QLS members are being urged to have their say on the consultation paper, Reforming Australia’s anti-money laundering and counter terrorism financing (AML/CTF) regime, which was released yesterday.
Since the inception of the AML/CTF scheme in 2006, QLS has been concerned about the imposition of any additional unnecessary regulation and compliance costs on the local legal profession.
It has advocated for a way to manage AML/CTF risks that does not jeopardise the fundamental tenets of the legal profession as officers of the court, or make legal practice so unviable that solicitors are driven from it.
QLS, as a constituent body of the Law Council of Australia (LCA), will contribute to LCA submissions to the consultation on behalf of the national profession.
LCA President-elect Juliana Warner said any reforms to the scheme must be proportionate and based on evidence.
Juliana, who chairs the LCA’s Working Group on AML/CTF, expressed concern at proposed changes to legal professional privilege and client confidentiality.
“These fundamental elements of Australia’s justice system, and the rule of law, must be respected. The processes proposed in the paper are too extensive, and could have the effect of restricting access to justice and eroding the integrity of our justice system,” she said.
Have your say on the paper here.
Resources for members are available here.
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