The report stack · Complex matters
One messy matter. Thirteen documents. All kept current.
Simple matters get a solicitor report and a client report. The hard ones get the full stack. Here's what LawyerUp builds for one of the hardest: a family fight over a property someone was promised.
Modelled on a real state court file. No client details carried over.
The matter
A son says his parent promised him the house. He worked in the family business for years on low pay, lived on the property, renovated it and paid the bills. The parent dies. The surviving owner wants him out.
His claim
Proprietary estoppel, a constructive trust and a promise to leave him the land by will. A caveat on the title.
Her counterclaim
Possession, removal of the caveat and rent for every month he's stayed.
What goes wrong
Lawyers stop acting before trial. The trial is vacated with a costs order that kills the claim if it isn't paid on time. Fees go unpaid.
Then it gets harder
Medical evidence says he can't run the case himself. Someone has to step in.
The stack
Every document updates itself as new orders, evidence and invoices come in. A solicitor signs each one off.
Critical dates register
Every order, its deadline and what happens if it's missed. Trial dates, limitation, caveat risk.
Solicitor, client, support personStatement of issues map
Each question the court has to answer, claim and counterclaim, linked to the elements and the evidence.
Solicitor, counselSource-tagged chronology
Date, event, source, agreed or disputed. Set out the way the court wants it.
Court, counselEvidence and witness matrix
Who proves what, outlines filed, hearsay notices, gaps and credibility risks.
Solicitor, counselAuthorities memo
The law by issue, citations checked: promise, reliance, detriment, remedy, writing, delay, licence.
Solicitor, counselMerits and remedy model
Chances on each issue. Remedy range from compensation up to the land itself. Counterclaim exposure.
Solicitor, clientThe other side's case
The promise was conditional or never made. He was paid. It was only ever a licence. He waited too long.
Solicitor, counselCosts, exposure and funding
Spent, owed, still to come. Adverse costs orders and their deadlines. Every way to pay.
Client, funderCapacity and representation pack
Medical evidence summary, litigation guardian steps, adjournment application with supporting affidavit.
Solicitor, courtRoadmap to trial
Stage gates from clearing old orders to enforcing judgment. Cost and a settle-or-continue call at each.
Client, solicitorBrief to counsel
Issues, chronology, bundle index, authorities, questions for counsel, fee and funding terms.
BarristerMediation and settlement pack
Position paper, valuation evidence, offers made and received, offer timing.
Mediator, other sideClient report, two versions
Plain English for the client. A second copy for a carer or attorney he's authorised.
Client, support personHighlighted: the three documents that would have kept this matter on the rails.
Where the authorities memo starts
The starting points for a promised-land claim. LawyerUp adds the cases closest to your facts and checks every citation before it appears.
| Issue | Authority | What it's used for |
|---|---|---|
| Estoppel from a promise | Waltons Stores (Interstate) Ltd v Maher (1988) 164 CLR 387 | An assumption the other side induced, relied on to his detriment |
| Shaping the remedy | Giumelli v Giumelli (1999) 196 CLR 101 | Relief can go as far as the property itself |
| Promise, reliance, remedy | Sidhu v Van Dyke (2014) 251 CLR 505 | Reliance on a promise of land and how relief is measured |
| Family land promises | Delaforce v Simpson-Cook (2010) 78 NSWLR 483 | Keeping relief in proportion within families |
| Constructive trust | Muschinski v Dodds (1985) 160 CLR 583; Baumgartner v Baumgartner (1987) 164 CLR 137 | When keeping the benefit is unconscionable |
| Writing and part performance | Property Law Act 1958 (Vic) ss 53, 55 | Land contracts need writing unless part performance saves them |
| Caveat | Transfer of Land Act 1958 (Vic) s 90 | Lapsing and removal of the caveat |
Roadmap with gates
Nothing moves to the next stage until the gate is cleared. Most matters like this fall over at gates one to three, long before anyone argues the law.
What LawyerUp flags on this kind of matter
- A court order with a payment deadline that ends the claim if missed
- Solicitors ceasing to act, or counsel with no instructing solicitor, inside 60 days of trial
- Unpaid professional fees that stop counsel appearing
- New medical evidence about capacity or the ability to self-represent
- A caveat at risk of lapsing
- An unrepresented party seeking an adjournment without supporting evidence