Please note: This article was originally published by CourtKeys.com in 2015 and is now out of date. Revised and updated content is included in Civil Litigation for Non-Lawyers [available here]. Disclaimer
The District Court has general jurisdiction to deal with civil claims of up to $200,000. You could still file claim a District Court claim that would otherwise exceed that limit by abandoning whatever part exceeds $200,000. However, beware that ‘abandoned’ really does mean ‘abandoned’: You could not make a new District Court claim for any abandoned part later on. Alternatively, if you did not want to abandon any part of a claim exceeding $200,000, you might file it in the High Court.
There are some claims that the District Court cannot deal with even though the value involved is less than the $200,000 limit. Some examples:
1. Section 35(1) of the District Court Act 1947 provides:
No court shall have cognizance of any proceedings in which the validity of any devise or bequest is in question or the limitations under any will or settlement are in dispute.
2. The Employment Court has exclusive jurisdiction over various matters set out at section 187 of the Employment Relations Act 2000.
3. Prejudiced shareholders must apply to the High Court for relief under section 174 of the Companies Act 1993.
Note: This content was originally published by CourtKeys.com in 2015. Disclaimer