Access keys | Skip to primary navigation | Skip to secondary navigation | Skip to content | Skip to footer |
Problems viewing this site
Home > Complaints > Complaints process flowchart

Complaints process flowchart

The process established under the Legal Profession Act 2007 for dealing with complaints

Notes:

1. The Commission is the sole body authorised under the Legal Profession Act 2007 (the Act) to receive complaints about the conduct of legal practitioners and law practice employees. We assess complaints against a series of criteria set out in the Act. The assessment leads to one of three possible outcomes:

The Act gives us the option to try to mediate consumer disputes or to refer them to the Law Society or Bar Association for mediation. It requires us to investigate conduct matters or alternatively to refer them to the Law Society or Bar Association for investigation—in which case the investigation remains subject to the Commission’s direction and control and the Society and the Association are obliged after the investigation to report their recommendations to the Commission.

2. The Commission is the sole body authorised to decide what action, if any, to take on a conduct matter after investigation. The Act requires us to assess whether the evidence establishes a reasonable likelihood of a finding by a disciplinary body of unsatisfactory professional conduct or professional misconduct and whether it is in the public interest to initiate disciplinary proceedings. We initiate disciplinary proceedings if the answer to both questions is ‘yes’—in the Legal Practice Tribunal in relation to more serious matters or in the Legal Practice Committee in relation to less serious matters. We dismiss complaints if the answer to either question is ‘no’ (see sections 447 and 448 of the Act).

3. The Commission is obliged to keep a discipline register of all disciplinary action taken under the Act (see section 472 of the Act).

4. The Commission is responsible for prosecuting alleged offences under the Act—for example, the offences pursuant to sections 24 and 25 of engaging in legal practice or holding oneself out to engage in legal practice when not entitled. The Commission is also responsible for prosecuting alleged offences under the Personal Injuries Proceedings Act 2002—for example, the offence of breaching the restrictions on the advertising of personal injury services pursuant to section 66.

top


See also:

Download the Complaint form  (177kB pdf file)

Type of complaints

Legal costs

Disciplinary bodies—The Legal Practice Committee and the Legal Practice Tribunal

Queensland Law Society website

Bar Association of Queensland website

Crime and Misconduct Commission website

Queensland Parliamentary Counsel website for all Queensland legislation.

top

Last updated 3/06/2008 11:45:24 AM