The short answer
If you were harmed by medical care in Victoria, Victoria's law decides your claim. Here is what matters most:
When the clock starts
When the claim became discoverable, not the day of the operation. Up to 12 years after treatment, and courts can extendPain & suffering
Only for a "significant injury" (generally more than 5% impairment)Standard of care
Peer professional opinion test, Wrongs Act 1958Complaints
Health Complaints CommissionerA summary only. Each rule has exceptions, explained below.
A claim in Victoria at a glance · tap a step to read about it
- 1RecordsGet your medical records and write down what happened
- 2When you found outThe clock often starts later than the operation
- 3Expert reviewAn independent expert compares your care with the standard
- 4Letter of claimWe set out the claim and invite a response
- 5ResolutionMost claims settle by negotiation or mediation
Don't rule yourself out: the clock may have started later than you think. Once it is running, a complaint doesn't pause it, so ask early.
Time limits, what you must do before going to court, and how compensation is worked out all differ from state to state. This page sets out Victoria's rules in plain language. We are based in Newcastle, NSW, and act for people across Australia.
What every claim needs
Whichever state you're in, a medical negligence claim needs all three of these. What medical negligence is explains the basics.
Care fell short
Your care was below what was accepted as competent practice at the time.
In plain terms: experts compare your care with the guidelines of the day.
It caused harm
That shortfall caused your injury, or made it worse than it would have been.
In plain terms: better care would have made a real difference.
You claim in time
You start the claim within Victoria's time limit.
In plain terms: the clock starts when you found out, not on the day of the operation.
Time limits in Victoria
Operation years ago?
Yes, you may still be in time. In Victoria the clock starts when the claim became "discoverable": when you knew, or ought to have known, that you were injured, that it was caused by someone's fault, and that it was serious enough to justify a claim.
For many people that is years after the treatment, often after a second opinion, a new scan or a revision operation. A claim about an operation six or eight years ago can be within time. The outer limit is generally 12 years, and Victorian courts can extend time where it is just and reasonable.
The detail
In Victoria, a claim generally has to be started within three years of the date it became "discoverable", or within 12 years of the treatment, whichever comes first (Limitation of Actions Act 1958 (Vic) s 27D).
Children and people under a disability: a longer period applies, generally six years from the date the claim became discoverable (s 27E).
A Victorian court can extend time if it is just and reasonable to do so (s 27K), but an extension is never guaranteed, so it is always better to ask early.
How Victoria judges whether care was negligent
Victoria's Wrongs Act 1958 includes a peer professional opinion test similar to other states: a professional is not negligent if they acted in a manner widely accepted in Australia by a significant number of respected practitioners as competent professional practice, unless the court considers that opinion unreasonable. Warnings about risk are judged under the ordinary law set by Rogers v Whitaker.
Compensation in Victoria
Pain-and-suffering damages are only available for a "significant injury". Generally that means a physical impairment of more than 5% of the whole person (5% or more for spinal injury), or a psychiatric impairment of 10% or more, assessed under a formal impairment process.
Some injuries are treated as significant without assessment. Relevant to birth injury claims, these include the loss of a foetus, and psychiatric injury arising from the loss of a child because of injury to the mother, foetus or child before, during or immediately after birth (Victorian Government Solicitor's Office).
The maximum for pain and suffering is indexed every 1 July. Lost earnings are capped at three times average weekly earnings. Our compensation guide has the current figures.
Before going to court
Victoria has no general pre-court notice scheme for medical negligence claims. Because the "significant injury" threshold usually has to be met first, an impairment assessment is often one of the early steps.
Whatever state you're in, the first steps are the same: get your medical records, write down what happened while you remember it, and get independent advice. Read how a claim works.
Complaints in Victoria
Complaints about health services in Victoria can be made to the Health Complaints Commissioner. Complaints about an individual practitioner's conduct can also go to Ahpra. Neither stops the time limit running. See complaint or claim: which is right for you?
Start with what happened to you
Birth trauma
Injuries to mothers and babies in pregnancy, labour and birth
2Face, mouth & jaw
Nerve injury after dental, jaw and facial procedures
3Cosmetic & breast
Implants, infection, poor results and filler injuries
4Missed diagnosis
When a condition was caught too late, or not at all
5Spinal & neuro
Nerve damage and missed red flags around spinal care
6Surgery & hospital
Errors in theatre, on the ward and in hospital systems
7Endometriosis & gynae
Years of dismissal, and harm in gynaecological surgery
8Medication & devices
Prescribing harm, unwarned side effects and recalls
Questions people ask
How long do I have to make a medical negligence claim in Victoria?
Often longer than people think. The clock usually doesn't start on the day of your treatment, and courts can extend time in some situations, so someone whose operation was six years ago may still be able to claim. The rules for Victoria are set out above. Please get advice about your own dates rather than ruling yourself out.
Can a lawyer in Newcastle act for me in Victoria?
Yes. Peter Evans & Associates acts for people across Australia. Most of a medical negligence case is records, expert reports and meetings, which work well by phone and video, and we brief local counsel and experts where a case needs them.
Does making a complaint stop the time limit?
No. A complaint to a health complaints body or Ahpra can run alongside a claim, but the limitation period keeps running while it is dealt with.
Will it cost me anything to find out if I have a claim?
No. The first conversation and our free case review cost nothing, and there is no commitment to go further. See costs and how a claim is funded.
Questions about your care in Victoria?
We can look at what happened, check where you stand on time limits, and tell you plainly whether your care fell short. It's confidential, and there's no cost to find out.
ContactFree case reviewAbout the author and editorial standards
Written by Dr Rosemary Listing, PhD (Law). Rosemary is a medical negligence specialist and Of Counsel at Peter Evans & Associates in Newcastle, NSW. She has practised since 2013, worked on many hundreds of claims, and acts for people injured by medical care across Australia. Her doctoral research examined patterns of failure in medical negligence, and she is a Sessional Lecturer in Health Law at the University of Newcastle.
Rosemary is not medically qualified. Legal information on this page reflects the law as at the date below and is checked against the legislation listed in the references. Thresholds and caps change, usually each year. Read our editorial standards.
Last updated 3 November 2026. Next review May 2027.
References
- Limitation of Actions Act 1958 (Vic) ss 27D, 27E, 27K
- Wrongs Act 1958 (Vic) Pt X (ss 59, 60), Pt VBA (ss 28LB, 28LE, 28LF), ss 28F, 28G
- Rogers v Whitaker (1992) 175 CLR 479; [1992] HCA 58
This page is general information only. It isn't legal advice about your situation, and reading it doesn't create a lawyer and client relationship. Time limits are strict and the rules have exceptions, so please get advice about your own circumstances. If you are in crisis, call 000 or Lifeline on 13 11 14. Legal services are provided by Peter Evans & Associates.
Other states and territories