Table of contents
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Table of contents
- 1 – Introduction
- 2 – Types of matters that may be assisted
- 3 – Criminal law guidelines
- 4 – Commonwealth family law and child support guidelines
- 5 – Commonwealth civil law guidelines
- 6 – State family guidelines
- 7 – State civil law guidelines
- 8 – Standard grants assessment process
- 9 – Simplified grants assessment process
- 10 – Referral and practitioner panels
- 11 – Means test
- 12 – Commonwealth merits test
- 13 – State reasonableness test and interests of justice test
- 14 – Special circumstances
- 15 – Applying for a grant of legal assistance
- 16 – Decision to grant or refuse assistance
- 17 – Reconsideration and review of decisions
- 18 – Standard terms and conditions
- 19 – Contributions and overdue payments
- 20 – Abandoning legal assistance
- 21 – Finalising grants of legal assistance
- 22 – Allocation of work to lawyers and law firms
- 23 – Payments to lawyers and service providers
- 24 – Compliance reviews
- 25 – Privacy protection
- 26 – Complaints and feedback
- Topic index
- Invoices, worksheets and forms
- Contact us
Stage 2 – litigation
These fees are effective from 1 October 2011. For fees payable in matters prior to this date, see Costs payable in Commonwealth family law matters in the VLA Handbook (September 2011).
Stages
- Stage 2(a) Application in State Magistrates’ Court (finding of parentage)
- Stage 2(b) Application for recovery/information order in any court
- Stage 2(c) Initiating court proceedings including application for interim relief in State Magistrates’ Court
- Stage 2(d) Transfer from State Magistrates’ Court to Family Court or Federal Magistrates Court
- Stage 2(e) Initiating application to Family Court or Federal Magistrates Court (including case assessment conference)
- Stage 2(f) Subsequent hearing in Family Court or Federal Magistrates Court
- Stage 2(g) Interim Contest hearing in Family Court or Federal Magistrates Court
- Stage 2(h) Procedural hearing (callover)
- Stage 2(i) Roundtable Dispute Management (litigation intervention)
Some of the stages herein are broad-banded:
- A lawyer in receipt of a Stage 2(e) grant will be entitled to three further Stage 2(f) grants and a Stage 2(h) grant without any further assistance.
- A lawyer in receipt of a Stage 2(c) grant that is transferred to the Federal Magistrates Court or the Family Court will be entitled to a Stage 2(d) grant, three further Stage 2(f) grants and a Stage 2(h) grant without any extension of aid. Otherwise a grant of assistance must be approved in advance.
Stage 2(a) Application in State Magistrates’ Court (finding of parentage)
A lump sum of either $644 (section 30 panel member) or $680 (section 29A panel member) is payable for:
- taking instructions
- preparing documents
- court attendance(s).
These fees are claimed using either:
- section 30 panel: Stage 2(a) Application in State Magistrates Court (finding of paternity) tax invoice
- section 29A panel: Stage 2(a) Application in State Magistrates' Court (finding of paternity) tax invoice.
Stage 2(b) Application for recovery/information order in any court
The lump sum shown in the table below covers:
- instructions
- court documents
- court attendance(s)
- consent orders, if appropriate.
The fee includes all court appearances. No additional fees are payable unless it is necessary to initiate or respond to further court proceedings.
These fees are claimed using either:
- section 30 panel: Stage 2(b) Application for recovery/information order tax invoice
- section 29A panel: Stage 2(b) Application for recovery/information order tax invoice.
| Court | Section 30 panel lump sum | Section 29A panel lump sum |
|---|---|---|
| Family Court | $966* | $1020* |
| Federal Magistrates Court | $966* | $1020* |
| State Magistrates’ Court | $805 | $850 |
* Where the practitioner’s office is more than 50 kilometres from the court, Victoria Legal Aid (VLA) will pay an additional $161 (non s29A panel practitioner) or $170 (s29A panel practitioner) over the lump sum fixed, which covers either travel or briefing an agent.
Stage 2(c) Initiating court proceedings including application for interim relief in State Magistrates’ Court
A lump sum of either $1544 (section 30 panel member) or $1637 (section 29A panel member) is payable for:
- taking instructions for initiating court proceedings and for affidavits
- communications
- preparing documents
- attending to filing and service
- obtaining short service
- court attendance
- consent order, if appropriate.
The fee for the Magistrates’ Court includes all court appearances. No additional fees are payable.
These fees are claimed using either:
- section 30 panel: Stage 2(c) Initiating court proceedings including application for interim relief in State Magistrates' Court – broadband tax invoice
- section 29A panel: Stage 2(c) Initiating court proceedings including application for interim relief in State Magistrates' Court – broadband tax invoice.
Stage 2(d) Transfer from State Magistrates’ Court to Family Court or Federal Magistrates Court
A lump sum of either $1127 (section 30 panel member) or $1190 (section 29A panel member) is payable for:
- preparation
- court documents
- court appearance.
