---
title: "Test safety-defect defences in a Victorian Supreme Court proceeding"
url: "https://ailawframework.com/practice/personal-injury-and-compensation/test-the-statutory-defences-to-a-safety-defect-claim/victoria"
type: "task_jurisdiction_version"
site: "AI Law Framework"
id: "A21-PR20261023-5-VIC"
practice_area: "Personal Injury & Compensation (workers compensation, CTP/TAC, medical negligence)"
tier: "yellow"
lawyer_review: "required"
jurisdictions: ["VIC"]
last_reviewed: "2026-10-25"
---

# Test safety-defect defences in a Victorian Supreme Court proceeding

> List the material against each paragraph of s 142. If a submission will be filed in the Supreme Court of Victoria, flag Practice Note SC GEN 25 for verification. Do not say a defence is made out.

Canonical page: https://ailawframework.com/practice/personal-injury-and-compensation/test-the-statutory-defences-to-a-safety-defect-claim/victoria  
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 | List the material against each paragraph of s 142. If a submission will be filed in the Supreme Court of Victoria, flag Practice Note SC GEN 25 for verification. Do not say a defence is made out. |
| What the lawyer must review | Decide which s 142 defences are open and who must establish them. If the defence is a Commonwealth mandatory standard, check that s 148 notice to the Commonwealth is diarised. Check a Victorian mandatory standard under s 142. Section 148 does not make Victoria a defendant. Verify any submission under SC GEN 25. One AI tool cannot verify another. |
| Written for | Victoria |
| Applies to | [Test the statutory defences to a safety-defect claim](https://ailawframework.com/practice/personal-injury-and-compensation/test-the-statutory-defences-to-a-safety-defect-claim.md) |

## Checking plan

**Verify against sources**

The defences are Commonwealth in every court. In the Supreme Court of Victoria the submission is checked under SC GEN 25, which does not govern a Federal Court submission.

- What the AI does: List the material against each paragraph of s 142. If a submission will be filed in the Supreme Court of Victoria, flag Practice Note SC GEN 25 for verification. Do not say a defence is made out.
- What the lawyer does: The lawyer decides which defences are open and how a Victorian submission is verified.
- 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. Keep s 142(a) at supply by the actual manufacturer, or at generation for electricity.
2. Limit s 142(d) to a component defect attributable only to the other goods' design, markings or instructions.
3. Do not treat a later safer product as itself proving a safety defect. That limit is s 9(3). It does not answer s 142(c).
4. Name the lawyer who verifies any Supreme Court submission.

## Notes

- If the work reaches the Supreme Court of Victoria, Practice Note SC GEN 25 requires the lawyer to verify output. Do not put health records into a public AI tool. One AI tool cannot verify another.

## Practical guide

Jurisdiction: Supreme Court of Victoria, if the defence is addressed there

**Deliverable**: A defence table, with a flag if s 148 notice is required and if a Supreme Court submission will be filed.

**Inputs**

- Defence documents selected by the lawyer
- The mandatory standard relied on, if any

**Example**: Illustrative example: The defendant pleads compliance with a Victorian standard. The lawyer records s 142(b) and does not treat s 148 as joining Victoria. A Commonwealth standard would be different.

**Stop and escalate when**

- Section 148 is used for a state standard.
- A citation in a Supreme Court submission is verified only by another AI tool.

Checked 2026-10-23.

## Sources

- [Australian Consumer Law, ss 142 and 148](https://classic.austlii.edu.au/au/legis/cth/consol_act/caca2010265/sch2.html) (checked 2026-10-23)
- [Supreme Court of Victoria, Practice Note SC GEN 25](https://www.supremecourt.vic.gov.au/areas/legal-resources/practice-notes/sc-gen-25-the-use-of-artificial-intelligence-by-court-users) (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.*