This is not legal advice about how to run your case. These are suggestions about some things you should consider when preparing for the Final Hearing.

Witnesses

• Arrange for all the people who have given Witness Statements for your case to come to the Final Hearing.

• It is more convenient for witnesses if you can arrange for them to come at a particular time to give their evidence. See below for what happens at the hearing to help you work out what time you might need your witnesses.

• If you want a medical or other expert to give evidence on your behalf, you should see what time during the hearing suits this person best. Then let the other parties and the Tribunal Registry know what time you propose that this person would give their evidence.

• In some circumstances, (for example, if a witness is interstate or ill) the Tribunal may allow evidence to be given by telephone or video link-up. You should tell the Tribunal Registry as soon as you can that you want this to happen. You will need to ask the Tribunal Member at the Final Hearing for permission for evidence to be given in this way.

Documents

• Make sure you have all your documents available.

• Where possible, you should have original documents, if not copies may be able to be used.

• You may want to make a copy of your documents so you have your own copy of any document you give to the Tribunal Member during the Final Hearing.

• Make sure that you have made available to the other party any documents that you want to rely on.

Prepare questions for the other party’s witnesses

• Prepare the questions you will ask the other party and their witnesses when it is your turn to cross-examine them.

• Looking at the Witness Statements for the other party may help you do this.

Prepare your closing address

• The closing address is where each party makes submissions to the Tribunal Member at the end of all the evidence from witnesses, about why their case should win.

• You may want prepare for yourself a summary of the facts (you may need to change this during the Final Hearing), how you say the law applies to those facts and what decision you want the Tribunal to make.