Professional knowledgeable. "The lawyer is really trying to understand the situation and give me the best advice for every possible way to protect my rights. The lawyer also gives advice on things I didn't request initially but definitely need in the future."
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James Ford has received 12 LawTap Verified Reviews with an average 4.96 rating to date. Most recent verified review from a client remarked "Really appreciate having your advice and guidance throughout this. Particularly being able to turn around the agreement in such a short time over the past couple of days. Thank you for your timely responses and being available to rush through everything at the end."
"Fabulous lawyer, professional, sincere and genuine...highly recommended. Other lawyers shied away from our tough case but James took it on with verve and vigor. With a highly qualified support team, James has paved the way to settle our case. James has keen attention to detail and a good ability to problem solve. The client has to make the final decisions on matters and quality advice is essential if the correct decisions are to be made, that's what you get from James. I cannot recommend James and Blue Ocean Law Group enough, they are pinnacles in the profession!" [Note: the dispute did not involve Craterpot which is a startup venture Blue Ocean Law Group™ are assisting Rod to bring to market].
An Originating Application (sometimes known as an Originating Summons) is a document that commences certain types of civil court proceedings by an Applicant.
The "Pleadings" constitute the sum total of all of the documents containing the claims made by all parties to the proceedings including the Originating Application, Statement of Claim, the Defence and Cross-Claim, the Reply or Answer, and any Requests for and Responses to Further and Better Particulars.
✅ Suitable for the Federal Court of Australia made under the Federal Court Rules 2011;
✅ Recommended only for use by legal professionals +/or at a minimum with review by a legal professional prior to filing with the Court;
✅ For use in the General or Fair Work Divisions of the Federal Court of Australia;
✅ Allows for the inclusion of claims for Interlocutory (pending the outcome) Relief;
✅ Provision for specifying a suit as a Representation Proceeding being made in a Representative Capacity (i.e., a Class Action) appears when there are 7 or more Applicants pursuant to section 33C of the Federal Court of Australia Act 1976 (Cth);
✅ Includes the required Migration Litigation Certificate of reasonable grounds for believing that the Migration Litigation matter has a reasonable prospect of success under section 486I of the Migration Act 1958.
Embedded Lawyer-Logic™ dynamically adapts to your answers to provide valuable guidance and help you avoid errors.
The type of claim you are filing with the Federal Court of Australia will determine whether a specific Federal Court of Australia Practice Note will apply, and the details of your dispute will assist to determine which Originating Application is to be filed, and what supporting documents are required to be filed in support.
In the majority of matters, an Originating Application [Form 15] will be the correct form to use.
However, care needs to be taken as there are quite a few specific claim types where a different prescribed Originating Application form is required.
For example, in a matter where an Applicant seeks to Register a foreign judgment under the Foreign Judgments Act 1991 (Cth.) the rules require the use of a different prescribed form, the Originating Application [Form 134].
In short, due to the complexities involved in both determining which forms to use, together with the crucial importance of getting the pleadings right to the success of your claim (see the discussion below on Pleadings without Tears):
➲ We recommend you contact our legal team to obtain legal advice and guidance regarding which:
⚖️ Originating Application to use, a [Form 15] or a different prescribed Originating Application form required due to the type of claim being made; and which
⚖️ Federal Court of Australia Practice Note (if any) applies; and accordingly which
⚖️ Documents MUST or may be filed in support of your Originating Application; and further
⚖️ Determining whether an Applicant's Genuine Steps Statement [Form 16] is also required to be filed pursuant to the Civil Dispute Resolution Act 2011 (Cth.); as well as
✅ To ensure you have the best chance of getting your "all-important" pleadings right.
Alternatively, your matter may be one where your interests are best served by first filing:
⚖️ An Urgent Application before Start of a Proceeding [Form 12];
⚖️ An Originating Application (by Prospective Applicant) for an Order for Discovery [Form 14].
This process automates the creation of an Originating Application [Form 15] which MUST be filed to commence certain kinds of litigation in the Federal Court of Australia.
Depending on the applicable Practice Note issued by the Chief Justice (see example below) your Originating Application [Form 15] may need to be accompanied by:
⚖️ An Alternative Accompanying Document; or
⚖️ You might be provided with a choice between an Alternative Accompanying Document such as a Concise Statement (generally required for the majority of matters) OR a Statement of Claim [Form 17] (when matters are likely to be simple, have narrow grounds of dispute, may be in the lower range of quantum claims, and will benefit from a "one-step" pleadings process).
