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Civil cases occur when one person or company takes action against another, generally for failure to pay debts, non-performance of contract, or personal injury claims. Some case files relate also to appeals from lower courts and, up to 1976, post divorce financial settlements.
What do I need to know before I start?
In many cases, the name of plaintiff or respondent is enough. However, for most cases you’ll need the case’s action or cause number, the year that the civil action was initiated, and whether it was in the Supreme Court, Melbourne, or the location of the regional court which heard the case.
The options below contain date ranges which are a useful guide on where to start. The dates are dynamic, as the volunteer project to index civil case records for online searching is ongoing.
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Look for the icons below to identify if records are viewable online (mouse over globe) or need to be ordered online and then viewed at our Reading Rooms (open book):
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