Legal Practitioners (Miscellaneous) Amendment Bill 2013 introduced to SA Parliament

The Legal Practitioners (Miscellaneous) Amendment Bill 2013 was introduced into the lower house in SA Parliament on 19 March 2013. The Bill seeks to modernise the regulation of the legal profession in South Australia.

The bill will also provide greater harmonisation for South Australian practitioners than otherwise exists and makes substantial improvements to the disciplinary system, with a view to improving the system for both consumers and practitioners. Particular focus has been given to increasing the protections available for consumers of legal services in South Australia.

The Bill makes amendments to the Legal Practitioners Act 1981 to include relevant elements of the Legal Profession Bill 2007, which became deadlocked and lapsed during the last Parliament. This includes dealing with cost disclosure, trust accounts, incorporated legal practices, community legal centres and the Court's power over practising certificates.

Substantial amendments are made to the disciplinary system, including replacing the present Legal Practitioners Conduct Board with a Legal Profession Conduct Commissioner, with increased powers.

It is also intended to enact a system of mentoring to provide early intervention in practices where there are signs of trouble, without waiting for formal complaints to arise. As proposed in the 2007 Bill, it is intended to establish a Register of Disciplinary Action, a public database of practitioners who have been disciplined for professional misconduct.

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