---
title: "Check a New South Wales conditional costs agreement and uplift"
url: "https://ailawframework.com/obligations/costs-billing-and-litigation-funding/check-a-conditional-costs-agreement-for-the-required-content-and-any-upl/new-south-wales"
type: "task_jurisdiction_version"
site: "AI Law Framework"
id: "A42-PE20261022-2-NSW"
practice_area: "Costs, billing & litigation funding"
tier: "yellow"
lawyer_review: "required"
jurisdictions: ["NSW"]
last_reviewed: "2026-10-25"
---

# Check a New South Wales conditional costs agreement and uplift

> From the draft, mark plain language, the successful outcome, the client's signature, the independent-advice statement and cooling-off of at least five clear business days, and if there is an uplift set out its basis,…

Canonical page: https://ailawframework.com/obligations/costs-billing-and-litigation-funding/check-a-conditional-costs-agreement-for-the-required-content-and-any-upl/new-south-wales  
Last reviewed: 2026-10-25

Site index for agents: https://ailawframework.com/llms.txt

## Key facts

| Fact | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Practice area | [Costs, billing & litigation funding](https://ailawframework.com/obligations/costs-billing-and-litigation-funding.md) |
| Human involvement | Yellow: Lawyer and AI draft together |
| How AI is used | From the draft, mark plain language, the successful outcome, the client's signature, the independent-advice statement and cooling-off of at least five clear business days, and if there is an uplift set out its basis, estimate or range, and percentage of legal costs excluding disbursements. Do not decide that the uplift is permitted. |
| What the lawyer must review | Decide whether section 181(7) allows a conditional agreement in this matter For a litigious matter, form the reasonable belief that success is reasonably likely before agreeing an uplift Keep the uplift at or under 25 per cent of legal costs excluding disbursements |
| Written for | New South Wales |
| Applies to | [Check a conditional costs agreement for the required content and any uplift cap](https://ailawframework.com/obligations/costs-billing-and-litigation-funding/check-a-conditional-costs-agreement-for-the-required-content-and-any-upl.md) |

## Checking plan

**Verify against sources**

Sections 181 and 182 of the Legal Profession Uniform Law (NSW) set the form and the 25 per cent uplift cap. The lawyer decides whether they are met.

- What the AI does: From the draft, mark plain language, the successful outcome, the client's signature, the independent-advice statement and cooling-off of at least five clear business days, and if there is an uplift set out its basis, estimate or range, and percentage of legal costs excluding disbursements. Do not decide that the uplift is permitted.
- What the lawyer does: The lawyer decides whether the agreement complies and settles the agreement the client will sign.
- Who reviews: Lawyer competent in this practice area
- Basis: Checked against the linked sources on 23 October 2026. Confirm the current instrument before reliance.

## Checks the lawyer makes

1. A conditional costs agreement is not available for criminal proceedings, proceedings under the Family Law Act 1975, or proceedings specified in the Uniform Rules.
2. Require writing, plain language, the successful outcome, the client's signature, the independent-advice statement, and at least five clear business days' cooling-off, unless the agreement is between law practices only.
3. On a cooling-off termination, no uplift is recoverable, and only informed work done during that period may be recovered.
4. Section 182(2): a litigious uplift requires a reasonable belief that a successful outcome is reasonably likely, and must not exceed 25 per cent of the legal costs excluding disbursements.

## Notes

- These sections do not contain the Queensland section 347 cap. Do not import it.
- The client signs the agreement. A later court document from the same file is subject to Practice Note SC Gen 23.

## Practical guide

Jurisdiction: Legal Profession Uniform Law (NSW)

**Deliverable**: A marked-up conditional costs agreement for the lawyer to settle.

**Inputs**

- Draft agreement
- Lawyer's statement of the successful outcome
- Proposed uplift percentage

**Example**: Illustrative example: The draft for a litigious claim includes a 20 per cent uplift on professional fees and five clear business days to terminate. The markup records the section 182 belief as not yet made. The lawyer makes that belief before the client is asked to sign.

**Stop and escalate when**

- The reasonable-likelihood belief is missing in a litigious matter.
- The uplift is charged on disbursements or exceeds 25 per cent.

Checked 2026-10-23.

## Sources

- [Legal Profession Uniform Law s 181, conditional costs agreements](https://classic.austlii.edu.au/au/legis/nsw/consol_act/lpul333/s181.html) (checked 2026-10-23)
- [Legal Profession Uniform Law s 182, conditional costs agreements involving uplift fees](https://classic.austlii.edu.au/au/legis/nsw/consol_act/lpul333/s182.html) (checked 2026-10-23)

## Forms and precedents for this task

| Form or precedent | Kind | AI level | Summary |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| [New matter checklist](https://ailawframework.com/precedents/personal-injury-and-compensation/firm-new-matter-checklist.md) | Checklist | Yellow | Checklist for opening a plaintiff injury file: identity, conflicts, the diary, costs disclosure, authorities, and consent before health records go into a tool. |
| [Queensland speculative personal injury costs agreement](https://ailawframework.com/precedents/costs-billing-and-litigation-funding/qld-speculative-personal-injury-costs-agreement.md) | Agreement | Yellow | A Queensland conditional costs agreement for a speculative personal injury claim, where fees are not worked out from the settlement.… |
| [Cooling-off letter for a conditional costs agreement](https://ailawframework.com/precedents/costs-billing-and-litigation-funding/conditional-costs-cooling-off-letter.md) | Letter | Yellow | A letter telling the client they can end a conditional costs agreement by written notice in a cooling-off period of at least five clear business days, and what may be charged if they do. |
| [Letter when the retainer ends](https://ailawframework.com/precedents/costs-billing-and-litigation-funding/letter-when-the-retainer-ends.md) | Letter | Yellow | A letter when the firm stops acting, setting out any costs still sought. Cooling-off recovery is limited to the services the section allows, with no uplift, and the letter claims no lien. |

Signed-in accounts can read the full text of each one.

*Practice guidance for planning and review. Confirm current primary sources and the requirements of the actual matter. This is general information, not legal advice.*