The temporary suspension of regional court sittings across Western Australia from 1 June reflects pressures that have been building in the regional and remote justice system for some time, the Regional Alliance of Justice Associations (RAJA) said today.

Over recent days, the Magistrates Court, the Supreme Court, and the Children’s Court have each issued directions or public notices vacating or suspending circuit and regional sittings between 1 June and 28 August 2026, at locations where court security has historically been provided by WA Police. The combined effect is the loss of local court services in communities across the Kimberley, Pilbara, Mid West–Gascoyne, Goldfields, Great Southern and South West.

RAJA Chair and Great Southern Community Legal Services CEO Brodie Lewis said the directions reflected pressures that legal services, courts, police and government had all been working within for some time. These pressures across the State’s intersecting responsibilities have finally caught up with regional communities.

“This is a failure of investment in regional justice infrastructure. For people experiencing family violence, the harm doesn’t pause while the courts are closed.”

“This can’t become the new normal. The State needs to commit to resourcing court security in regional WA properly, so that local justice is restored — and so that the next pressure on the system isn’t met with another closure.”

— Brodie Lewis, Chair, Regional Alliance of Justice Associations

RAJA is particularly concerned about the impact on vulnerable people and communities. Family violence is one such concern. The Magistrates Court Practice Direction provides for urgent restraining order applications to be heard by audio-visual link only at Department of Justice–staffed circuit locations; for many remote communities outside that group, only “flexible arrangements” are foreshadowed. Equivalent concerns apply to other vulnerable people, including victims and witnesses required to travel long distances to participate in proceedings. RAJA notes with concern that audio-visual links only work for people with access to device, signal and safety – and the Court guidance is silent on this point.

Pilbara Community Legal Service CEO Joanna Collins said the impact on women seeking protection would be felt immediately.

“From a restraining order perspective, women may feel uncomfortable driving long distances to have these matters heard. They potentially won’t have support from family or friends if it can’t be heard locally — and some will choose not to pursue protection at all.”

“It’s once again highlighting that regional and remote communities do it tougher when basic services aren’t there.”

— Joanna Collins, Chief Executive Officer, Pilbara Community Legal Service

For remote communities, the local court sitting is often the only practical access point to a court. When it is paused, there is rarely a workable substitute. The pattern is replicated across regions. In Fitzroy Crossing, matters that would have been heard locally will be transferred to Broome — a real travel burden in a region where distance and transport are already barriers.

“You cannot remove court access from predominantly Aboriginal communities and pretend the impact is race-neutral. This deepens an already unequal justice system.”

“This is not simply an operational issue. It is a structural inequity in access to justice that disproportionately impacts Aboriginal people living in remote Western Australia.”

— Emily Carter AM, Chief Executive Officer, Marninwarntikura Fitzroy Women’s Resource Centre

RAJA’s first public statement coincides with Law Week 2026, on the theme of Justice, Connection, Community, and with the federation’s own launch week. The themes and the timing are not lost on us. RAJA was incorporated to make the conditions shaping access to justice in regional and remote Western Australia visible in decisions made elsewhere — this week’s set of court directions is one demonstration of why that work matters.

RAJA calls on the State Government to:

• Commit to a sustainable, properly resourced model for court services, including court security at regional and remote circuit locations, so that regional sittings are not dependent on the spare capacity of any single agency.
• Confirm workable arrangements for matters affecting vulnerable people and communities — including, but not limited to, restraining order applications at every affected circuit location — for the duration of the suspension.
• Engage communities in regional WA, including RAJA, in designing those arrangements and in any longer-term reform that follows.
• Clarify, with WA Police, how audio-visual hearings will be supported at the user end for the duration of the suspension — including who provides the facility, who provides support, and how access is guaranteed for people without their own equipment, connection or safe space.