This page explains how to complete an affidavit form for use in the Supreme Court, District Court or Magistrates Courts of Queensland, in compliance with the Uniform Civil Procedure Rules 1999 (Qld) (UCPR).
Before you begin, you may wish to download an affidavit form for the Qld UCPR (Form 46).
Affidavit must be made by deponent speaking of their own knowledge
The affidavit must be confined to the evidence the person making it could give if giving evidence orally (r 430(1)) ie matters within their own knowledge.
There are exceptions for interlocutory proceedings or for affidavits for use in an application because of default. Conditions apply (see r 430(2)).
Text of the affidavit
The affidavit must be made in the first person (r 431(3)).
The body of an affidavit must be divided into paragraphs numbered consecutively, each paragraph being as far as possible confined to a distinct portion of the subject (r 431(5)). In practise, this means that each paragraph should contain no more than 2-3 sentences.
Dates, amounts and numbers may be stated in figures and not in words (r 962). Using figures is the usual way of stating such things in an affidavit (eg “54 days” not “fifty four days).
Exhibits to Qld UCPR affidavits
Documents and other things that are used with and mentioned in Queensland UCPR affidavits are called exhibits. Detailed rules apply to the use of exhibits, including explaining how these must be marked, certified, bound and paginated. These rules are set out in r 435.
Swearing or affirming the affidavit
An affidavit must be made before an authorised person to whom the maker of the affidavit (the deponent) swears or affirms his or her honest belief in the truth of the contents of the affidavit. Section 41 of the Oaths Act 1867 (Qld) sets out who an authorised person is for the purpose of taking affidavits in for the UCPR Qld.
When the affidavit is sworn or affirmed, each page must be signed by the deponent and the witness (r 432(1)). Initials are not sufficient. Full signatures must be used.
Illiterate deponent
If the authorised person taking an affidavit considers that the deponent is incapable of reading the affidavit, the person taking the affidavit must read or otherwise communicate the affidavit to the deponent. The authorised person should only take the affidavit if the deponent seemed to understand the affidavit and signified that they made the affidavit (r 433(1)).
In the last part of the jurat the authorised person should put the following text after the “capacity of witness” field:
“who certifies that the affidavit was read in the presence of the deponent who seemed to understand it, and signified that that person made the affidavit.”
Deponent unable to sign affidavit
If the authorised person taking an affidavit considers that the deponent is physically incapable of signing it, the person taking the affidavit must ensure the affidavit is read or otherwise communicated to the deponent (the deponent may be able to read it themselves in some circumstances). The authorised person should only take the affidavit if the deponent seemed to understand the affidavit and signified that they made the affidavit (r 433(2)).
In the last part of the jurat the authorised person should put the following text after the “capacity of witness” field, adjusted for the particular circumstances as necessary:
“who certifies that the affidavit was read in the presence of the deponent who seemed to understand it, and signified that that person made the affidavit, but was physically incapable of signing it.”
Alterations after the affidavit is sworn or affirmed
The contents of an affidavit cannot be altered after it has been sworn or affirmed. However handwritten interlineations, erasures or other alterations can be made to the text of an affidavit before it is sworn or affirmed. These must be initialled by both the person making the affidavit and the person witnessing it.
Footers to the pages of the affidavit
The footer for the first page of the affidavit should be as per the first page of the template: ie it should contain panels for the signature of the deponent and witness, the page number and the details of the filing party.
The footer for the second and subsequent pages except the last should be as per the second page of the template: ie they should contain the signature panels and the page number. The footer for these pages will be automatically generated by the precedent.
The footer for the final page does not need the signature panels but does need the page number (this is because the jurat will appear on that page with the signatures of the deponent and witness). To make this happen, place a section break at the top of the final page and edit the footer just for that section to remove the signature panels.