---
title: "Assess loss of capacity to care for dependants under section 15B"
url: "https://ailawframework.com/practice/personal-injury-and-compensation/assess-loss-of-capacity-to-provide-gratuitous-care-to-dependants/new-south-wales"
type: "task_jurisdiction_version"
site: "AI Law Framework"
id: "A21-DM20261023-8-NSW"
practice_area: "Personal Injury & Compensation (workers compensation, CTP/TAC, medical negligence)"
tier: "yellow"
lawyer_review: "required"
jurisdictions: ["NSW"]
last_reviewed: "2026-10-25"
---

# Assess loss of capacity to care for dependants under section 15B

> Where the lawyer says section 15B may apply, list its conditions and leave each one blank. Do not use it for a Motor Accident Injuries Act award or for work injury damages.

Canonical page: https://ailawframework.com/practice/personal-injury-and-compensation/assess-loss-of-capacity-to-provide-gratuitous-care-to-dependants/new-south-wales  
Last reviewed: 2026-10-25

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

## Key facts

| Fact | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Practice area | [Personal Injury & Compensation (workers compensation, CTP/TAC, medical negligence)](https://ailawframework.com/practice/personal-injury-and-compensation.md) |
| Human involvement | Yellow: Lawyer and AI draft together |
| How AI is used | Where the lawyer says section 15B may apply, list its conditions and leave each one blank. Do not use it for a Motor Accident Injuries Act award or for work injury damages. |
| What the lawyer must review | Section 15B is loss of capacity to care for dependants, not care the claimant receives Require the pre-injury services, the incapacity of the dependants, and 6 hours for 6 consecutive months Section 15B does not apply to a Motor Accident Injuries Act award A Lifetime Care participant may be outside section 15B for the accident injury. The lawyer decides |
| Written for | New South Wales |
| Applies to | [Assess loss of capacity to provide gratuitous care to dependants](https://ailawframework.com/practice/personal-injury-and-compensation/assess-loss-of-capacity-to-provide-gratuitous-care-to-dependants.md) |

## Checking plan

**Verify against sources**

The table lists the section 15B conditions. It does not decide that any of them is met.

- What the AI does: Where the lawyer says section 15B may apply, list its conditions and leave each one blank. Do not use it for a Motor Accident Injuries Act award or for work injury damages.
- What the lawyer does: Decide whether section 15B applies and whether each condition is satisfied.
- 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. Damages may be awarded only if the court is satisfied of the conditions in section 15B(2), including services provided to the defined dependants before the liability arose, dependants who cannot perform the services because of age or physical or mental incapacity, a reasonable expectation of at least 6 hours a week for at least 6 consecutive months, and a continuing reasonable need.
2. Section 15B(4) says the amount must not exceed the hourly rate in section 15(5), regardless of the number of hours. Section 15B(5) says the loss is not to be included again inside non-economic loss.
3. Section 3B(2)(a1) applies section 15B to motor accidents except a motor accident to which the Motor Accident Injuries Act 2017 applies. Work injury damages are outside the Act other than Part 1B.
4. Section 15B(8) says damages may not be awarded to a Lifetime Care participant for domestic services to dependants, to the extent the loss resulted from the motor accident injury and the Scheme provides those services. The lawyer decides whether that bar applies.

## Notes

- Interest on this head is barred by section 18(1)(c) where section 18 applies. Do not calculate interest here.
- Health and wage records stay in a firm-controlled tool. The lawyer applies ASCR r 9 and APP 11, and decides whether any breach is notifiable under the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth).

## Practical guide

Jurisdiction: A New South Wales damages claim to which section 15B of the Civil Liability Act 2002 may apply

**Deliverable**: A condition list for section 15B, with every condition left blank.

**Inputs**

- Who the dependants are and the care provided before the injury
- The hours and the period
- Whether the claim is a motor accident award or work injury damages

**Example**: Illustrative example: Care for a dependant was four hours a week. The table records that the six-hour condition is not met on those hours. It does not value the loss.

**Stop and escalate when**

- The claim is a Motor Accident Injuries Act award or work injury damages.
- The hours cannot be tied to a record the lawyer has accepted.

Checked 2026-10-23.

## Sources

- [Civil Liability Act 2002 (NSW), in force from 30 July 2026, sections 3B, 15B and 18](https://legislation.nsw.gov.au/view/whole/html/inforce/current/act-2002-022) (checked 2026-10-23)
- [Motor Accident Injuries Act 2017 (NSW), Part 4, read with Civil Liability Act section 3B(2)(a1)](https://legislation.nsw.gov.au/view/whole/html/inforce/current/act-2017-010) (checked 2026-10-23)

## Forms and precedents for this task

| Form or precedent | Kind | AI level | Summary |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| [Victoria Wrongs Act caps worksheet](https://ailawframework.com/precedents/personal-injury-and-compensation/vic-wrongs-caps-worksheet.md) | Other | Yellow | Worksheet for the Wrongs Act 1958 (Vic) limits that were opened: the earnings cap, the indexed non-economic loss maximum, the discount rate, and the gratuitous care limits. No indexed dollar is typed. |

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.*