Memo · Class Actions / Representative Proceedings
Group costs order: comparison note before a Victorian s 33ZDA application
Note for a proposed Supreme Court of Victoria group costs order: the statutory test, what the order does to adverse costs and security, and the practice note's timing and scope.
- Kind
- Memo. An internal or advice memo.
- Where it applies
- Australia, Victoria
- AI use
- Red You write the text. The tool writes nothing into the document. Where permitted, it may check, clarify or collect data, and anything it checks or collects is verified.
- Law stated as at
- 22 October 2026
- Status
- Maintained. Checked on 22 October 2026 against the 2 authorities it cites, for Australia and Victoria.
- Version
- 1
- Source
- Written for this library
When to use it
Use when the plaintiff may ask the Supreme Court of Victoria for a group costs order. File any application at the earliest practicable time after the close of pleadings, by summons, subject to the Case Management Judge.
Used for these tasks
Each task page says how far AI may help with the task and what the lawyer must review.
How AI may be used
The lawyer chooses whether to apply and what percentage to seek. AI may set out the section and the practice note, and line up funding figures the lawyer has already approved.
AI may
- Set out s 33ZDA(1) to (4) and practice note section 14 as a checklist with blanks
- Place lawyer-approved budget lines beside a blank percentage column
- List documents already on the file that section 14 says may need a confidentiality direction
AI must not
- Must not propose the percentage, or state that a percentage is appropriate or necessary to ensure that justice is done
- Must not compare the return to group members under a percentage with a third-party funder's commission as if the result were a recommendation
- Must not draft the affidavit or the submissions in support of the application
The lawyer checks
- The proceeding is in the Supreme Court of Victoria. Section 33ZDA is not a Federal Court power
- The application is by summons, at the earliest practicable time after pleadings close, unless the Case Management Judge directs otherwise
- The percentage, if sought, is the lawyer's figure, and the note records why the lawyer says the order is appropriate or necessary so that justice is done
- The scope covers the solicitor's services, security for costs if required, disbursements, and an indemnity for adverse costs, as section 14.5 sets out, or the departure is explained
Method: how the Green, Yellow and Red levels are decided. This is guidance for planning, not legal advice.
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The summary, the law it rests on and the AI-use guidance above stay public. Privacy.
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- Deposition outline: class representative and Rule 30(b)(6)
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