Table NN sets out the fees payable by Victoria Legal Aid (VLA) for the following hearings in a circuit town:
- committals, bail hearings and pleas in the County Court and Supreme Court
- appeals in the County Court
- solicitor’s out-of-office fees for trial.
These fees are effective from 1 January this year. For fees payable prior to this see Archived versions of the Handbook.
The circuit fees payable to counsel for appearances in criminal trials in the Supreme Court or in the County Court of the gazetted circuit towns are contained in Table RR.
Except where counsel or solicitor advocate practices in the circuit town or a surrounding township, the circuit fees in Table NN are payable for counsel or solicitor advocate in relation to appearances for contested committals in the Magistrates’ Court and plea hearings in the County or Supreme Court.
These fees also apply where counsel or a solicitor advocate who practices in a circuit town has a matter in Melbourne.
| Court | First day | Second and later days | Overnight fee |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ararat | $248 | $164 | $177 |
| Bairnsdale | $273 | $182 | $177 |
| Ballarat | $179 | $121 | $177 |
| Bendigo | $205 | $135 | $177 |
| Colac | $208 | $135 | $177 |
| Geelong | $145 | $94 | $177 |
| Hamilton | $287 | $189 | $177 |
| Horsham | $287 | $189 | $177 |
| Kerang | $287 | $189 | $177 |
| Korumburra | $179 | $121 | $177 |
| Mildura | $348 (Note: if the return economy airfare is more than the first day circuit fee, VLA will pay the airfare instead of the first day circuit fee.) | $234 | $177 |
| Morwell | $208 | $135 | $177 |
| Sale | $248 | $161 | $177 |
| Shepparton | $236 | $158 | $177 |
| Wangaratta | $261 | $177 | $177 |
| Warragul | $189 | $127 | $177 |
| Warrnambool | $268 | $182 | $177 |
| Wodonga | $287 | $189 | $177 |
Practitioners can claim these fees using ATLAS or submitting a tax invoice.
Solicitor out-of-office fees
Except where the instructing solicitor practises in the circuit town or a surrounding township, VLA will pay an additional sum in accordance with the first day circuit fee in Table NN for each visit to the circuit town.
These fees also apply where an instructing solicitor who practises in a circuit town has a matter in Melbourne.
Updated