Compare a Victorian bodily-injury judgment with an offer under rule 26.08
MaintainedLast reviewed
Key facts
- Human involvement
- YellowClose supervision
- How AI is used
- Set out the offer, who made it, the date of service, and the judgment sum, beside rule 26.08. The tool does not write the costs application.
- What the lawyer must review
- The lawyer decides whether the judgment is no less favourable.
- For death or bodily injury, apply indemnity under rule 26.08(2)(a) to the whole claim.
- Apply ordinary costs, not indemnity, to a defendant's offer under rule 26.08(3).
- Disregard interest after the day of service. The offeror must have been willing and able.
Rules that apply
The document starts from the task name. Change it if this piece of work is different.
The work product
Forum. A proceeding governed by Order 26 of the Supreme Court (General Civil Procedure) Rules 2025
Produce. A comparison of the judgment with the offer, marked to rule 26.08.
Have ready. The offer and the date it was served; The judgment sum and the interest; Whether the claim is for death or bodily injury.
Example of the limit. Illustrative example: The plaintiff's bodily-injury offer was $200,000 and the judgment is $210,000. The note marks indemnity for the whole claim under rule 26.08(2)(a). The lawyer decides whether the Court should otherwise order.
Stop and hand it back when
- The offer is a Calderbank letter rather than an offer of compromise.
- The County Court rule has not been read and the proceeding is in that court.
Sources for this task were checked on 2026-10-23.
Who does what
| Role | What they do |
|---|---|
| Assistance | Do not begin AI assistance until the responsible lawyer has defined and confirmed its permitted scope. |
| Lawyer | Set the scope, supervise the work closely, verify every part relied on, resolve omissions and exceptions, and approve the exact output. |
Checklist
- Rule 26.08(2)(a): if the claim is damages for or arising out of death or bodily injury, the plaintiff obtains a judgment no less favourable than the unaccepted offer, and the Court does not otherwise order, indemnity costs cover the whole claim.
- Rule 26.08(2)(b), for any other claim, gives ordinary costs before 11.00 am on the second business day after service, and indemnity after that.
- Rule 26.08(3): if the plaintiff obtains a judgment not more favourable than the defendant's offer, the plaintiff's costs before 11.00 am on the second business day after service are on the ordinarily applicable basis, and the defendant's costs after that time are on that same basis, not indemnity, unless the Court otherwise orders.
- Rule 26.08(4): if the plaintiff unreasonably failed to accept and the claim is dismissed or judgment is for the defendant, the defendant's costs until 11.00 am on the second business day after the offer was made are on the ordinarily applicable basis, and the defendant's costs after that time are on an indemnity basis, unless the Court otherwise orders.
- Rule 26.03 keeps the offer open for at least 14 days. It cannot be withdrawn while open unless the Court otherwise orders. Rule 26.08(8) withholds the plaintiff's indemnity under paragraph (2) unless the Court is satisfied the plaintiff's offer was a genuine compromise, where only liability was in dispute.
Sources
- Supreme Court (General Civil Procedure) Rules 2025 (Vic) r 26.08 · 2026-10-23
- Supreme Court (General Civil Procedure) Rules 2025 (Vic) r 26.03 · 2026-10-23
- Supreme Court of Victoria, Practice Note SC GEN 25 · 2026-10-23
Practice Note SC GEN 25, issued on 14 May 2026, covers Supreme Court documents, including pleadings, submissions and expert reports. Do not put confidential or sensitive material into a public AI tool.
These are the Supreme Court (General Civil Procedure) Rules 2025. The County Court offer rules were not opened. Do not apply rule 26.08(2)(a) to a County Court proceeding without reading the County Court rule.