VIC Solicitor Lied to Gain My Personal Address - Legal?

[DinkyDi]

Hi, bit of a long story so I will try to summerise...

i'm currently in a legal dispute with my ex business partner who has refused to pay back loans provided to him years ago. This is currently via VCAT. I have put through my points of claim & as yet I have not received his points of defence which are currently more than a week late in receiving. Last week, on the day his points of defence were to be received, I received an email from his solicitor stating:

'We refer to your Amended Points of Claim filed on ** July 2017. We understand that you no longer reside at *** and accordingly should be pleased if you would provide your amended address for service'.

I found this rather strange as his solicitor is very aware documents could be served via my parents' address or via email for this matter.

I replied to say my address for service of documents (regarding the VCAT matter) remained the same ie: my parents address & also via my email address as previously advised. I heard nothing more until yesterday when I received an email from his solicitor again asking for my Personal address details to serve documents on me for an entirely different matter.

I feel his solicitor deliberately lied to me (disguised as the VCAT matter) in order to obtain my personal address details for another matter which I don't want to disclose due to stalking issues I've had in the past by my ex partner. Surely this is unprofessional & possibly not legal?

I hope this makes sense?

Thanks in advance

 

[Rob Legat - SBPL]

As far as I'm aware it's not illegal and it's not unprofessional. Slightly tricky? Yes. But if they think you're evading service then it's just one of the ways in which to track someone down. Some litigants will go to great lengths to not be found. If the Rules require personal service, using any legal means to find them may be undertaken.

However, you're quite right in not having to provide it to them. The VCAT Rules simply state that an address for service must be provided - but there is nothing in the Rules about it having to be your residential address. I'm not sure if there's any caselaw referring to the requirement, however.