PMC FAQs

The Practice Management Course (PMC) is open to all solicitors admitted in Australia. You do not need to be currently working as a Solicitor or hold a practising certificate to enrol in the course.

Non-legal practice directors of Incorporated Legal Practices are not eligible to enrol in a PMC as they are not eligible to hold a Principal Practising Certificate. The legal practitioner must be a director of an Incorporated Legal Practice to hold a Principal Practising Certificate.

Yes, you should allow approximately 25–30 hours for completion of all pre-reading and activities prior to the workshop.

Practitioners can make an application for a Deferment of Exemption of the PMC. Deferment applications will be considered by a delegate of Council. Exemption applications will be considered by either the QLS Council or an authorised delegate of Council. Please refer to the Application Form and the Important Notice to Applicant.

Enrolment, conversations and performance relating to participants undertaking the PMC remain confidential between the relevant QLS staff, PMC Committee, QLS PMC Contractors and the respective course participant. Online enrolment will lead to confirmation of enrolment and course materials being sent to the email address that QLS currently holds for you. If you wish to keep your enrolment confidential, please update your details by contacting the QLS Records team at records@qls.com.au before completing your enrolment.

All PMC Workshops are conducted online. To participate, you must have a reliable internet connection, a webcam and a microphone.

Yes, attendance and active participation in all workshop sessions is compulsory to meet the 'substantial participation' requirements under the PMC prescribed content. To satisfactorily complete the PMC, participants must:

1. have completed all pre-readings and activities
2. attended all sessions of the workshop in full
3. passed all items of assessment.

Participants must demonstrate competency in four assessment tasks, one exam and three take home assessments due three weeks after completing the workshop.

1. Trust accounting exam - multiple choice.
2. Ethics scenario - complete as take home assessment.
3. Risk audit - complete as take home assessment.
4. Business planning - complete as take home assessment.

Participants are required to adhere to the QLS Academic Misconduct Policy and sign a declaration of academic integrity before submitting any assessment items.

Take home assessments are due three weeks after the workshop and will be accepted if submitted before the due date. Participants may also request an extension of time to complete an assessment. Assessments will be sent to markers once a week on Friday afternoons. Assessments can take up to a minimum of 3 to 5 weeks to be marked (from the date sent to the marker). If a participant fails to demonstrate competency in any assessment task, they will receive feedback from the marker, and be offered the opportunity to re-sit or re-submit that task for further assessment. Participants are also invited to make a request to speak with the marker if they have any questions prior to re-sitting or re-submission.

The PMC transfer and cancellation policy differs from other QLS events. Check the QLS events and on-demand content policy for PMC transfer and cancellation terms.

If you do not attend all or part of your scheduled PMC workshop due to any circumstance, you may be required to attend a subsequent workshop day or complete any other remedial action as considered appropriate by QLS. 

• Participants who pass the PMC will be issued a digital PMC Statement and Certificate.
• The PMC Statement enables you to then apply for a Principal Practising Certificate (PPC).
• The PMC statement is valid for up to 5 years (see rule 31 of the Queensland Law Society Administration Rule 2005).
• The application for a PPC is processed by the QLS Regulation Department and could take up to 10 working days to be approved.

Most practitioners complete the PMC in 12 weeks, but completion times can vary considerably. Practitioners are given a maximum of 12 months to complete the PMC under the Queensland Law Society Administration Rule 2005. Completion means successfully passing all assessment items within 12 months (recalling that assessment items may take up to 3 weeks to be marked at first instance, and so submitting an assessment item just prior to the 12 month expiry is very unlikely to result in having the assessment marked within the prescribed timeframe and result in a fail).