Personal injury litigation is a specialist area of law that requires an in-depth knowledge of the legislation, time limits and case law. It also often involves dealing with the uncertainty of clients’ changing medical conditions and emotional wellbeing. We see claims where firms dabble in the area without the requisite expertise or they fail to set up systems to ensure they meet the time limits or manage clients appropriately.
Checklists
Personal injury litigation checklist
Personal Injury
13 Feb 24
This checklist suggests risk management strategies practices can implement when dealing with personal injury litigation matters. Practitioners may find it helpful to use it alongside our Personal Injury Litigation practice risk guide.
Practice Risk Guides
Personal injury litigation — LPLC Practice Risk Guide
Personal Injury
12 Feb 24
Clients seek out litigation lawyers when something has gone wrong. In the personal injury arena, there is often the added difficulty of a client dealing with a physical or mental impairment and its consequences. The relationship can be challenging from the start. It can be made even more difficult if litigants are faced with delays, unexpected costs and experience confusion with an unfamiliar court system.
This LPLC Practice Risk Guide explains the steps practitioners can take to minimise the risk of receiving a claim in personal injury litigation matters and provides a practical checklist to help practices implement claims prevention strategies.
Checklists
Bankruptcy limitations
Conveyancing, Tax, Leases, Personal Properties Securities, Sale and Purchase of Business, Building and Construction, Will Making, Beneficiaries, Mortgages, Personal Properties Securities, Solicitors Certificates, Personal Injury, Commercial
05 Jun 23
Time limits most commonly missed in relation to bankruptcy.
Checklists
Contribution limitations
Conveyancing, Tax, GST, Leases, Sale and Purchase of Business, Building and Construction, Mortgages, Personal Injury, Commercial
05 Jun 23
Time limits most commonly missed in relation to contributions.
Checklists
Appeals limitations
Conveyancing, Tax, GST, Leases, Building and Construction, Personal Properties Securities, Sale and Purchase of Business, GST, Building and Construction, Property settlements, Estate Administration, Mortgages, Personal Properties Securities, Personal Injury, Commercial
05 Jun 23
Time limits most commonly missed in relation to appeals, a claim example and lessons learned.
Checklists
Personal injury limitations
Personal Injury, Commercial
05 Jun 23
Time limits most commonly missed in relation to personal injury.
Practice Risk Guides
Know your limits
Conveyancing, Personal Injury, Engagement/retainer management, Professional Responsibility
15 Dec 22
With the proliferation of time limits in legislation today, missing limitation dates is a mistake that occurs in many areas of the law leading to claims. This LPLC Practice Risk Guide lists the limitation periods that have caught practitioners out in recent years. It also gives some claims examples of how the mistakes have occurred and the lessons we can learn from those mistakes.
Checklists
Checklist for terms of settlement
Property settlements, Will Making, Estate Administration, Personal Injury, Commercial
23 Aug 21
This Checklist is designed to help solicitors and barristers ensure they have correctly addressed all of the relevant issues in terms of settlement. Using this checklist will help avoid the most common mistakes LPLC sees in terms of settlement that lead to claims. Barristers may find it useful to use this checklist alongside LPLC's Good Counsel – Practice Risk Guide for Barristers.
Checklists
Barristers Checklist for Safe Practice
Property settlements, Will Making, Estate Administration, Personal Injury, Commercial
23 Aug 21
This checklist provides a list of risk management steps and issues to consider for various stages of any brief. Using this checklist will help barristers avoid claims and provide good service to their clients. This checklist can be used alongside LPLC's Good Counsel –Practice Risk Guide for Barristers.
Practice Risk Guides
Good Counsel – Practice Risk Guide for Barristers
Personal Injury, Commercial
19 Aug 21
This LPLC Practice Risk Guide provides details of the types of mistakes made by barristers based on the professional indemnity claims made in Victoria since LPLC began insuring barristers in 2005, and provides recommendations on how to avoid those mistakes. The guide also provides links to risk management checklists and at the end a list of cases relevant to conflicts, and personal costs orders.
Practice Risk Guides
Personal injury litigation — LPLC Practice Risk Guide
Personal Injury
12 Feb 24
Clients seek out litigation lawyers when something has gone wrong. In the personal injury arena, there is often the added difficulty of a client dealing with a physical or mental impairment and its consequences. The relationship can be challenging from the start. It can be made even more difficult if litigants are faced with delays, unexpected costs and experience confusion with an unfamiliar court system.
This LPLC Practice Risk Guide explains the steps practitioners can take to minimise the risk of receiving a claim in personal injury litigation matters and provides a practical checklist to help practices implement claims prevention strategies.
Practice Risk Guides
Know your limits
Conveyancing, Personal Injury, Engagement/retainer management, Professional Responsibility
15 Dec 22
With the proliferation of time limits in legislation today, missing limitation dates is a mistake that occurs in many areas of the law leading to claims. This LPLC Practice Risk Guide lists the limitation periods that have caught practitioners out in recent years. It also gives some claims examples of how the mistakes have occurred and the lessons we can learn from those mistakes.
Practice Risk Guides
Good Counsel – Practice Risk Guide for Barristers
Personal Injury, Commercial
19 Aug 21
This LPLC Practice Risk Guide provides details of the types of mistakes made by barristers based on the professional indemnity claims made in Victoria since LPLC began insuring barristers in 2005, and provides recommendations on how to avoid those mistakes. The guide also provides links to risk management checklists and at the end a list of cases relevant to conflicts, and personal costs orders.
Webinars
Avoiding Personal Cost Orders — do the basics well
Personal Injury, Commercial
23 Nov 23
Since the enactment of the Civil Procedure Act 2010 (Vic), legal practitioners face the risk of having a personal costs order brought against them. In the years following, there have been several important decisions on personal costs orders that provide insight on when they are likely to be ordered.
Webinars
Personal injury claims — do the basics well
Personal Injury
25 Aug 23
In this webinar John McGirr, LPLC Claims Solicitor, gets back-to-basics and discusses how to run a personal injury file, helping lawyers avoid common pitfalls that can lead to stressful and costly claims.
Videos
Back to basics for litigators
Personal Injury, Commercial
02 Jul 19
Seminar from 2019's Risk Management Intensive. Presented by Thanh Bui, Colin Biggers and Paisley.
Videos
The Harvard Diaries
Personal Injury, Commercial
01 Jul 18
Seminar from 2018's Risk Management Intensive. Presented by Emily Dewberry, Lawyer & Nationally Accredited Mediator Dewberry Mediations.
Videos
Personal injuries litigation
Personal Injury
25 Sep 17
For personal injury lawyers, it is important to manage not only the law but also the client and the retainer. Clients will seek assistance when something has gone wrong. They are often dealing with a physical or mental impairment and its consequences. On top of this, litigation will be an unfamiliar territory for them, making for an emotionally-charged environment.
Videos
Conflicts
Conveyancing, Financial Agreements, Will Making, Personal Injury, Commercial, Verification of Identity, Engagement/retainer management, Professional Responsibility
25 Sep 17
Practitioners who act for multiple parties are often caught unaware by conflicts, which can be difficult to anticipate and arise before the danger becomes apparent. This leaves the practitioners exposed to allegations of breach of duty and the conduct rules, and preferring the interests of one client over another. In acting for more than one party, you create a minefield for yourself.
