Check section 39 before treating a volunteer as personally protected
MaintainedLast reviewed
Key facts
- Human involvement
- RedLawyer-led
- How AI is used
- List what the documents say about community work, the organisation, and whether the person was paid. Do not decide that the individual is protected.
- What the lawyer must review
- The lawyer decides whether section 39(1) applies, and reads the exception sections first.
- Do not use this task for food donation under section 39(2) and (3).
- Keep health and wage records in a firm-controlled tool, not a public one.
- ASCR r 9 and APP 11 apply. Decide if a breach is notifiable under the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth).
Rules that apply
The document starts from the task name. Change it if this piece of work is different.
The work product
Forum. Queensland. A question whether an individual volunteer is personally liable.
Produce. A fact list. The lawyer writes the advice on who can be sued.
Have ready. Documents on the organisation and the work; Any document on payment or an office held.
Example of the limit. Illustrative example: The person is described as unpaid and as doing work the organisation organised. The list records those words. It does not say section 39(1) is a complete answer.
Stop and hand it back when
- The tool is asked to decide the person is protected.
- The facts are about a food donation, which is a different subsection.
Sources for this task were checked on 2026-10-23.
Who does what
| Role | What they do |
|---|---|
| Assistance | Supporting preparation only. List what the documents say about community work, the organisation, and whether the person was paid. Do not decide that the individual is protected. The tool writes nothing into the document. Substantive advice, judgement and any restricted content remain with the responsible human. |
| Lawyer | Perform the substantive analysis and decisions. Independently check any permitted supporting work and approve the exact output for its intended use. |
Checklist
- Record community work, the organisation, any office, good faith, and payment, each from a document.
- State section 39(1) only. Do not use the food-donation subsections for this question.
- The exception sections after section 39 were not opened. The lawyer reads them before treating section 39(1) as complete.
- Consider the community organisation as a defendant in its own right. The opened subsection does not say the liability moves to the organisation.
Sources
- Civil Liability Act 2003 (Qld) section 39 · 2026-10-23
- Queensland Courts: Using generative AI · 2026-10-23
The text of the sections on criminal acts, intoxication, scope of activities, insurance and motor accidents was not opened. Do not say those exceptions do or do not apply.
The Queensland Courts generative AI page says the user is responsible for accuracy of what is given to a court or tribunal, and that confidential information must not go into a public chatbot. Practice Direction 5 of 2025 is listed. Its text was not opened.