canberra]]