VPRS 720 Court of Mines Registers

Courts of Mines were constituted in each mining district. Although there was only one Court of Mines constituted in each district, the court may have sat at several different locations. Each Court of Mines was presided over by a Judge who was usually also a County Court Judge. Courts of Mines heard and ruled upon a wide range of mining-related disputes including disputes over the entitlements of partners, shareholders and employees of mining enterprises. They also acted as courts of appeal against decisions of Mining Wardens regarding territory-related matters such as disputes about the boundaries of claims and leases. Courts of Mines were not responsible for issuing Miner's Rights, surveying or registering claims or granting mining leases. These activities were the responsibility of district mining officials. Courts of Mines continued to operate until 1969, although the volume of business diminished in the twentieth century. In 1969 the Mines (Abolition of Courts) Act abolished Courts of Mines and transferred their jurisdiction to County Courts. A register of the decrees (orders) of the Court of Mines was kept at each place the Court sat. For example, in the Beechworth Mining District separate registers are known to have been kept at Alexandra, Yackandandah, Beechworth, Bright and Mansfield. Court of Mines Registers record details of the number and date of each complaint or case before the court, the names and addresses of the plaintiff and defendant, the nature of the complaint, the amount or value of the complaint, details of court fees, the decree (ie. order), date of carrying out the order and other remarks.

每个采矿区均设立了矿业法庭（Court of Mines）。尽管每个区域仅设一家矿业法庭，但该法庭可在多个不同地点开庭。每家矿业法庭由一名法官主持，该法官通常同时兼任郡法院法官。矿业法庭审理并裁决各类与采矿相关的纠纷，涵盖采矿企业合伙人、股东与雇员的权利主张纠纷。此外，矿业法庭还可作为上诉法院，针对矿业典狱长（Mining Wardens）就领地相关事项作出的裁决受理上诉，例如矿区主张与租赁的边界纠纷。矿业法庭不负责核发采矿许可证（Miner's Rights）、勘测或登记矿区主张，亦不负责授予采矿租赁权，上述事务均由区域矿业官员负责。

矿业法庭持续运作至1969年，尽管其业务量在20世纪已有所缩减。1969年，《矿业（法庭废止）法案》（Mines (Abolition of Courts) Act）正式废止矿业法庭，并将其管辖权移交至郡法院。

矿业法庭的裁决（判令）登记簿会留存于该法庭开庭的各个地点。例如，已知比奇沃斯采矿区（Beechworth Mining District）的裁决登记簿分别留存于亚历山大（Alexandra）、亚坎丹达（Yackandandah）、比奇沃斯、布莱特（Bright）与曼斯菲尔德（Mansfield）。

矿业法庭登记簿记录了法庭受理的每起投诉或案件的编号与日期、原告与被告的姓名及地址、投诉事由、投诉涉及的金额或价值、诉讼费用详情、法院判令、判令执行日期及其他备注信息。