Table Q – Expert reports and court attendances in family law matters
Table Q – Expert reports and court attendances in family law matters
Table Q sets out the fixed fees which Victoria Legal Aid (VLA) will pay for expert reports and court attendances in family law matters.
These fees are effective from 1 January 2015. For fees payable prior to this see Archived versions of the Handbook.
VLA expects assisted people to get family reports from the Court Counseling Section, unless it is impractical or inappropriate.
In exceptional circumstances, the fees may be increased.
| Service provided | Fees payable |
|---|---|
| Family assessment and report | $2174 total cost Note: VLA will pay only the assisted person’s appropriate share of this total amount. Except in exceptional circumstances, VLA will not pay any part of the cost of a family report on behalf of the child representative/independent children’s lawyer. |
| Supplementary report (ie any second or later report by an expert): if prepared within nine months after the first report. | $1210 total cost Note: VLA will pay only the assisted person’s appropriate share or shares of this total amount. |
| Supplementary report (ie any second or later report by an expert): if prepared more than nine months after the first report | $1814 total cost Note: VLA will pay only the assisted person’s appropriate share or shares of this total amount. |
| Interview of a third party (eg a grandparent) who has intervened in a dispute | $364 additional fee on top of total cost |
| Attending court, including travel: half day | $542 Note: If the person attending court is the writer of the family report, then the fee is payable out of the grant of legal assistance made to the child representative/independent children’s lawyer. |
| Attending court, including travel: full day | $797 Note: If the person attending court is the writer of the family report, then the fee is payable out of the grant of legal assistance made to the child representative/independent children’s lawyer. |
A person is engaged to write a family report but does not need to complete the report:
|
The report writer may claim a fee for the actual work done. |
| Individual reports | Fee payable to psychiatrist or psychologist |
| Assessment and report | $1027 |
| Treating expert’s report | $434 |
| Supplementary report (ie any second or later report by an expert) | $507 |
| Attending court, including travel: half day | $542 |
| Attending court, including travel: full day | $797 |
| If the assisted person does not attend a firm appointment made with the expert | $98 |
Practitioners can claim these fees using ATLAS or submitting a tax invoice.