SOLICITOR TRUST ACCOUNT UPDATES

SOLICITOR TRUST ACCOUNT UPDATES

As you will be aware, from the 1st of July 2015 there have been changes in legislation so that the Victorian and NSW legal trust accounts operate under the same law.  These changes are mainly relatively minor. However, there are some that will impact your trust account operation. Please see the main changes that will affect most Victorian trust accounts:

 

  1. Receipts must be provided to clients now, not just on request.
  2. Non-trust money now includes money received for legal services after a bill has been given.
  3. Withdrawal of trust money now can only occur after 7 business days rather than 7 calendar days. Trust money can only be withdrawn in line with a cost-agreement if they are a commercial or government client.
  4. Trust account statements need to be provided after 30 June each year as well as on completion of the matter and when client requests it.
  5. For legal firms with computerised trust accounting, trust records no longer need to be printed if they are kept in a permanent and readable form. They need to be printed prior to being deleted from the system.

 

For more information and further changes please click on the below;

Key differences between the Uniform Law and the Victorian and NSW Legal

Legal Profession Uniform General Rules 2015

Legal Profession Uniform Law Application Act 2014

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