In a long-wnded way, I tentatively suggest that, so long as the applicant has the sense to invoke s. 108 of the Fair Trading Act, 1999, then penalty interest is available under the Supreme Court Act, 1986, just like in the Supreme Court, so long as the dispute is a consumer-trader dispute. That is, a [...]

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In Walsh v PJCC&A Pty [2008] VCAT 962, beneficiaries of an estate were critical of the testator's lawyers before death. They became his executors after his death, and appointed the firm they worked for as their solicitors. The beneficiaries sued the firm, and its solicitor-executors for unconscionable conduct and misleading or deceptive conduct. [...]

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Slobodan Catovic did not want to pay his solicitor's bill. He misconceivedly invoked the Legal Profession Act, 2004 provision which allows clients to apply to set aside costs agreements, but that is not what he wanted to do. Senior Member Howell satisfied himself that Mr Catovic had intended to bring an application under [...]

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It is well established in VCAT that when doctors and lawyers engage in professional activities in the course of their retainers, e.g. by giving advice, interviewing witnesses, and representing clients, they do not engage in trade or commerce: see for example Stagliano v Duke [2007] VCAT 1070, which I posted about here. Most Fair [...]

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I was drinking beer at The Peacock the other afternoon, and a VCAT member was muttering about the Supreme Court overturning VCAT decisions on the basis that applications for adjournment were not granted when they could have been cured by an order for costs. The suggestion was that the Court may have overlooked the [...]

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I had heard the rumour a fair while ago from the most impeccable sources in VCAT and the Supreme Court that the Supreme Court's Justice Bell was hot tip to take over from Judge Bowman as VCAT's head. Now it's confirmed. Frankly, though it would not be every lawyer's cup of tea, it's [...]

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Happy new year, readers. 2007 was a big one for me, and it seems that lots of interesting things happened. So I made a list.
The Bar: My senior mentor, Peter Riordan SC, was elected Chairman of the Bar Council. Peter Hayes QC died, and the Ethics Committee took Peter Faris to task for commenting to [...]

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Updated, 4 January 2008: See the underlined additions below (with thanks for the references to Jason Pizer's book at p. 246).
Original post: Now two unrepresented folk have managed to convince VCAT's Legal Practice List's Member Butcher in a Fair Trading Act, 1999 claim that yet another solicitor has been acting unconscionably towards his clients in [...]

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There's a seminar coming up in exactly a week's time at the Law Institute at which Alan Hebb is going to speak on disputes in VCAT's Legal Practice List. He's a good bloke and has more experience there than anyone else. He was very often briefed as Counsel Assisting the Tribunal, both at [...]

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My friend Jason Pizer had the launch of the third edition of his book this week, and I went along and enjoyed the company of VCAT's Acting President John Bowman, Deputy President Marilyn Harbison, and Justice Chris Maxwell, President of the Court of Appeal.  It's the VCAT equivalent of Williams, the looseleaf 'Bible' of [...]

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