Ask a Victorian holder to keep incident records, as a request only
MaintainedLast reviewed
Key facts
- Human involvement
- YellowClose supervision
- How AI is used
- In a firm-controlled tool, draft a short letter asking the holder to keep the incident records the lawyer identifies. The letter asks only. It does not say the holder must produce documents, and it does not call section 26 a duty to keep records.
- What the lawyer must review
- Settle the letter before it is sent, and check that it asks only.
- Do not treat section 26 as a duty to keep records, or as a duty before a proceeding.
- Do not assert a right to production that you have not identified.
Rules that apply
The document starts from the task name. Change it if this piece of work is different.
The work product
Forum. Victoria: a request to keep incident records before or outside a proceeding
Produce. A letter asking a holder to keep identified incident records, settled by the lawyer before it is sent.
Have ready. The holder; The records the lawyer identifies; Whether a civil proceeding has started.
Example of the limit. Illustrative example: No proceeding has been issued. The draft asks a venue to keep a sign-in sheet and an incident report. It does not say section 26 requires the venue to keep them. The lawyer settles the letter before it is sent.
Stop and hand it back when
- The letter would tell the holder that section 26 already obliges production.
- The records would be pasted into a public tool to draft the letter.
Sources for this task were checked on 2026-10-23.
Who does what
| Role | What they do |
|---|---|
| Assistance | In a firm-controlled tool, draft a short letter asking the holder to keep the incident records the lawyer identifies. The letter asks only. It does not say the holder must produce documents, and it does not call section 26 a duty to keep records. |
| Lawyer | Set the scope, supervise the work closely, verify every part relied on, resolve omissions and exceptions, and approve the exact output. |
Checklist
- Before a civil proceeding, the letter is a request only. No pre-proceeding preservation duty was opened.
- Do not describe Civil Procedure Act 2010 section 26 as an order to keep documents.
- Section 26 excludes privilege that has not been waived, and documents protected under any Act or other law.
- The letter the holder receives is settled by the lawyer. Confidential records do not go into a public tool.
Sources
- Civil Procedure Act 2010 (Vic) section 26 · 2026-10-23
- Supreme Court of Victoria Practice Note SC GEN 25 · 2026-10-23
No Victorian pre-proceeding duty to preserve incident records was opened. Before a civil proceeding, the letter asks the holder to keep identified records. It does not compel production.
Civil Procedure Act 2010 section 26 is an overarching obligation, for a person to whom the overarching obligations apply, to disclose to each party the existence of documents that are or have been in the person's possession, custody or control, of which the person is aware, and which the person considers, or ought reasonably consider, are critical to the resolution of the dispute. Disclosure is at the earliest reasonable time after the person becomes aware of the document, or at a time the court directs. Subsection (3) does not apply the obligation to a document protected by privilege which has not been expressly or impliedly waived, or protected under any Act, including a Commonwealth Act, or other law. Subsection (4): the obligation is ongoing for the duration of the civil proceeding and does not limit or affect a party's obligations in relation to discovery. It is not a duty to keep documents, and the letter must not call it one.
If the product supports a court document, apply the note for that court: Supreme Court Practice Note SC GEN 25 (14 May 2026), the County Court practice note on artificial intelligence by court users (9 June 2026), or the Magistrates' Court guidelines issued 19 October 2026. One tool cannot verify another. Do not put confidential or sensitive information into a public tool.