---
title: "Explain what a Queensland client pays if a personal injury claim does not succeed"
url: "https://ailawframework.com/obligations/costs-billing-and-litigation-funding/explain-what-the-client-pays-if-a-personal-injury-claim-does-not-succeed/queensland"
type: "task_jurisdiction_version"
site: "AI Law Framework"
id: "A42-CS20261023-12-QLD"
practice_area: "Costs, billing & litigation funding"
tier: "yellow"
lawyer_review: "required"
jurisdictions: ["QLD"]
last_reviewed: "2026-10-25"
---

# Explain what a Queensland client pays if a personal injury claim does not succeed

> From the settled agreement, draft a short letter on fees, any uplift, disbursements and adverse costs. Do not run the section 347 formula as if there were a judgment. Do not send the letter.

Canonical page: https://ailawframework.com/obligations/costs-billing-and-litigation-funding/explain-what-the-client-pays-if-a-personal-injury-claim-does-not-succeed/queensland  
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 settled agreement, draft a short letter on fees, any uplift, disbursements and adverse costs. Do not run the section 347 formula as if there were a judgment. Do not send the letter. |
| What the lawyer must review | Follow the successful-outcome clause for fees and any uplift. State disbursements as still payable only if the agreement says so. Do not run section 347 where there is no entitlement. Adverse costs are a separate exposure. Say so. |
| Written for | Queensland |
| Applies to | [Explain what the client pays if a personal injury claim does not succeed](https://ailawframework.com/obligations/costs-billing-and-litigation-funding/explain-what-the-client-pays-if-a-personal-injury-claim-does-not-succeed.md) |

## Checking plan

**Queensland costs if the claim fails**

The tool drafts the letter from the agreement. The lawyer does not apply the cap to a claim with no entitlement.

- What the AI does: From the settled agreement, draft a short letter on fees, any uplift, disbursements and adverse costs. Do not run the section 347 formula as if there were a judgment. Do not send the letter.
- What the lawyer does: Approve the letter and the adverse-costs warning before it is sent.
- 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. Section 323(3)(b) allows disbursements to be payable irrespective of the outcome, if the agreement so provides.
2. The Commission says disclosure in a litigious matter must include the costs the client may have to pay if unsuccessful, and that a costs order may not cover all of the client's costs.
3. Section 324 limits any uplift. Fees and uplift that are conditional on success are not payable when that outcome does not occur.
4. Section 347 caps costs by reference to an entitlement under a judgment or settlement. Where there is no such entitlement, the formula is not run.

## Notes

- Adverse costs are separate from the firm's fees. The letter does not invent an amount for them.
- Keep medical details in the firm's system. Apply the confidentiality duty and APP 11, and check whether a Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) breach is notifiable.

## Practical guide

Jurisdiction: Queensland. A conditional personal injury retainer under the Legal Profession Act 2007.

**Deliverable**: A short letter for the lawyer to settle.

**Inputs**

- The settled costs agreement
- Disbursements paid
- Whether the agreement makes them payable if the claim fails

**Example**: Illustrative example: There is no settlement. The draft still halves a notional sum under section 347. The lawyer deletes that arithmetic. The section needs an entitlement.

**Stop and escalate when**

- Section 347 is applied where there is no judgment or settlement.
- The letter promises that a failed claim costs nothing when the agreement says disbursements remain payable.

Checked 2026-10-23.

## Sources

- [Legal Profession Act 2007 (Qld) s 323, conditional costs agreements](https://www5.austlii.edu.au/au/legis/qld/consol_act/lpa2007179/s323.html) (checked 2026-10-23)
- [Legal Profession Act 2007 (Qld) s 324, uplift fees](https://www5.austlii.edu.au/au/legis/qld/consol_act/lpa2007179/s324.html) (checked 2026-10-23)
- [Legal Profession Act 2007 (Qld) s 347, speculative personal injury claims](https://www5.austlii.edu.au/au/legis/qld/consol_act/lpa2007179/s347.html) (checked 2026-10-23)
- [Legal Services Commission (Qld), costs disclosure and costs agreements](https://www.lsc.qld.gov.au/for-the-profession/policies-and-guidelines/costs-disclosure-and-costs-agreements) (checked 2026-10-23)

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