reforms to the cjs Flashcards
what are the two recent reforms?
- group costs orders in representative proceedings (2020)
- increased use of online dispute resolution at VCAT (2020)
what are the two recommended reforms?
- allowing contingency fee agreements.
- introduction of a national justice interpreter scheme.
when did the group costs order happen? what happened?
in june 2020, the Victorian Parliament passed legislation to allow the Supreme Court to make a group costs order in a representative proceeding.
what does a group costs order allow?
allows the plaintiff’s law firm to calculate their fees as a percentage of the damages awarded to all class members.
how can a group costs order be done according to the court?
if the court is ‘satisfied that it is appropriate or necessary to ensure that justice is done in the proceeding’.
what did the government argue when it introduced group costs orders?
that it would ‘increase access to justice by allowing a greater range of class action claims’.
what is a valid however point?
however, the introduction of group costs orders have been criticised as some see it as compromising lawyers’ ethical obligations to ensure the best outcome for the client rather than themselves.
what is the increased use of online dispute resolution?
at VCAT in 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic forced many VCAT lists to fast-track their planned shift to online dispute resolution.
2021-22 statistics compared to 2018-19 for VCAT online dispute resolutions?
in 2021-22, approximately 37,000 VCAT hearings were conducted over teleconference. Compared to 2018-19, where there was no data collected because face to face was the norm.
what are contingency fee agreements?
currently banned in Victoria, these are agreements where the lawyer agrees to provide legal services in return for a percentage of the amount recovered if the claim is successful.
what is different between contingency fee agreements and group costs orders?
contingency fee agreements would not need the approval of the court before being entered into by the parties and would be available for individual claims, not just class actions.
what would allowing lawyers into contingency fee agreements do?
would provide another avenue of funding for people who may be otherwise unable to pursue proceedings due to cost.
however point for allowing contingency fee agreements?
however, the VLRC recognised there are some risks with allowing these in Victoria, some areas of law may be inappropriate for contingency fee agreements.
what would the introduction of a national justice interpreter scheme do?
it would implement a system whereby people with non-english speaking backgrounds would have access to free, profession and qualified interpreters, regardless of where they were and what issue they had.
what does the scheme include?
implementing guidelines for courts to assess whether, when and how to engage an interpreter. it is intended to be fully funded and operate in the courts as well as all areas where people get access to legal assistance.
