Practice Notes provide information about particular aspects of the Court's practice, procedure and organisation. They sit alongside the Rules of Court to provide guidance in relation to the conduct of proceedings. Lawyers with the conduct of proceedings are expected to be familiar with their content and act in accordance with that guidance unless directed otherwise.
From 30 January 2017 the Court introduces a new system of publishing and organising its Practice Notes to make them easier to locate and navigate and ensure the information provided is up to date.
Each Practice Note is designated with the letter "SC" followed by an abbreviation denoting the Division of the Court to which it applies or the General designation followed by a number.
| SC CA | Court of Appeal |
| SC CC | Commercial Court |
| SC CL | Common Law Division |
| SC CR | Criminal Division |
| SC GEN | General |
Where changes are made to a Practice Note, it will retain its designation. The body of the Practice Note will contain its new operative date and a history of amendments and a copy of the superseded version will be retained in the Practice Notes Archive.
Notices to the Profession provide information to practitioners about matters of a more temporal nature such as advising which judges are responsible for which specialist lists for the year; reminders to the profession about certain rules and practices if it appears there is confusion or non-compliance and notices from the Prothonotary or a Registrar about a matter of registry practice.
| Practice note | Division | Date of publication | Documents |
|---|---|---|---|
Notice to the Profession - litigious costs review Note: This practice note has been archived. |
Notice to the Profession | Notice to the Profession Litigious Costs Review (pdf 150.87KB) | |
Notice to the Profession - In Person Hearings This Notice to the Profession outlines changes to in person hearings. It replaces the Notice issued on 1 December 2021.Note: This practice note has been archived. |
General, Notice to the Profession | Notice to the Profession - In Person Hearings (pdf 96.06KB) | |
Notice to the Profession - In Person Hearings This Notice to the Profession outlines changes to in person hearings.Note: This practice note has been archived. |
General, Notice to the Profession | Notice to the Profession - In Person Hearings (pdf 102.15KB) | |
Notice to the Profession - In Person Hearings This Notice to the Profession outlines changes to in person hearings from 26 October 2021. It replaces the Notice issued on 17 May 2021.Note: This practice note has been archived. |
General, Notice to the Profession | Notice to the Profession - In person hearings (pdf 121.54KB) Notice to the Profession - In person hearings (docx 58.81KB) | |
Notice to the Profession - In Person Hearings This notice to the profession outlines changes to in-person hearings.Note: This practice note has been archived. |
Notice to the Profession | Notice to the Profession - In Person Hearings (pdf 105.64KB) Notice to the Profession - In Person Hearings (docx 59.02KB) | |
| It has been the practice of the Supreme Court that the Judges of the Supreme Court amend Chapter I of the Rules of the Supreme Court to alter the Scale of Costs in Appendices A and B so as to provide… Note: This practice note has been archived. |
Notice to the Profession | NOTICE TO THE PROFESSION re Appen. A and B deferral.docx (docx 45.97KB) NOTICE TO THE PROFESSION re Appen. A and B deferral.pdf (pdf 91.46KB) | |
Notice to the Profession-Probate Office-original wills stored in solicitors' offices The Stage 4 public health restrictions require most legal practitioners to work from home. The Court is conscious that original wills may be stored at solicitors’ offices. In order to facilitate the…Note: This practice note has been archived. |
Notice to the Profession | Notice to the profession - COVID-19 Original Wills (pdf 122.24KB) | |
SC Gen 10 Conduct of Group Proceedings (Class actions)(First revision) The purpose of this Practice Note is to provide guidance on the conduct and management of group proceedings (class actions) within the Supreme Court of Victoria.Note: This practice note has been archived. |
General | SC GEN 10 Class Actions (docx 73.54KB) SC GEN 10 Class Actions (pdf 295.44KB) | |
Notice to the Profession - Urgent Applications in the Commercial Court - COVID-19 The Principal Judge of the Commercial Court has authorised the issue of the following notice in regards to urgent applications in the Commercial Court as affected by coronavirus (COVID-19).Note: This practice note has been archived. |
Notice to the Profession | Notice to the Profession - Commercial Court urgent matters (pdf 182.82KB) | |
Notice to the Profession - Changes to the Probate office The Court is introducing a suite of changes to its processes and procedures in response to the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic.Note: This practice note has been archived. |
Notice to the Profession | Notice to the Profession - Changes to the Probate Office (pdf 265.16KB) |