Legal Practitioners Admissions

Board
GPO Box 1785 LAW SOCIETY HOUSE
BRISBANE QLD 4001 Level 5, 179 ANN STREET
[all mail to above address] BRISBANE QLD 4000
Telephone 07 [61 7] 3842 5985
Facsimile 07 [61 7] 3221 7193 Email: [email protected]

ADMISSION INFORMATION KIT

for

PLT STUDENTS

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 REQUIREMENTS FOR ADMISSION
TO THE LEGAL PROFESSION AS A LAWYER
 Legislation:- Legal Profession Act 2007 (Qld) (‘2007 Act’), Supreme Court (Admission) Rules 2004 (‘2004 Rules’)
(current as at 2 November 2015), and Legal Profession Regulation 2007 (‘2007 Regulation’)
www.legislation.qld.gov.au/OQPChome.htm
 **YOU MUST RETAIN COPIES OF ALL DOCUMENTS FILED IN THE
REGISTRY OR SERVED ON THE BOARD FOR YOUR RECORDS** (you are required
to submit certain documents to apply for a Practising Certificate)
 Application is made for admission as a LAWYER – NOT as a “solicitor”, “barrister”, or “legal practitioner”.
 Application is made under section 34 of the 2007 Act which takes into consideration matters of eligibility (s30) and
suitability (s31 and s9)

Failure to comply with the procedural requirements for admission MAY result in your application being adjourned

***APPLYING FOR ADMISSION***

The Legal Practitioners Admissions Board is located in Law Society House, 179 Ann Street, Brisbane. In respect of each
admission sitting, it is to be noted that the Board only accepts documents between 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. on certain days. The
relevant days will be advertised on the Queensland Law Society at the following link:

http://www.qls.com.au/Knowledge_centre/Admission_Board/Admission_sittings

***Any documentation needing to be provided outside these times can be provided to the Board by post.***

***PLEASE NOTE***

*The relevant forms can be downloaded from the Law Society web site at www.qls.com.au under
‘For the Profession’, ‘Your Legal Career’, ‘Becoming a Solicitor’ and ‘Admission to the Roll of
Lawyers’, OR follow the link below:
http://www.qls.com.au/For_the_profession/Your_legal_career/Studying_law/Admission

*Applicants are not required to attend the Board in order to serve documents. If preferred,
applicants can forward their documents by regular, express or registered post.

*If you have any queries, you should review this admission kit and check the list of FAQ’s on the
Queensland Law Society website at www.qls.com.au under ‘For the Profession’, ‘Your Legal
Career’, ‘Becoming a Solicitor’ and ‘Admission to the Roll of Lawyers’, OR follow the link below:
http://www.qls.com.au/For_the_profession/Your_legal_career/Studying_law/Admission/FAQs

*Finally, you can contact us by telephone on (07) 3842 5985 or email at [email protected].

*NOTE: Some admission application documents, e.g. the Originating Application or Notice of
Intention to Apply for Admission, MAY be provided to the QLS at the Board’s discretion.

NOTE: this is merely an OVERVIEW.

ALL APPLICANTS are to refer to the Legal Profession Act 2007 (Qld), the Supreme Court (Admission) Rules 2004 ,
(Subordinate legislation; current as at 2 November 2015), and Legal Profession Regulation 2007, ALL of which are
available on the Internet at www.legislation.qld.gov.au/OQPChome.htm.
The Legal Practitioners Admissions Board accepts no responsibility for misinterpretation of the information in this kit
and advises that ALL applicants MUST follow the admission requirements outlined in the Supreme Court (Admission)
Rules 2004.

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 REQUIREMENTS FOR ADMISSION
TO THE LEGAL PROFESSION AS A LAWYER

DOCUMENTS TO BE FILED AND SERVED AT LEAST 28 DAYS PRIOR TO ADMISSION

You MUST apply for admission at least 28 days prior to your application being heard.

