Separate a treatment expression of regret from an apology
MaintainedLast reviewed
Key facts
- Human involvement
- YellowClose supervision
- How AI is used
- From the notes, letters and records the lawyer has selected, extract each statement of sorrow, regret, sympathy or apology, with the document, page and date, and mark a statement that contains an acknowledgement of fault or liability. Do not decide that the statement is admissible.
- What the lawyer must review
- The lawyer decides which section applies to the words. The tool does not decide admissibility.
- Keep the words as they appear. Do not smooth them.
- 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. Treatment records that contain words of regret or apology.
Produce. An extract of each statement, placed beside the section, for the lawyer to settle.
Have ready. Open-disclosure notes, letters or records the lawyer selects; The page and date of each statement.
Example of the limit. Illustrative example: A progress note says the clinician is sorry and that a result was missed. The extract keeps both sentences and marks the second as a fact sentence. It does not rule on admissibility.
Stop and hand it back when
- The tool is asked to decide admissibility.
- The words are rewritten.
Sources for this task were checked on 2026-10-23.
Who does what
| Role | What they do |
|---|---|
| Assistance | From the notes, letters and records the lawyer has selected, extract each statement of sorrow, regret, sympathy or apology, with the document, page and date, and mark a statement that contains an acknowledgement of fault or liability. Do not decide that the statement is admissible. |
| Lawyer | Set the scope, supervise the work closely, verify every part relied on, resolve omissions and exceptions, and approve the exact output. |
Checklist
- An expression of regret under section 71 must not contain an admission of liability. Section 72 makes it inadmissible if made by an individual before a proceeding is started.
- An apology under section 72C may admit or imply fault. Section 72D says it is not an admission, is not relevant to fault or liability, and evidence of it is not admissible as evidence of fault or liability.
- Do not treat a statement that contains an admission, or a statement made after proceedings started, as an expression of regret under section 72.
- The example under section 72 is about an adverse outcome. It is an example in the Act, not a fact of this file.
Sources
- Civil Liability Act 2003 (Qld) section 71 · 2026-10-23
- Civil Liability Act 2003 (Qld) section 72 · 2026-10-23
- Civil Liability Act 2003 (Qld) section 72C · 2026-10-23
- Civil Liability Act 2003 (Qld) section 72D · 2026-10-23
Keep the two protections apart. An expression of regret and an apology are defined differently.
The Queensland Courts generative AI page says the user is responsible for accuracy of what is given to a court or tribunal, and that private, confidential, suppressed or legally privileged information must not go into a generative AI chatbot. Practice Direction 5 of 2025 is listed. Its text was not opened.