---
title: "Litigation funding agreement review checklist (including class actions)"
url: "https://ailawframework.com/precedents/costs-billing-and-litigation-funding/litigation-funding-agreement-review-checklist"
type: "precedent"
site: "AI Law Framework"
id: "a42-litigation-funding-agreement-review-checklist"
area_id: "A42"
kind: "checklist"
ai_level: "red"
version: 1
law_stated_as_at: "2026-10-17"
---

# Litigation funding agreement review checklist (including class actions)

> Checklist for reviewing a third-party litigation funding agreement and the related costs agreement: commission, control, termination, adverse costs, conflicts, court disclosure and the contingency fee prohibition.

Canonical page: https://ailawframework.com/precedents/costs-billing-and-litigation-funding/litigation-funding-agreement-review-checklist  
Law stated as at: 2026-10-17

Site index for agents: https://ailawframework.com/llms.txt

## Key facts

- Kind: Checklist. Steps or checks to work through and tick off.
- Practice area: [Costs, billing & litigation funding](https://ailawframework.com/precedents/costs-billing-and-litigation-funding.md)
- Jurisdictions: Australia, New South Wales, Victoria, Western Australia
- AI level: Red. Keep AI out of the decisive steps. A lawyer does the work.
- Law stated as at: 2026-10-17
- Status: Maintained. Checked on 2026-10-17 against the 7 authorities it cites, for 4 jurisdictions.

## When to use it

Use before advising a client or representative applicant to sign a funding agreement, and again before any settlement approval. Not a substitute for advice on the funder's regulatory status or on foreign-law terms.

## How AI may be used

This is lawyer-led work. AI may extract and tabulate commission, control, termination and recovery terms for comparison, but every conflict, fairness and enforceability judgment is made by the lawyer.

**AI may:**

- Extract fees, commission, multiples, waterfall, control, termination and recovery terms into a table with clause references.
- Compare the agreement with the firm's standard negotiation positions and list departures.
- Model the client's net return under settlement scenarios the lawyer specifies, showing the formula used.

**AI must not:**

- Must not express a view on whether the commission is fair, reasonable or likely to be approved.
- Must not summarise conflict-of-interest provisions as adequate.
- Must not receive the agreement in a tool that is not approved for privileged and commercially sensitive material.

**The lawyer checks:**

- Every extracted figure and clause reference has been checked against the signed version.
- The legal costs arrangement does not breach s 183, and any uplift complies with s 182.
- Court disclosure obligations under GPN-CA para 6 are diarised.

## Authorities

- [Corporations Amendment (Litigation Funding) Regulations 2022 (Cth) (litigation funding schemes and arrangements exempted from the managed investment scheme, financial services licensing, disclosure and anti-hawking regimes; commenced 10 December 2022)](https://www.legislation.gov.au/F2022L01614/asmade)
- [Federal Court of Australia Class Actions Practice Note (GPN-CA) paras 5, 6 and 16 (disclosure of costs and funding agreements; conflicts; supervision of deductions)](https://www.fedcourt.gov.au/law-and-practice/practice-documents/practice-notes/gpn-ca)
- [Legal Profession Uniform Law ss 181, 182 and 183 (conditional costs agreements; uplift fees capped at 25% in litigious matters; contingency fees prohibited)](https://legislation.nsw.gov.au/view/html/inforce/current/act-2014-16a#sec.181)
- [Kain v R&B Investments Pty Ltd 2025 HCA 28 (no "solicitors' common fund order" where the solicitor is subject to the Uniform Law (NSW))](https://www.hcourt.gov.au/cases-and-judgments/judgments/judgments-1998-current/kain-v-rb-investments-pty-ltd)
- [Supreme Court Act 1986 (Vic) s 33ZDA (group costs orders in Victorian group proceedings)](https://www.legislation.vic.gov.au/in-force/acts/supreme-court-act-1986)
- [Supreme Court of Victoria Practice Note SC Gen 10 (Conduct of group proceedings)](https://www.supremecourt.vic.gov.au/areas/legal-resources/practice-notes/sc-gen-10-conduct-of-group-proceedings-class-actions-second)
- [Legal Profession Uniform Law Australian Solicitors' Conduct Rules 2015 r 12 (conflict concerning a solicitor's own interests)](https://legislation.nsw.gov.au/view/html/inforce/current/sl-2015-0244#rule.12)

## Full text and drafting notes

The full text and the drafting notes are not part of this public page. Signed-in firm accounts can read them at https://ailawframework.com/precedents/costs-billing-and-litigation-funding/litigation-funding-agreement-review-checklist and through the signed-in MCP connector https://ailawframework.com/mcp/firm.

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