Extracts from the following Commercial and Corporations Practice Note (C&C-1) are provided below to illustrate how different categories of claims may have different rules regarding whether or not a Statement of Claim [Form 17] needs to or can be filed together with the Originating Application or at a later stage of the proceedings.
Date reissued: 5 July 2022
5.3
Material supporting the Originating Application [Form 15] may take one (or more) of the following forms:
(a) a document entitled "Concise Statement"; or
(b) a Statement of Claim or Affidavit.
5.10
Alternatively, a party may file a Statement of Claim or Affidavit in Support of an Originating Application [Form 15] (see r 8.05 of the Federal Court Rules) or an Affidavit in Support of an originating process for corporations matters (see r 2.4 of the Corporations Rules).
5.11
Where an Affidavit is filed, it will be treated as a statement of the Applicant's substantive factual case in the proceeding.
5.12
The Statement of Claim or Affidavit should have four key components to clearly explain the Applicant's case, namely:
(a) the material facts giving rise to the claim;
(b) the relief sought by the applicant (and against whom);
(c) the legal grounds for the relief sought; and
(d) the alleged harm suffered by the applicant, including - wherever possible - a conservative and realistic estimate or range of loss and damage.
5.13
In the supporting material (whether Statement of Claim or Affidavit), the Applicant should:
(a) avoid prolixity and a Statement of Claim should, wherever possible, be kept to no more than 15 pages;
(b) not engage in unnecessary repetition or exhaustively list peripheral alternative claims;
(c) where stating facts, concisely state only the material facts – that is, only the facts important to proving the claim; and
(d) where identifying legal grounds, concisely identify only the legal grounds that are realistically provable and relevant to the applicant proving the claim.
5.14
The Court anticipates that a minority of commercial and corporations matters will be more effectively commenced by a Statement of Claim or Affidavit.
Such matters are likely to be simple, have narrow grounds of dispute, may be in the lower range of quantum claims, and will benefit from a "one-step" pleadings process.
5.4
A party commencing a proceeding may file a Concise Statement in support of an Originating Application [Form 15].
The purpose of a Concise Statement is to enable the applicant to bring to the attention of the respondent and the Court the key issues and key facts at the heart of the dispute and the essential relief sought from the Court before what might be the considerable cost of preparation of detailed pleadings is incurred.
While the form of the Concise Statement is described in more detail below, it must first be emphasised that the Concise Statement is not intended to substitute the traditional form of pleading with a short form of pleading, but instead should be prepared more in the nature of a pleading summons, and may be drafted in a narrative form.
5.5
If a Concise Statement is filed with the Originating Application [Form 15], no further originating material in support (whether by Statement of Claim or Affidavit) is required to be filed until the Court orders that to be done.
...
5.8
The Court anticipates that the majority of commercial and corporations matters will be assisted by being commenced with a concise statement. Applicants are encouraged to consider the alternatives carefully and to select the use of a concise statement unless it is clearly not an appropriate mechanism.
Applicants are encouraged to consider the alternatives carefully and to select the use of a concise statement unless it is clearly not an appropriate mechanism.
5.9
The Concise Statement should contain a section in which the applicant states what issues, if any, may be suitable for report by a referee under s54A of the Federal Court of Australia Act 1976 (Cth).
We have a copy of the book “Pleadings without Tears: A Guide to Legal Drafting Under the Civil Procedure Rules” by William Rose [revised & updated by Roger Eastman] in our law firm library in its 9th edition when it was published in 2017.
More editions of this highly valued & trusted guide will no doubt ensue.
The book was originally written back in 1990 specifically to address the problem of tears being shed over mistakes being made in Pleadings.
Trust me when I say that despite all the warnings, mistakes in Pleadings continue to this day.
There are good reasons why you don't want to be the party left crying over what could have been!
Further reading: FAQ ➲ What are Pleadings? Why are tears associated?
Important Notes:
Pricing does not include Court filing fees.
The party filing this Originating Application is required to serve a copy of the filed Originating Application together with all other filed documents on all other parties to the proceeding.
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The book “Pleadings without Tears: A Guide to Legal Drafting Under the Civil Procedure Rules” by William Rose [revised & updated by Roger Eastman] we have in our law firm library in its 9th edition when it was published in 2017.
More editions of this highly valued & trusted guide will no doubt ensue.
The book was originally written back in 1990 specifically to address the problem of tears being shed over mistakes being made in Pleadings.
Trust me when I say that despite all the warnings, mistakes in Pleadings continue to this day.
There are good reasons why you don't want to be the party left crying over what could have been!
