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 – Public interest and strategic litigation
- 9 – Standard grants assessment process
- 10 – Simplified grants assessment process
- 11 – Referral and practitioner panels
- 12 – Means test
- 13 – Commonwealth merits test
- 14 – State reasonableness test and interests of justice test
- 15 – Special circumstances
- 16 – Applying for a grant of legal assistance
- 17 – Decision to grant or refuse assistance
- 18 – Reconsideration and review of decisions
- 19 – Standard terms and conditions
- 20 – Contributions and overdue payments
- 21 – Abandoning legal assistance
- 22 – Finalising grants of legal assistance
- 23 – Allocation of work to lawyers and law firms
- 24 – Payments to lawyers and service providers
- 25 – Compliance reviews
- 26 – Privacy protection
- 27 – Complaints and feedback
- Topic index
- Invoice, worksheets and forms
- Contact us
22 – Finalising grants of legal assistance
This section explains what the assigned lawyer must do when a legally assisted matter, or a stage of a legally assisted matter, finishes.
VLA’s reporting and billing requirements
When a legally assisted matter or a stage of a legally assisted matter ends, the assigned lawyer must give VLA a final report on the outcome within a reasonable time.
VLA has different reporting requirements, depending on which grants assessment process the application for assistance was processed under.
See also:
- standard grants assessment process
- simplified grants assessment process
- standard terms and conditions.
Applications processed through the simplified grants assessment process
If the legal matter is one for which VLA processed the application through the simplified grants assessment process, then the assigned lawyer must submit their final report and their final accounts (in-house billing or invoices) to VLA within 30 days after the assisted matter finishes.
VLA has pro forma final report forms which may be used for the following matters:
- family violence and stalking intervention order matters
- summary criminal prosecutions
- indictable criminal prosecutions.
In family law matters, a lawyer must send a copy of the orders.
Applications processed through the standard grants assessment process
In all other assisted matters, the assigned lawyers must report to VLA by writing a letter and including in it:
- the VLA file number
- the assisted person’s full name
- the result of the matter (including all details of any penalties, settlements and costs)
- a claim for lump sum fee invoice or in-house billing sheet, using the appropriate scale of costs or VLA’s fee schedules and, if VLA requests, a bill of costs in taxable form for fees and itemised disbursements
- an account for all money the lawyer has received and paid on behalf of the assisted person during the assignment
- any intention of the assisted person to take any further legal action (for example, to proceed to the next stage or to appeal).
See Payments to lawyers and service providers
Small settlements
In some legally assisted matters in which VLA pays interim costs and disbursements, the eventual settlement offer or judgment may be significantly lower than the amount anticipated when VLA originally made the grant of legal assistance. In these cases, VLA may agree that the lawyer need only refund to VLA the amount paid by VLA.
If the assigned lawyer’s account is greater than the amount of legal assistance
If a case has finished, and the assigned lawyer has given the assisted person an account for costs over and above the amount VLA paid or will pay, then VLA may consider:
- removing the lawyer from either the Section 29A Practitioner Panel or the Section 30 Referral Panel (whichever may be relevant)
- prosecuting the lawyer under section 32(1) of the Legal Aid Act 1978
and - requiring the lawyer to repay to the assisted person any payments the assisted person has made.
If VLA prosecutes the lawyer under the Legal Aid Act, then the lawyer may be either:
- fined 50 penalty units
- imprisoned for six months.
See also: Referral and practitioner panels