To apply for admission and PRIOR to filing your application with the Supreme Court, you need to prepare and/or
obtain the following (except for your Form 1):

 Form 9 – Notice of Intention to Apply

 Form 7 – Statement of Eligibility and Suitability
 3 x Form 8 – Certificate of Suitability
 Copy of Academic Transcript (the Board does not accept the Australian Higher Education Graduation
Statement)
 Copy of LL.B/JD
 Copy Completion Certificate of Practical Legal Training
 Copy of Supporting Disclosure Documents (if applicable)
 $70.05 fee payable to the Supreme Court Registry (2007 Regulation)

Accompanying Notes:
FORM 1 – Originating Application
1. Prepare an originating application for admission (Form 1) as well as all relevant documents as detailed above.

2. File an ORIGINAL originating application at the Supreme Court Registry. REMEMBER to take with you an
original and two copies; the original will be retained by the Registry, one copy is to be served on the Board,
and one copy is to be retained by you.

3. When filing your originating application with the Supreme Court Registry, you will be required to pay the
Supreme Court fee of $70.05 under the 2007 Regulation.

4. When your application has been filed, the Registry will stamp the original as well as the copies of the
document. One COPY needs to be served on the Board.

5. When preparing your originating application, please remember the following:

 You will need to include your admission date on your originating application;
 You need to include your address for service on both pages of your originating application;
 Please ensure that you record the correct information on your originating application including a
telephone number at which you can be contacted;
 At the top of your originating application, you need to provide your FULL NAME, which is the name that
will appear on your admission certificate and on the Roll of Lawyers.

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 REQUIREMENTS FOR ADMISSION
TO THE LEGAL PROFESSION AS A LAWYER
FORM 9 – Notice of Intention to Apply
1. All applicants are required to prepare a Form 9 Notice of Intention to Apply for Admission.

2. When completing your Form 9, please remember:

 You need to check the accuracy of the information which you include in your Form 9 Notice;
 You need to include your FULL NAME (as well as all other names which you use or have used) AND details of
your current business addresses (NOT a PO Box address);
 For “details of current and former relevant employment status”, applicants should state, for example, “a law
clerk at … (name of firm) … … (if applicable) and formerly a student of the … … (name of course) … …
at the … … (name of education provider) … …" etc;
 The ORIGINAL is to be displayed on the notice board in the Supreme Court Registry;
 Please note: Regional applicants are required to display a copy of the Form 9 Notice in BOTH the Supreme
Court registry of the relevant centre as well as the Brisbane Supreme Court registry;
 A COPY of your Form 9 is to be provided to the Board with your originating application and other documents.

3. A COPY of your Form 9 (which includes headings) must be advertised in the Queensland Law Reporter
between 14 to 28 days prior to your admission.

4. Please check the details included in your Form 9 Notice and retain a copy of your notice for your reference

Accompanying Notes (re Advertising – 14 – 28 days prior to admission):

Queensland Law Reporter (‘QLR’)

 the QLR is published and distributed ONCE each WEEK on FRIDAY.

 you MUST arrange for the advertisement to reach the Incorporated Council of Law Reporting (ICLR) by
12.00 p.m. on the Monday PRIOR to when you want the advertisement to be published in the QLR.
 to advertise in the QLR, contact the ICLR on 3236 1855.

All applicants MUST comply strictly with advertising requirements - ‘at least 14 days’ means up to and including the
14th day’. ‘Days’ refers to calendar days, not business days .

FORM 7 – Statement of Eligibility and Suitability

1. All applicants must provide to the Board an ORIGINAL Form 7 Statement of Eligibility and Suitability.

2. As an attachment to your Form 7, you will need to provide:

 a COPY of your official academic transcript (the Board does not accept the Australian Higher Education
Graduation Statement), a COPY of your LL.B/JD (or equivalent), a copy of your practical legal training
certificate (or equivalent);
 COPIES of any documents relating to suitability matters where relevant, e.g. Court orders, traffic
histories, bench charge sheets, a letter from the relevant University regarding academic misconduct,
finalisation of SPER payments, a Criminal History (NOT a Police Certificate), documents from
Centrelink, a letter from the ATO, etc.