Whether you are a self-represented litigant in a Tribunal or represent by a Solicitor or a Barrister in a Court or Tribunal the "Pleadings" will be the sum total of all of the documents containing the application or claim, the defence and counterclaim, the reply or answer, and any requests for and responses to further and better particulars.
In the case of an appeal, think of the pleadings as your stated grounds of appeal within your Notice of Appeal, etc. if you get these wrong then your appeal is likely to be dismissed or struck out before you have had the chance to actually submit the details of your appeal to the appeal court.
When you hear the member/judge say the words "the problem is in the Pleadings" or words to that effect you might need to have your tissues on hand.
A great analogy is baking a cake and discovering too late that you left out a key ingredient.
There is no guarantee you will be able to amend the Pleadings to fix the problem at the last minute.
You are generally prevented from making the same claim more than once.
Your missed claim may now be subject to the statute of limitations preventing it from being commenced as it is out of time.
An error in the Pleadings can be irreversibly fatal to the outcome of the civil litigation, or substantially impact on the result or the award of costs once the legal proceedings have completed.
A failure to state valid grounds grounds of appeal within a Notice of Appeal may cause your appeal to be dismissed or stuck out, with the potential for cost orders to be made against you for the other parties legal costs (if any) incurred in responding to your incompetent or deficient Notice of Appeal.
Credits:
This FAQ was written by James D. Ford GAICD | Principal Solicitor, Blue Ocean Law Group℠.
Important Notice:
This FAQ is intended for general interest + information only.
It is not legal advice, nor should it be relied upon or used as such.
We recommend you always consult a lawyer for legal advice specifically tailored to your needs & circumstances.
The identity of the Debtor and their address for service (incl. email +/or fax) should already be clearly specified in the agreement, or provided by the Debtor as part of your standard business processes.
We also assume that the terms of your agreement will provide permission to serve notices via email or fax (if required).
You will need to consider whether you already know the actual identity of the Debtor/Defendant and their address for notices/Service.
The Debtor/Defendant may not be the person with whom you made the original agreement, or the person who actually published the defamatory statement.
The person you might consider is the Debtor/Defendant may have been acting/dealing as an agent or employee of another person, the actual owner/s of the business, a sole trader, partnership, unincorporated association, company, etc.
If you only have the name of the business, you can start by conducting a free ASIC business names index + business names holder organisation/person searches to determine the owner of the business name, followed by a paid ASIC search to determine a valid + current address for Service.
Before sending a Letter of Demand/Statutory Demand/Concerns Notice to a Debtor company, we strongly recommend you conduct a paid current ASIC Company Search (min. cost $9) to confirm that:
✅ The Debtor/Defendant company is not currently under administration/in liquidation; and to
✅ Ascertain the companies current registered office address for service.
If you have any questions regarding the above please contact our legal team to discuss.
Credits:
This FAQ was written by James D. Ford GAICD | Principal Solicitor, Blue Ocean Law Group℠.
Important Notice:
This FAQ is intended for general interest + information only.
It is not legal advice, nor should it be relied upon or used as such.
We recommend you always consult a lawyer for legal advice specifically tailored to your needs & circumstances.
By the time you approach a lawyer to assist with your civil legal dispute you may have already discussed the matter in detail or sent text messages/emails to the other party, their agent, insurance company or lawyers.
Whilst you might think you are progressing the matter:
➲ This is generally a mistake!
Most people [unless they are experienced in litigation or legal dispute resolution] will unknowingly proceed to make these communications with the other side on an "open” basis.
This means that everything that is said or written might be capable of being used by the other parties in any subsequent legal proceedings.
It is generally known that in any criminal matter, you have the “right to remain silent …” as this is well-covered territory on TV/Movie Legal Dramas and in the media.
When it comes to civil disputes we recommend you adopt the same position.
Our advice may be spot on when it comes to large $$ civil disputes.
When the matter is only a minor one, you may not want to go to the time and/or expense of engaging legal advice specific to your situation.
Q: How then can you proceed?
A: Very carefully, and with the assistance of some very specific legal phraseology which you may or may not have seen before.
Please refer to our blog article “How to cast a magic legal spell? The protection afforded by Without Prejudice Settlement Negotiations." for more information.
Credits:
This FAQ was written by James D. Ford GAICD | Principal Solicitor, Blue Ocean Law Group℠.
Important Notice:
This FAQ is intended for general interest + information only.
It is not legal advice, nor should it be relied upon or used as such.
We recommend you always consult a lawyer for legal advice specifically tailored to your needs & circumstances.
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