Superior and Inferior Courts
Superior Courts are those with, originally, unlimited jurisdiction to hear disputes and are the highest courts in their section of the Australia court hierarchy. They hear disputes in most areas of law and are only limited by legitimate legislation. These are the Supreme Courts, in each state and territory, and the High Court of Australia for the country generally. Each is created as part of the Constitution of Australia, or for the Supreme Courts, by the Constitution of that state or the Self Government Acts for the ACT and the Northern Territory. The rule of law is a doctrine stating equality before the law.
Inferior Courts are secondary to Superior Courts. Their existence is from legislation and their powers are the opposite of Superior Courts: they only have the power to decide on matters where parliament grants them the power to do so. Decisions in inferior courts normally (but not always) can be appealed to the Superior Court in that area (e.g., from a District Court to a Supreme Court; or from the Federal Magistrates' Court to the Family Court of Australia or Federal Court of Australia).
Read more about this topic: Australian Court Hierarchy
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