Claim for damages

The Motor Accidents Injury Regulation 2017 caps legal costs for motor accident injury claims made on or after 1 December 2017.

The changes:

1. Prohibit contracting out of maximum solicitor-client costs for claims for a settlement or award of not more than $75,000.

This means if a matter settles for not more than $75,000, you are only entitled to claim regulated costs and cannot contract out. You can find information about regulated costs under Schedule 1 of the Motor Accidents Injuries Regulation 2017

2. Protect the first $75,000 of a settlement or award from solicitor-client costs.

This means that the maximum solicitor-client costs cannot be more than party-party costs plus the difference between the settlement/award and $75,000. For example, if a matter settles for $100,000, you would be entitled to charge the regulated costs plus a total maximum of $25,000 (being the difference between the $100,000 settlement and the $75,000 cap) in contracted out solicitor-client costs.

3. Limit legal costs to $15,000 for claims made by children under 18 years of age.

For further information, refer to the Motor Accident Injuries Act 2017 and Motor Accidents Injuries Regulation 2017.