Incorporated Legal Practices and Multi-Disciplinary Partnerships
The Legal Profession Act 2007 (the Act) allows law firms in Queensland greater flexibility in their choice of business structure than was the case previously. It specifically allows law firms the option to incorporate and to become multi-disciplinary partnerships.The relevant sections of the Act came into effect on 1 July 2007 and mirror closely the counterpart provisions in the national model laws which seek to ensure a national consistency of approach to the provision of legal services.
What is an incorporated legal practice?
An incorporated legal practice (an ILP) is a corporation (typically a company within the meaning of the Corporations Act) that engages in legal practice, and that may provide other services in addition to legal services.
Importantly:
- any corporation is eligible to be an ILP unless it is prohibited by an Act under which it is incorporated or which regulates its affairs;
- a corporation intending to engage in legal practice in Queensland must give written notice in the approved form to the Queensland Law Society (QLS) of its intention before commencing legal practice in Queensland;
- an ILP must have at least one legal practitioner as a director and, if it ceases to have a legal practitioner director, it must ensure that it does so within 7 days or cease to engage in legal practice;
- an ILP must not conduct a managed investment scheme or any other business or service prohibited by regulation;
- the Supreme Court can make an order disqualifying a person from being an officer or employee of an ILP, or from being engaged or paid to provide legal services on behalf of the ILP;
- the legal practitioner directors of an ILP and any other legal practitioners who provide legal services on behalf of an ILP have the same professional obligations as all other legal practitioners;
- the legal practitioner directors of an ILP have additional obligations, over and above their professional obligations as legal practitioners. The Act requires them, among other things:
- to ensure that the ILP implements and keeps ‘appropriate management systems’ which ensure that the ILP meets the same standards of legal practice expected of any other legal practice; and
- if it ought be reasonably apparent that those standards might be or have been breached, to take all reasonable action to ensure that the standards are not breached or, if they have been breached, to take appropriate remedial action.
For more information about ILP’s, please refer to the QLS website.
For more information about the regulatory framework, go to REGULATING INCORPORATED LEGAL PRACTICES.
What is a multi-disciplinary partnership?
A multi-disciplinary partnership (MDP) is a partnership between one or more legal practitioners and one or more persons who are not legal practitioners, and whose partnership provides other services in addition to legal services.
Importantly:
- a legal practitioner who intends to engage in legal practice as a partner in an MDP must give notice to the QLS in the approved form of his or her intention before commencing legal practice in Queensland as a partner in an MDP;
- a legal practitioner partner of an MDP and any other legal practitioners who provide legal services on behalf of an MDP have the same professional responsibilities and obligations as all other legal practitioners;
- a legal practitioner partner of an MDP has additional obligations over and above their professional obligations as legal practitioners. The Act makes them responsible for the management of the legal services provided by the MDP and, in particular, requires them:
- to ensure that the MDP implements and keeps ‘appropriate management systems’ which ensure that the MDP meets the same standards of legal practice expected of any other legal practice; and
- if those standards are breached, to take appropriate remedial action.
For more information about MDP’s, please refer to the QLS website.
Last updated 7/04/2008 2:31:11 PM