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 REQUIREMENTS FOR ADMISSION
TO THE LEGAL PROFESSION AS A LAWYER
**EXCEPT FOR YOUR LL.B/JD (OR EQUIVALENT), you need to bring an ORIGINAL of these attachments to
the Board for sighting at the time of serving your application.**

3. When completing your Form 7, please remember:

General info
 You must include your FULL NAME (as well as all other names which you use or have used);
 If you have changed your name, you need to provide additional documents, e.g. marriage certificate, decree
nisi;
 You MUST provide the Board with a copy of your Form 7 and attachments.

Eligibility Matters
 If you have not yet attended a graduation ceremony for your law degree, you need to provide a copy of a
letter from your university advising that you have completed the academic requirements and will be
graduating at a future ceremony in lieu of a copy of your LL.B/JD;

Law Degrees and/or PLT course completed in an Interstate jurisdiction

 If you have completed your Law degree interstate,-you need to provide a letter from your
university indicating that your law degree satisfies the requirements of the Priestley 11 and
detailing the subjects corresponding to each of the Priestley 11 areas of knowledge;
 If you have completed your Law degree and/or your practical legal training course interstate, you
need to provide a letter from the admitting authority in the relevant State indicating you have
completed ‘corresponding academic qualifications’ or ‘corresponding practical legal training
requirements’ respectively, that course making you eligible for admission in that State;
 PLT students must have COMPLETED their course. PLT Certificates WILL NOT BE
ACCEPTED less than 28 days prior to admission.

Law Degrees completed in an International jurisdiction

 If you completed your Law degree in an international jurisdiction, you will need to provide:
o The transcript for your law degree as well as a copy of your testamur;
o A copy of your letter of assessment completed by either the Board or a Queensland
university; and
o A transcript from an Australian university evidencing completion of any additional areas of
knowledge as detailed in the assessment;
o Certificate/s of Good standing from each foreign jurisdiction dated not more than 2 months
from the date of my application (if applicable)
o Certificate/s of Police History from each jurisdiction in which I have resided dated not more
than 2 months from the date of my application (if applicable)
 In addition, you will need to provide EITHER:
o Evidence that you have completed the IELTS English testing an attained the minimum scores
as outlined in the Uniform Principles; OR
o A letter from the Board exempting you from the requirement to complete the IELTS English
testing (you will need to request this exemption from the Board PRIOR TO applying for
admission).

Suitability Matters
 You MUST PERUSE sections 9 and 11 of the 2007 Act in respect of what constitutes a ‘suitability matter’;
 Suitability matters include, but are not limited to, traffic offences (except parking tickets), academic
misconduct, drink driving, careless driving, Centrelink overpayments, fare evasion, failure to vote, etc;

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 REQUIREMENTS FOR ADMISSION
TO THE LEGAL PROFESSION AS A LAWYER
 All suitability matters are to be listed individually - provide a brief description of any traffic offence and a
detailed description of all other suitability matters;
 If you submit a traffic history, you need to PERUSE the document and obtain Court orders in relation to
regulatory offences and/or evidence of finalisation of payments under SPER (where applicable).
 Please refer to the disclosure guidelines for applicants for admission at the following website
http://www.qls.com.au/For_the_profession/Your_legal_career/Studying_law/Admission

When disclosing Centrelink Overpayments, in providing the detailed description of the suitability matter,
applicants need to address two issues:
1. What was the applicant’s understanding of their obligations towards Centrelink at the time that the
overpayments were received; and
2. Whether the applicant complied with their obligations towards Centrelink.

If an applicant does not provide this information, they will be required to provide a supplementary Form 7
with this additional information.

4. Please check the details included in your Form 7 Statement and retain a copy of the statement for your
reference

FORM 8 – Certificates of Suitability

1. All applicants MUST provide three ORIGINAL Form 8’s certificates to the Board.

2. When preparing your Form 8’s, please remember:

 They MUST be from persons who are not near relatives, but who have personally known you for at least
2 years;
 If possible, one (1) Certificate should be from either –
 a Registrar or similar officer of an academic or practical legal training institution attended by you;
OR
 a local Legal Practitioner; OR
 a Justice of the Peace, or Commissioner for Declarations;
 All persons signing a Form 8 MUST state that they are aware of your suitability matters, and that
irrespective they consider you a fit and proper person for admission.
 All persons signing a Form 8 certificate for you MUST list, on the Form, all suitability matters disclosed
by you.

