Practitioner renewal information

The Queensland Legal Practitioners’ Fidelity Guarantee Fund was introduced by the Queensland Law Society in 1931. The Fund is administered by QLS to reimburse people who have suffered loss arising from an act or omission of an associate of a law practice that involves dishonesty resulting in a default of a law practice or fraudulent dealing with trust property received by a law practice.

Since 1931 every practitioner has paid a contribution to the Fund upon applying for the grant or renewal of a practising certificate.

The existence of the Fund promotes the good reputation of the profession. Members of the public can be confident that if their money is dishonestly dealt with by an associate of a law practice they can make a claim to recover losses.

The fee per practitioner to operate the Fund varies year to year based on the health of the fund. In 2014 - 2015 the contribution per practitioner was $390. Since 2019, due to the robust financial position of the Fund, practitioner contributions have been significantly reduced and in the current year are only $40. 

For the Financial Year 2023-24 the fee per each practitioner will increase to $260 primarily as a result of the Government passing, in June 2021, an amendment to the Legal Profession Act 2007 removing the statutory cap for the amount paid for each claim. This amendment required the Society to make retrospective payments from the Fund to claimants totalling almost $7 million between 1 June 2021 and 30 November 2021. 

The amendments also facilitated an annual grant from the Fund to the Society of up to $750K to fund additional resources in trust accounting compliance guidance and support in order to strengthen compliance and assist in preventing claims on the Fund.

Additional reasons for the increase include:

1. The below budget performance of the Fund’s investments in the 2021-22 financial year. They returned a loss of almost $1.5 million in 2021-22. 
2. High claims expense of almost $3.4 million for financial year 2021-22. In the three previous financial years, the average claims expense was $1.2 million.

These factors have seen the balance of the Fund reduce by almost $10 million since 30 June 2020. 

After consideration of the financial position of the Fund, Queensland Law Society Council has determined that a prudential increase in the practitioner contribution is necessary.

Failure to take this action may result in a further depletion of the Fund balance, thus reducing investment income and requiring a larger contribution the following year.

Whilst we appreciate an increase is not ideal, it is critical to the survival of this important public protection which has been in place for 92 years. We are grateful for your support and understanding of this matter.

If you are paying your own fees, have a credit card ready when you submit your form. If your employer is paying, choose “pay later”.

QLS members associated with law practices automatically participate in the QLS Professional Standards (Limitation of Liability) Scheme. To not participate in the Scheme, you must apply for an exemption when renewing your membership. Please ensure you have discussed this with your employer before completing your renewal application. For enquiries, phone 1300 367 757 or email psscheme@qls.com.au

Ensure you have achieved your minimum CPD requirement of 10 units by 31 March 2023. This includes at least one CPD unit in each of the compulsory core areas of professional skills, practical legal ethics and practice management and business skills. If practitioners will not achieve the minimum CPD requirement by 31 March 2023, they should contact QLS’s Records and Member Services team on 1300 067 757 or email records@qls.com.au. For further information on CPD read the CPD Guide or contact the CPD administrator on 1300 367 757 or email cpd@qls.com.au 

Your online renewal application form will appear in the new myQLS on 2 May 2023. You will receive an email directing you to it when it is available.

Log in to myQLS using your QLS username (email address) and password and click on Renewal for Practising Certificate tile.  If you need help logging in please contact our Records & Member Services team on 1300 367 757 or email portalsupport@qls.com.au.

If your details are not correct on this page, please contact our Records & Member Services team before proceeding further. Incorrect information here may cause problems with your invoice or practising certificate.

Under rule 18A of the Queensland Law Society Administration Rule 2005 it is the responsibility of each practitioner to provide any change of address or place of employment to QLS within seven days of the change occurring. Changes should be notified in writing to records@qls.com.au.

Once you have submitted your renewal form, the completed form will be available in the Documents tab of myQLS.

You can renew online from 2 May 2023. All renewal application forms must be successfully submitted online and prescribed fees received by QLS on or before 31 May 2023 (rule 17(1) of the Queensland Law Society Administration Rule 2005).

A renewal application is only complete when all fees have been received by the Society. 

All fees are due by 31 May 2023. Before you log in to complete your practising certificate renewal application, you must know who is paying your fees. Practising certificates will not issue until all fees are paid.

Fees may be paid as soon as you have submitted your online renewal application forms. If your employer is paying your fees (practising certificate and/or membership), please ensure you discuss this with them. This will help you to ensure that no overpayments are made by you or your employer.

Payment options for individuals are as follows:

Credit card

You can pay by credit card at the time of completing your renewal forms. Simply click on the pay now by credit card on the payment review page.

Pay later

BPay details will be on your pro forma invoice which will be emailed to you after you submit your renewal forms.

To ensure efficiency and sustainability, your practising certificate will be issued electronically as a PDF once your renewal application is successfully submitted, all prescribed fees are received, and all requirements are met.

Refunds will be processed as soon as possible, in the order they are received. Please note, due to the large number of payments being processed during the renewal period, refunds may take up to 8 weeks to process from the date of the request of the refund.

If you have questions or need assistance during the renewal period, please contact our Records & Member Services team on 1300 367 757 or by email records@qls.com.au.