Where the practitioner’s office is more than 50 kilometres from the court, VLA will pay an additional $161 (section 30 panel member) or $170 (section 29A panel member) over the lump sum fixed, which covers either travel or briefing an agent.
Stage 2(e) Initiating application to Family Court or Federal Magistrates Court (including case assessment conference)
A lump sum of either $1932 (section 30 panel member) or $2040 (section 29A panel member) is payable for:
- taking instructions for initiating court proceedings and for affidavits
- communications
- preparing documents
- attending to filing and service
- obtaining short service
- court attendance (includes case assessment conference)
- consent order, if appropriate.
Where the practitioner’s office is more than 50 kilometres from the court, VLA will pay an additional $161 (section 30 panel member) or $170 (section 29A panel member) over the lump sum fixed, which covers either travel or briefing an agent.
These fees are claimed using the relevant tax invoice*:
- section 30 panel: Stage 2(e) Initiating application to Family Court – broadband tax invoice
- section 29A panel: Stage 2(e) Initiating application to Family Court – broadband tax invoice
- section 30 panel: Stage 2(e) Initiating application to Federal Magistrates Court – broadband tax invoice
- section 29A panel: Stage 2(e) Initiating application to Federal Magistrates Court – broadband tax invoice.
*Note: this is a broad-banded invoice which covers multiple stages.
Stage 2(f) Subsequent hearing in Family Court or Federal Magistrates Court
The lump sum payable to prepare and attend a subsequent hearing in the Family Court or the Federal Magistrates Court is either $805 (section 30 panel member) or $850 (section 29A panel member).
Where the practitioner’s office is more than 50 kilometres from the court, VLA will pay an additional $161 (section 30 panel member) or $170 (section 29A panel member) over the lump sum fixed, which covers either travel or briefing an agent.
These fees are claimed using either:
- section 30 panel: Stage 2(f) – Subsequent hearing in Family or Federal Magistrates courts tax invoice
- section 29A panel: Stage 2(f) – Subsequent hearing in Family or Federal Magistrates courts tax invoice.
Stage 2(g) Interim Contest hearing in Family Court or Federal Magistrates Court
The lump sum payable to prepare for an interim contest hearing in the Family Court or the Federal Magistrates Court is either $805 (section 30 panel member) or $850 (section 29A panel member).
Where the practitioner’s office is more than 50 kilometres from the court, VLA will pay an additional $161 (section 30 panel member) or $170 (section 29A panel member) over the lump sum fixed, which covers either travel or briefing an agent.
Counsel’s trial fees (Stage 4) are also payable.
These fees are claimed using either:
- section 30 panel: Stage 2(g) – Interim contest hearing in Family or Federal Magistrates courts tax invoice
- section 29A panel: Stage 2(g) – Interim contest hearing in Family or Federal Magistrates courts tax invoice.
Stage 2(h) Procedural hearing (callover)
The table below shows the lump sum payments for Stage 2(h) services and proceedings.
These fees are claimed using the relevant tax invoice**:
- section 30 panel: Stage 2(e) Initiating application to Family Court – broadband tax invoice
- section 29A panel: Stage 2(e) Initiating application to Family Court – broadband tax invoice
- section 30 panel: Stage 2(e) Initiating application to Federal Magistrates Court – broadband tax invoice
- section 29A panel: Stage 2(e) Initiating application to Federal Magistrates Court – broadband tax invoice.
| Service/proceedings | Section 30 panel lump sum | Section 29A panel lump sum |
|---|---|---|
| Preparation | $322 | $340 |
| Appearance | $483* | $510* |
| Appearance by telephone mention | $161 | $170 |
* Where the practitioner’s office is more than 50 kilometres from the court, VLA will pay an additional $161 (section 30 panel member) or $170 (section 29A panel member) over the lump sum fixed, which covers either travel or briefing an agent.
** Note: this is a broad-banded invoice that includes stage 2(h).
Stage 2(i) Roundtable Dispute Management (litigation intervention)
The table below shows the lump sum payments for Stage 2(i) Roundtable Dispute Management (RDM) services and proceedings.
These fees are claimed using either:
- section 30 panel: Stage 2(i) – RDM (litigation intervention) tax invoice
- section 29A panel: Stage 2(i) – RDM (litigation intervention) tax invoice.
| Service/proceedings | Section 30 panel lump sum | Section 29A panel lump sum |
|---|---|---|
| Taking Instructions and preparing client for RDM |
$161 |
$170 |
| Representing client at RDM conference* | $644 | $680 |
| Preparing consent orders, if appropriate (Note: This fee is only payable where the Consent Orders have been filed with the court.) |
$322 | $340 |
* Where a second conference may reasonably be expected to result in a resolution of the dispute a lawyer may proceed to a further conference without an extension of aid. In the event that a lawyer attends an RDM process which is adjourned without hearing, a fee of $161 (section 30 panel member) or $170 (section 29A panel member) will be payable.