3. Please check the details included in your Form 8 certificates and retain copies of the certificates for your
reference.

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 REQUIREMENTS FOR ADMISSION
TO THE LEGAL PROFESSION AS A LAWYER
DOCUMENTS TO BE FILED AND SERVED AT LEAST 14 DAYS PRIOR TO ADMISSION
Once you have filed and served your originating application and other documentation, you need to prepare an
affidavit of compliance to be filed in the Supreme Court Registry and served on the Board. When serving your
affidavit on the Board, you are required to pay the Board’s fee. In order to complete this step, you will need the
following:

 Affidavit of Compliance
 $619.00 fee payable to the ‘Legal Practitioners Admissions Board’ (2007 Regulation) by Cheque,
Money Order or Credit Card (over the counter at Law Society House)

Accompanying Notes (re Affidavit of Compliance):

1. Prepare your affidavit of compliance noting as follows.

 An affidavit is a UCPR Form 46, with certificates of exhibit in Form 47 which can be found on the
Queensland Courts website http://www.courts.qld.gov.au/forms ;
 The header of all Court documents MUST be the header you used on your Form 1 (Originating
Application);
 Your affidavit must address all matters of ELIGIBILITY (academic and practical legal training) AND
SUITABILITY (including a description of the circumstances surrounding each suitability matter as
disclosed in your form 7) as well as details of your compliance with Rules 11, 12, and 13 of the 2004
rules;
 Copies of the following documents MUST be exhibited to your affidavit:
o Documents relating to suitability matters as lodged with your Form 7;
o Copy of your advertisement in the QLR, displaying the publication date;
 It is RECOMMENDED, but not necessary, that you exhibit a copy of your academic transcript and PLT
certificate.

2. After preparing your affidavit of compliance, you need to attend the Supreme Court Registry and file your
ORIGINAL affidavit. Please remember to have two copies of your affidavit (including exhibits). The original
will be retained by the Registry, and one copy is to be served on the Board and one copy is to be retained by
you.

**NOTE: The Supreme Court Registry WILL STAMP the original as well as the copies of your affidavit of
compliance at the time of filing. One COPY needs to be served on the Board.**

3. Once you filed your affidavit of compliance, you will need to attend on the Board and serve a COPY of your
affidavit of compliance and pay the Board’s fee ($619.00). It should be noted that payment can be made by
CHEQUE, MONEY ORDER or CREDIT CARD (OVER THE COUNTER at the Law Society). You will receive
a receipt for payment of the Board’s fee at the time of serving your affidavit.

4. Please check the information in your affidavit PRIOR to swearing the document and retain a copy of your
affidavit for your reference.

If for whatever reason you need to amend your affidavit, or provide additional information or documents with your
affidavit, you will need to prepare, file and serve a supplementary affidavit.

Your affidavit is required to be filed and served on the Board AT LEAST 14 DAYS PRIOR TO ADMISSION.

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 REQUIREMENTS FOR ADMISSION
TO THE LEGAL PROFESSION AS A LAWYER

FORM 22 – CERTIFICATE OF RECOMMENDATION

1. After considering your application, the Board will, where appropriate, issue a certificate of recommendation 2
days prior to the admission ceremony. The ORIGINAL of your certificate will be filed in the Supreme Court
shortly after issue and you can collect a COPY of your certificate from Level 2 of Law Society House.

2. After receiving your certificate of recommendation, you need to check the Daily Law List on the Supreme
Court website for the TIME when your application will be heard. The Daily Law List is not displayed until close
of business on the business day prior to your admission sittings. The Board’s staff do not know admission
session times until they are released on the Daily Law List.

Ceremonies
In Brisbane, admission ceremonies are held in the Banco Court, Level 3, Supreme Court Complex, George Street.

