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Litigants in Person Practice Note

Submission Date: 12 November 2025

The Law Council of Australia provided input to the Federal Court of Australia on the development of the proposed Litigants in Person Practice Note (Practice Note).

The Law Council strongly supports initiatives that facilitate access to justice and the integrity of the justice system, and welcomes the development of this Practice Note as a valuable tool in meeting those ends.

In preparing this submission, we have received contributions from the ACT Law Society, Law Institute of Victoria, Law Society of New South Wales, Law Society of South Australia, and the Law Council’s Business Law Section and Federal Dispute Resolution Section.

General comments

A number of factors can lead to parties appearing as litigants in person (LIPs), either voluntarily or involuntarily. The costs—including financial and opportunity (e.g. time away from work and impact on family members)—involved in accessing the justice system are often prohibitive for parties who cannot afford private legal representation, do not qualify for a grant of Legal Aid, and cannot access other forms of assistance (including pro bono representation).1

Litigants may also seek to represent themselves due to a limited understanding of the legal system, the death or incapacity of a lawyer initially retained or the inability to give the necessary instructions to a lawyer.2

The Law Council understands that a growing number of LIPs are seeking to appear across Australia’s courts and tribunals.3 In its Annual Report for the 2024–25 financial year, the Court noted that almost 500 matters were commenced by LIPs and allocated to judges in the Court.4 Applications by LIPs were particularly common in the Practice Areas of Administrative and Constitutional Law and Human Rights (excluding Migration), Migration, and Commercial and Corporations.5 The Court is therefore dealing with a substantial cohort of litigants who are likely to be unfamiliar with the Australian law, the legal system and the processes and procedures of the Court, often involving legal complexity.

Significant challenges are faced by LIPs and by the Court in seeking to ensure that proceedings are conducted fairly and efficiently. The Law Council strongly supports the development of the Practice Note and welcomes the Court’s commitment to addressing those challenges through the Litigants in Person and Pro Bono Project.6

During the course of receiving submissions, we have received information about comparative materials in other jurisdictions that we would be pleased to provide should it be required.

The Law Council would be pleased to work further with the Court on the development of the Practice Note and would welcome the opportunity to circulate and comment on a draft version of the Practice Note once it is developed.

1 While we appreciate that legal assistance funding does not fall within the Court’s purview, it is important to recognise that many of the challenges arising in these matters could be overcome by increased support for legal assistance. As pointed out by Dr Warren Mundy as part of the Independent Review of the National Legal Assistance Partnership, it is well established that ‘legal assistance generates a range of avoided costs to the justice system’ and ‘improves operational capacity and efficiency of civil and criminal courts’: Warren Mundy, Independent Review of the National Legal Assistance Partnership (Final Report, March 2024), 14.
2 Justice Richard White, ‘Advocacy and Ethics: The Self-Represented Litigant’ (Speech, 18 October 2024) 2-3.
3 See, eg, Legal Practitioners Liability Committee (Vic), Annual Report 2022-23, 15; Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal, Annual Report 2022-23, 16; Supreme Court of Victoria, Annual Report 2022–23, 8; NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal, Annual Report 2022-2023, 17; Productivity Commission, Access to Justice Arrangements (Report, December 2014) vol 1, ch 14; Justice Richard White, ‘Advocacy and Ethics: The Self-Represented Litigant’ (Speech, 18 October 2024).
4 Federal Court of Australia, Annual Report 2024-25 (19 September 2025) 124-127.
5 Ibid 125.
6 Federal Court of Australia, Litigants in Person and Pro Bono Project (Web Page, 2025).

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Last Updated on 28/11/2025

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