Find gaps and duplicates in a New South Wales medical-record set
MaintainedLast reviewed
Key facts
- Human involvement
- YellowClose supervision
- How AI is used
- From records in a firm-controlled tool, build a provider-and-date table, mark apparent gaps and flag duplicate pages. Do not treat a gap as proof that treatment did not happen.
- What the lawyer must review
- Check the table against the original pages
- A gap is not proof that treatment or symptoms were absent
- A Commission bundle is indexed, paginated, legible and not duplicated
- Keep the records in a firm-controlled tool. A leak may be notifiable
Rules that apply
The document starts from the task name. Change it if this piece of work is different.
The work product
Forum. New South Wales Personal Injury Commission, or a court file prepared to the same standard
Produce. A coverage table and a duplicate list for the lawyer to check.
Have ready. The medical-record set, with provider and date where the page shows them; The index of documents already lodged; Any page limit that applies to the lodging.
Example of the limit. Illustrative example: The table shows no notes from one hospital for a six-week admission. The lawyer treats that as a missing request, not as an absence of treatment, and does not drop those pages to meet a page limit.
Stop and hand it back when
- The output says the client had no treatment or no symptoms because a record is missing.
- Duplicate clinical pages would be lodged again without the lawyer deciding they are needed.
Sources for this task were checked on 2026-10-23.
Who does what
| Role | What they do |
|---|---|
| Assistance | From records in a firm-controlled tool, build a provider-and-date table, mark apparent gaps and flag duplicate pages. Do not treat a gap as proof that treatment did not happen. |
| Lawyer | Set the scope, supervise the work closely, verify every part relied on, resolve omissions and exceptions, and approve the exact output. |
Checklist
- PIC3, amended 1 January 2026, requires lodged documents to be indexed, paginated with consecutive page numbers, clear and legible, and not to contain duplicate material.
- PIC3 says the index is included in the page count for the 500-page rule in rule 67B. Previously lodged material is referred to, not lodged again.
- PIC3 paragraph 9 requires compliance with PIC13 for chronologies and indexes. PIC13 paragraph 11(b) allows summarising documents, subject to paragraph 10.
- Do not describe a missing provider or a missing date as evidence that the client had no symptoms.
Forms and precedents for this task
| Form or precedent | Kind | AI use | Summary |
|---|---|---|---|
| Freedom of information request for a patient's own health records | Letter | AI use Yellow | A written request under section 17 of the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (Vic) for a patient's own health records held by a public sector agency, sent after an informal release request. |
| Right to information application for a patient's own hospital records | Letter | AI use Yellow | A Queensland application for a patient's own public-hospital health records, using the hospital's administrative scheme first and a Right to Information application if a formal application is required. |
| Access application for health information under the GIPA Act | Letter | AI use Yellow | An access application under the Government Information (Public Access) Act 2009 (NSW) for health information, used when the health service's own health-records process does not cover the request. |
| Authority for a treating practitioner to release clinical records | Form | AI use Yellow | Signed authority for one treating practitioner to release named clinical records for a named period, with a separate tick for counselling or mental-health records and a short covering letter. |
| Client authority and records request pack for a personal injury claim | Form | AI use Yellow | Signed client authority plus a schedule of record requests for a personal injury claim (treating doctors, hospitals, ambulance, employer and payroll, Medicare and Centrelink, insurers), with a tracking table so gaps in the record set are visible early. |
| AI use policy for health information | Policy | AI use Yellow | Firm rule for health information in plaintiff injury work: it stays in a firm-controlled tool, and public tools are not used. |
| Authority for a hospital to release treatment records | Form | AI use Yellow | Signed authority for one hospital to release the emergency, inpatient, outpatient and imaging records of named attendances, plus a letter asking the hospital which access path and fee it requires. |
| Checklist for buying a medical-chronology tool | Checklist | AI use Yellow | Checks before a plaintiff firm approves a tool that will receive medical records: contract, training, security, a privacy impact assessment, and the court conditions for restricted material. |
| UCPR Form 26A: subpoena to produce, with notice and declaration | Form | AI use Red | Link to UCPR Form 26A version 5, a subpoena to produce with the recipient's notice and declaration about copies and original documents. |
| WorkSafe Form D, authority to release medical information: completion guide | Form | AI use Yellow | Link to WorkSafe Form D, the signed authority and consent to release medical information that accompanies a common law damages application. |
Signed-in accounts can read the full text of each one. All precedents.
Sources
- Personal Injury Commission: Procedural Direction PIC3 · 2026-10-23
- Personal Injury Commission: Procedural Direction PIC13 · 2026-10-23
- Supreme Court of NSW: Practice Note SC Gen 23 · 2026-10-23
Practice Note SC Gen 23 paragraph 9B allows an index and a summary of documents. Paragraph 9A still limits material produced on subpoena.
Health records stay in a firm-controlled tool. Australian Solicitors' Conduct Rules rule 9 and Australian Privacy Principle 11 apply, and a breach may be notifiable under the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth).