Recent Consultations

Consultation on conditional costs agreements

The Legal Services Council invites submissions on the draft Legal Profession Uniform Amendment (Conditional Costs Agreements) Rule (No 2) 2022 which would prohibit the use of conditional costs agreements in relation to proceedings under the following legislation: 

  • Guardianship Act 1987 (NSW)
  • Guardianship and Administration Act 2019 (Vic)
  • Guardianship and Administration Act 1990 (WA)
  • Adoption Act 2000 (NSW)
  • Adoption Act 1984 (Vic)
  • Adoption Act 1994 (WA)
  • Children and Young Persons (Care and Protection) Act 1998 (NSW)
  • Children, Youth and Families Act 2005 (Vic)
  • Children and Community Services Act 2004 (WA)
  • Child Support (Assessment) Act 1989 (Cth).

The Council also invites submissions on the continuation of the prohibition on conditional costs agreements in proceedings that involve the Family Court Act 1997 (WA). 

Submissions can be sent to submissions@legalservicescouncil.org.au on or before Friday, 19 August 2022, and may be published on the Council’s website unless you advise us otherwise. 

Click here for the consultation paper (PDF, 901.2 KB).

Submissions received

Consultation on proposed changes to the Admission Rules

Date issued: 23 June 2021

The Legal Services Council's Admissions Committee invites submissions on the draft Legal Profession Uniform Admission Amendment (Qualifications) Rule 2021 which is proposed to amend the Legal Profession Uniform Admission Rules 2015 by altering the words of rules 5, 6 and 11 and by adding new rules 6A and 11A. 

Submissions can be sent to the Committee at submissions@legalservicescouncil.org.au on or before Friday 30 July 2021, and will be published on the Council's website unless advised otherwise.

Click here for the consultation paper (PDF, 1021.4 KB). 

Consultation on Uniform General Rules 91B and 91BA

Date issued: 7 May 2021

The Legal Services Council invites submissions on the draft Legal Profession Uniform General Amendment (Managed Investment Schemes) Rule 2021 which amends rules 91B and 91AB of the Legal Profession Uniform General Rules 2015. 

Submissions can be sent to the Council at submissions@legalservicescouncil.org.au on or before 7 June 2021, and will be published on the Council's website unless advised otherwise.

Click here for the consultation paper (PDF, 1.1 MB). 

Submissions received

Interest rate payable on fidelity fund claims: Consultation Paper

Date issued: 20 August 2020

Part 4.5 of the Uniform Law provides for a fidelity cover scheme, which is a system that provides a source of compensation for clients who have lost trust money or trust property as a result of a default of a law practice. 

The interest rate on fidelity fund claims is fixed by section 243(2) of the Uniform Law in the absence of specific provision in the Uniform General Rules.

The Legal Services Council considers it appropriate to reduce the interest rate from the current rate of 5% for the following reasons:  

  • The current rate does not reflect the rate of return which can be achieved by investing the corpus of the fidelity fund.
  • Paying out disproportionately high amounts of interest, particularly on high-value claims, is problematic because it decreases the sustainability of the fidelity fund.
  • This would more closely represent the rate of return which claimants might have expected to achieve had the claim been allowed immediately after it was made.
  • Applying a formula to calculate the interest payable better reflects the policy reasons for paying interest irrespective of the economic conditions at the time.  

Submissions can be sent to the Council at submissions@legalservicescouncil.org.au on or before 18 September 2020, and will be published on the Council's website unless advised otherwise.

Click here for the Consultation Paper (PDF, 809.5 KB). 

Submissions received

Review of Managed Investment Schemes Uniform General Rules 91A-91D: Revised Guidance Material

Date issued: 27 July 2020

The Legal Services Council invites submissions on revised guidance material in relation to section 258 of the Legal Profession Uniform Law and rules 91A – 91D of the Legal Profession Uniform General Rules 2015.

Submissions can be sent to the Council at submissions@legalservicescouncil.org.au on or before 28 August 2020, and will be published on the Council's website unless advised otherwise.

Click here for the revised guidance material (PDF, 207.4 KB).

Submissions received 

Review of Managed Investment Schemes Uniform General Rules 91A-91D: Report

Date issued: 27 July 2020

This Report sets out the findings and decisions of the review by the Legal Services Council of rules 91A – 91D of the Legal Profession Uniform General Rules 2015 conducted between October 2019 and January 2020.

Following consultation, the Council has decided on the following actions:  

1. Revise the existing guidance material to produce:

(a) a short statement of the purpose of section 258 (that it operates to protect individual clients and community confidence in the legal profession by restricting the involvement of law practices in certain forms of financial intermediation), and

(b) brief plain English technical guidance summarising the operation of the MIS Rules for law practices, including the effect of rule 91C and section 258(4).

2. Request an amendment to rule 91B to permit a law practice to provide legal services in relation to an MIS, in circumstances where an associate of the law practice has an interest in the MIS or MIS operator but the provision of those legal services does not give rise to a conflict between the duty to serve the best interests of the client and the interests of the associate of the law practice. 

Click here for the Report (PDF, 242.4 KB).

Proposed amendments to the Legal Profession Uniform Law

Date issued: 31 January 2020

The Legal Services Council invites feedback on proposed amendments to the Legal Profession Uniform Law.

The proposals aim to:

  • clarify the effect and operation of certain provisions
  • enhance protection of consumers of legal services
  • empower clients to make informed choices about costs
  • expand the category of people who can make consumer complaints
  • remove the potential for unintended consequences and perverse outcomes to arise
  • improve administrative efficiencies, and
  • resolve inconsistencies and drafting anomalies. 

Click here for the Consultation Paper (PDF, 223.5 KB).

Submissions can be sent to the Council at submissions@legalservicescouncil.org.au on or before Friday, 28 February 2020, and will be published on the Council's website unless advised otherwise.

Submissions received 

Legal Profession Uniform Admission Rules 2015: Removal of the word 'fame'

Date issued: 11 December 2019

The Legal Services Council's (LSC's) Admissions Committee invites comment about its recommendation that the text of the Legal Profession Uniform Admission Rules 2015 (Admission Rules) be amended to reflect the language of the Legal Profession Uniform Law 2014 (Uniform Law). Specifically, the Admissions Committee supports the removal of the word 'fame'.

Background

The Admissions Committee develops Admission Rules under s 426 of the Uniform Law. The question of whether a person is of 'good fame and character' is applied by Australian admitting authorities when assessing applications for admission; and by practising certificate authorities when assessing applications by lawyers for the grant or renewal of a practising certificate.

The word 'fame' is not used in the Uniform Law. However, it appears in Admission Rules 10(f), 14(1)(c), 16(6) and 17(1) and (7). On each occasion it is part of the phrase 'fame and character'.

In the case of Council of the Law Society of New South Wales v Parente [2019] NSWCA 33 (Parente) at paragraphs 9 to 13, the Supreme Court of NSW, Court of Appeal commented on the language of the Admission Rules.

Admissions Committee Response to Parente

The Admissions Committee requested the NSW Parliamentary Counsel's Office to produce a draft rule (Attachment A (PDF, 575.4 KB)) to provide that any test regarding 'fame and character' should be referable to the objects of the Uniform Law, in particular, maintaining high ethical and professional standards in the provision of legal services; and maintaining public confidence in the integrity and honesty of the profession.

Attachment B (PDF, 567.8 KB) is a document demonstrating the proposed effect of the draft rule on the Admission Rules.

Next Steps

The contact person for this project is Cora Groenewegen, the LSC's Principal Policy Officer. Tel: (02) 9692 1304.

Submissions are invited by email  to: submissions@legalservicescouncil.org.au on or before Friday 28 February 2020 and may be published on the LSC website.

Submissions received

Review of Managed Investment Schemes Uniform General Rules 91A-91D: Consultation Paper

Date issued: 4 December 2019

This Consultation Paper (PDF, 389.7 KB):

The consultation paper is based on submissions received on the Terms of Reference (PDF, 77.0 KB) and consultation conducted during October 2019 with industry associations and regulators in Victoria and New South Wales.

Click here for the Consultation Paper (PDF, 389.7 KB).

Submissions closed on 31 January 2020.

Submissions received

Review of Managed Investment Schemes Uniform General Rules 91A-91D: Terms of Reference

Date issued: 3 September 2019

On 1 July 2018, new Uniform Law provisions regarding the operation of Managed Investment Schemes commenced in NSW and Victoria. To ensure that these provisions meet the reform objectives, the Legal Services Council (LSC) was tasked by the Standing Committee to review the effectiveness and regulatory impact of Rules 91A-91D of the Legal Profession Uniform General Rules 2015 relating to Managed Investment Schemes (MIS Rules) after 12 months.

On 1 July 2019, the LSC commenced its review of the MIS Rules and, pursuant to the Terms of Reference (PDF, 77.0 KB), will consider and report on the effectiveness and regulatory impact of the MIS Rules in relation to the legal profession, consumers and regulators, having particular regard to:

  1. The extent to which the MIS Rules are meeting the objective of consumer protection
  2. The nature and extent of any regulatory activity in respect of the MIS Rules, and
  3. The nature and extent of any impact on law practices and regulated entities.

The Review will not consider or re-visit the scope of s 258 of the Legal Profession Uniform Law.

Click here for the Terms of Reference (PDF, 77.0 KB).

Submissions closed on Thursday, 3 October 2019.

Submissions received

Last updated:

28 Apr 2023

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The Legal Services Council and Commissioner for Uniform Legal Services Regulation acknowledges the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as custodians of Australia and pay their respects to Elders, past and present. We also acknowledge their ongoing connection to land, sea and communities throughout Australia, and their contributions to the lives of all Australians.

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