Obligations of all principals
If your law practice did not hold or receive trust money during the period 1 April 2024 to 31 March 2025, you must lodge QLS Form 4 – Part A by 30 April 2025.
If your law practice held or received trust money (generally by operating a trust account) during the period 1 April 2024 to 31 March 2025, you are required to have the law practice’s trust records externally examined and provide the External Examiner’s Report (Form 5) to the Society by 30 May 2025 (within 60 days from 31 March).
Please complete a QLS Form 4 (Law Practice Declaration and Trust Money Statement) Part A and Part B and provide it to your external examiner (with appropriate schedules) as soon as possible after 31 March.
The external examiner will then complete their report (QLS Form 5) and lodge both reports with the Society by 30 May 2025.
Please be aware that it is your obligation to ensure the report is lodged within the statutory timeframe.
The forms have recently been updated. Please click here for the current forms. Please be mindful that there is a 15MB limit for emails sent to the Society.
Lodgement will only be accepted on the updated forms (Version 13).
Consequences for failure to lodge
The Society is responsible for ensuring law practices and principals comply with their legal obligations regarding trust accounts and trust money, to protect clients and the general public.
It is the Society’s view that a principal’s failure to comply with their obligations to submit external examiner’s reports is a ‘suitability matter’ under s 9(1)(l) of the Legal Profession Act 2007 (the Act) and a matter which may be taken into account when assessing whether a principal is a fit and proper person to continue to hold their practising certificate (see s 46(2)(c) of the Act).
For more information about external examinations, phone Trust Account Investigations on 3842 5908 or email: managertai@qls.com.au
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