At the ceremony, the Deputy Principal Registrar will direct you (& your ‘mover’) and brief you on what to expect. At
the appropriate time, the Registrar will cite the oath or affirmation of allegiance and of office which you repeat (Rule
17). At the end of the ceremony, the Registrar will ask you to leave the Court to sign the Roll of Lawyers (Rule 19).

The following lawyers can be a 'mover':

1. if the lawyer holds a current practicing certificate (restricted or non-restricted); OR
2. if the lawyer is employed by the government (and therefore is a 'government legal officer' within the meaning of
section 12 of the Legal Profession Act 2007) in circumstances where the Board has recommended your
admission WITHOUT CONDITIONS, i.e. has issued a 'clear' certificate of recommendation (see section 6(d)
Legal Profession Regulation 2007).

If you and/or your mover do not fall within these two categories, your mover is not able to make your application for
admission.

All relatives and friends are welcome to attend the ceremony.

Suggested ‘Mover’s’ Text

If this Honourable Court pleases, I apply for the admission of (Ms/Miss/Mrs/Mr/Dr) (name of applicant) as a legal
practitioner.

Ms/ Miss/Mrs/Mr/Dr (surname) holds the degrees of (name of degree/s) from the (name of university); has completed
the required practical legal training at the (name of university); has complied in all respects with the rules relating to
admission and holds the recommendation of the Board.

*** PLEASE RETAIN COPIES OF ALL DOCUMENTS RELEVANT TO YOUR ADMISSION

APPLICATION. **

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 REQUIREMENTS FOR ADMISSION
TO THE LEGAL PROFESSION AS A LAWYER
NOTE: this is merely an OVERVIEW. ALL APPLICANTS are to refer to the Legal Profession Act 2007 (Qld), the
Supreme Court (Admission) Rules 2004, (Subordinate legislation; current as at 11 September 2015), and Legal
Profession Regulation 2007, ALL of which are available on the Internet at
www.legislation.qld.gov.au/OQPChome.htm
The Legal Practitioners Admissions Board accepts no responsibility for misinterpretation of this kit and advises ALL
applicants should follow the admission process outlined in the Supreme Court (Admission) Rules 2004 .

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 ADMISSION CHECK LIST
Not more than 28 days but AT LEAST 14 days prior to admission:
Advertise your Form 9 Notice of Intention to Apply in:
Queensland Law Reporter

At least 28 days prior to admission:

Form 1 Originating Application
Original filed in the Supreme Court Registry
Copy served on the Board
Payment of $70.05 to the ‘Supreme Court Registry’
Form 9 Notice of Intention to Apply
Original displayed in the Brisbane Supreme Court Registry
Copy submitted to the Board
Original Form 7 Statement of Eligibility & Suitability – Submitted to the Board
Copy Academic Transcript (the Board does not accept the Australian Higher Education Graduation Statement) – Submitted to the
Board (Original to be sighted by the Board)
Copy of LLB/JD – Submitted to the Board
Copy Completion Certificate of Practical Legal Training – Submitted to the Board (Original to be sighted by the Board)
Original Form 8 (x3) Certificates of Suitability - Submitted to the Board
Copies of supporting disclosure documents - Submitted to the Board (Originals to be sighted by the Board)

At least 14 days prior to admission:

Affidavit of Compliance
Original filed in the Supreme Court Registry
Copy served on the Board
1 retained for your own records
Payment of $619.00 to the Board (CHEQUE, MONEY ORDER or CREDIT CARD (OVER THE COUNTER at the Law Society ONLY))

2 days prior to admission:

Certificate of recommendation
Collect copy from the Legal Practitioners Admissions Board
**Note: In relation to claiming admission fees for tax purposes, it is understood a deduction is not allowable for the cost of admission fees (please refer
to paragraphs 33 to 36 of Tax Ruling 95/9 available at http://law.ato.gov.au/atolaw/view.htm?docid=TXR/TR959/NAT/ATO/00001). If you have any
concerns in respect of this, it is recommended you obtain independent legal and/or financial advice.

***NOTE: PLEASE RETAIN COPIES OF ALL DOCUMENTS FOR YOUR RECORDS***

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