Review a proposed release before the client signs
Key facts
- Human involvement
- YellowClose supervision
- How AI is used
- From the draft release the other side has sent, extract any confidentiality clause, any apology, any admission or denial, the defendants released, the amount, and any prior-payment warranty. Do not rewrite the deed and do not advise the client to sign.
- What the lawyer must review
- The client signs this deed. The lawyer checks every release, confidentiality clause and apology.
- Do not treat a settlement made now as a historical agreement the set-aside sections describe.
- Do not promise that the deed can be reopened under those sections.
- Keep the file in the firm's system. Confidentiality, APP 11 and a notifiable-breach check apply.
Open a jurisdiction version of this task to see which instruments apply: NSWVICQLD
Who does what
| Role | What they do |
|---|---|
| Assistance | From the draft release the other side has sent, extract any confidentiality clause, any apology, any admission or denial, the defendants released, the amount, and any prior-payment warranty. Do not rewrite the deed and do not advise the client to sign. |
| Lawyer | Set the scope, supervise the work closely, verify every part relied on, resolve omissions and exceptions, and approve the exact output. |
Checklist
- Read the names of the people and bodies released. Compare them with the defendants who are actually sued.
- Mark any clause that stops the client speaking about the abuse or the claims process, and put the State's published position beside it where the defendant is the State.
- Do not tell the client the deed can later be set aside under the historical sections. Those sections describe older agreements.
- Leave Medicare, Centrelink and NDIS clearances to the firm's existing compensation-recovery work. Do not calculate them here.
Forms and precedents for this task
| Form or precedent | Kind | AI use | Summary |
|---|---|---|---|
| National Redress Scheme and a civil claim: comparison checklist | Checklist | AI use Yellow | A comparison, for a survivor and the lawyer, of a National Redress Scheme offer and a civil claim: components, the six-month decision, the release, a decline, and a Victorian set-aside limit. |
Signed-in accounts can read the full text of each one. All precedents.
Sources
- Limitation of Actions Act 1958 (Vic) s 27OA, definitions for the child-abuse division · 2026-10-23
- Limitation of Actions Act 1974 (Qld) s 48, transitional provision for previously barred and settled actions · 2026-10-23
- Civil Liability Act 2002 (NSW) s 7C, meaning of affected agreement · 2026-10-23
- Victorian Government, Common Guiding Principles for child sexual abuse civil claims · 2026-10-23
- Queensland Government, whole-of-government guidelines for civil litigation involving child abuse (November 2022 v1) · 2026-10-23
- NSW Government Guiding Principles for agencies responding to civil claims for child abuse · 2026-10-23
- National Redress Scheme, redress payments · 2026-10-23
- Legal Profession Uniform Law Australian Solicitors' Conduct Rules 2015 (NSW) r 9.1, confidentiality, compiled to 1 July 2026 · 2026-10-23
- Office of the Australian Information Commissioner, APP 11, security of personal information · 2026-10-23
These are suggested working checks. Confirm the required checking with the responsible lawyer before work starts; the checking approach does not establish permission to use AI.
Before any output is used in a court document, read the forum's generative AI rule: Victoria, Supreme Court Practice Note SC Gen 25; New South Wales, Practice Note SC Gen 23; Queensland, the courts' generative AI page and Supreme Court Practice Direction 5 of 2025.