---
title: "Separate a treatment expression of regret from an apology"
url: "https://ailawframework.com/practice/personal-injury-and-compensation/mark-apology-and-regret-statements-against-the-limit-on-using-them/queensland"
type: "task_jurisdiction_version"
site: "AI Law Framework"
id: "A21-MN20261023-4-QLD"
practice_area: "Personal Injury & Compensation (workers compensation, CTP/TAC, medical negligence)"
tier: "yellow"
lawyer_review: "required"
jurisdictions: ["QLD"]
last_reviewed: "2026-10-25"
---

# Separate a treatment expression of regret from an apology

> 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…

Canonical page: https://ailawframework.com/practice/personal-injury-and-compensation/mark-apology-and-regret-statements-against-the-limit-on-using-them/queensland  
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 | 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). |
| Written for | Queensland |
| Applies to | [Mark apology and regret statements against the limit on using them](https://ailawframework.com/practice/personal-injury-and-compensation/mark-apology-and-regret-statements-against-the-limit-on-using-them.md) |

## Checking plan

**Verify against sources**

Section 72 protects an expression of regret by an individual before proceedings, and only to the extent it contains no admission. Section 72D deals with an apology, which may admit fault.

- What the AI does: 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 does: Make the legal assessment, check the source material and authorise the output for its intended use.
- 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. 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.
2. 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.
3. Do not treat a statement that contains an admission, or a statement made after proceedings started, as an expression of regret under section 72.
4. The example under section 72 is about an adverse outcome. It is an example in the Act, not a fact of this file.

## Notes

- 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.

## Practical guide

Jurisdiction: Queensland. Treatment records that contain words of regret or apology.

**Deliverable**: An extract of each statement, placed beside the section, for the lawyer to settle.

**Inputs**

- Open-disclosure notes, letters or records the lawyer selects
- The page and date of each statement

**Example**: 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 escalate when**

- The tool is asked to decide admissibility.
- The words are rewritten.

Checked 2026-10-23.

## Sources

- [Civil Liability Act 2003 (Qld) section 71](https://www.austlii.edu.au/au/legis/qld/consol_act/cla2003161/s71.html) (checked 2026-10-23)
- [Civil Liability Act 2003 (Qld) section 72](https://www.austlii.edu.au/au/legis/qld/consol_act/cla2003161/s72.html) (checked 2026-10-23)
- [Civil Liability Act 2003 (Qld) section 72C](https://classic.austlii.edu.au/au/legis/qld/consol_act/cla2003161/s72c.html) (checked 2026-10-23)
- [Civil Liability Act 2003 (Qld) section 72D](https://classic.austlii.edu.au/au/legis/qld/consol_act/cla2003161/s72d.html) (checked 2026-10-23)

*Practice guidance for planning and review. Confirm current primary sources and the requirements of the actual matter. This is general information, not legal advice.*