Practice Management Course

Given the COVID-19 situation, QLS’s Practice Management Courses (PMC) will be entirely online until further notice. The QLS Practice Management Course is an investment in your future.

The focus of the PMC is to successfully transition you from employed solicitor to principal, prepare you for entering a partnership, starting your own firm as a sole practitioner or becoming an ILP Legal Practitioner Director. Completion of the PMC is a requirement for all practitioners who wish to obtain a Principal Practising Certificate.

Why do your PMC with QLS?

4.6/5 star delegate rated in 2020 – due to excellent course content and outstanding presenters.
Access to experts on trust accounting, ethics and risk management - practical learning delivered by QLS in-house subject matter experts from the Trust Account Investigation Team and QLS Ethics and Practice Centre. Their content will strengthen your skills enabling you to transition from solicitor to principal seamlessly..
Superior ongoing support - members who have completed the QLS PMC can access ongoing professional support through our Practice Support and Trust Account Consultancies..
Exclusive session on wellbeing and resilience in the legal profession - designed by QLS’s Wellbeing Working Group to reduce mental health issues in the legal profession by increasing the skillsets of leaders to promote wellbeing and resilience in the workplace.
Leadership and personality profiling - internationally recognised Hogan Personality Inventory is covered in detail, which reviews individual leadership styles and development opportunities. You’ll graduate equipped with the communication tools to effectively manage staff and clients.
Interactive sessions tailored to varying practice sizes and structures - in this instance, size does matter and so we’ve tailored our content to your needs. We run sessions focused on sole practitioner to small practitioners and small practices, as well as medium and large practices.

To express your interest in registering for courses, contact the PMC team on 07 3842 5982 or pmc@qls.com.au and we will notify you when registrations open. For any queries please refer to our FAQ's.

Courses

Sole Practitioner to Small Practice Focus

Tailored for practitioners who currently practice in, or intend to practice in, a legal practice of less than 20 practising certificate holders.

10 – 14 May 2021
12 – 16 July 2021
11 – 15 October 2021
22 – 26 November 2021

Medium to Large Practice Focus

Tailored for practitioners who currently practice in, or intend to practice in, a legal practice with 20 or more practising certificate holders.

22 – 26 March 2021
6 – 10 September 2021

To express your interest in registering for courses not yet open for registration, contact the PMC team on 07 3842 5982 or pmc@qls.com.au and we will notify you when registrations open.

For any queries please refer to our FAQ page.

PMC fees

Member*	$2,100
Non-member	$2,400

* Member pricing is only applicable for QLS Full members. Associate members are not eligible for PMC member rate and will need to email pmc@qls.com.au to register for the course under the non-member rate.

10 CPD points

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Workshop structure

Business planning

This unit explores the process of business planning and determining a business model and strategy with practice goals and objectives in mind.

Practice finance

Effective finance management requires planning, monitoring, control and discipline. This unit provides a framework for the development of practice budgets and discussion of Key Performance Indicators and the importance of managing practice cash flow.

Costs and billing

The effective management of costs and billing is critical to ensuring client satisfaction and practice profitability. Look at costs as a compliance issue, and focus on best practice approaches to communication, management and administration.

Trust Accounting

This unit provides a framework for the competent management of trust and office account records involving basic bookkeeping procedures and the responsibility of solicitors to account for money received on behalf of others.

Risk and compliance (Lexon)

Learn how to implement systems and procedures to ensure critical issues and processes are implemented to protect your legal practice.

Ethics

Solicitors must have the knowledge and skills to act ethically and to display professional responsibility and courtesy in all dealings. Reflect on wider issues facing the legal profession and review the knowledge of the formal rules of conduct.

Appropriate management systems

Understand business risk management concepts and identify risks specific to practice and apply appropriate approaches to minimise and mitigate risks.

Leading yourself: Understanding your leadership strengths and style

Self-leadership is the cornerstone of all leadership, and self-awareness is a critical link to understanding how your leadership styles can enhance your own leadership potential and also how others perceive your leadership capabilities based on your personality traits. This session will discuss the latest research on emotional intelligence and self-leadership, provide context to the concepts of “leadership” and “management”, and suggest approaches and behaviours that can help you effectively manage a legal practice by understanding the impacts of your own unique results on the Hogan Personality Inventory (HPI). The presenter is a Certified Hogan’s Assessor and conducts a group debrief of the seven HPI scales

Leading others: Essential skills for inspiring leadership

The presenter is a former Partner in a large national law firm and a currently a leadership coach, providing coaching and leadership expertise to the legal profession. In this session, you will learn more about a leader’s mindset, how to manage uncomfortable conversations and deal with performance management issues, and learning about key principles of coaching others to perform at their best and build team resilience – all with a view to ultimately developing critical skills and abilities for effective management in a legal practice.

Leading wellbeing in the legal profession

Learn about the current state of wellbeing in the legal profession. Identify why the legal profession is particularly susceptible to mental health issues, develop a workplace framework to create a mentally healthy team and be equipped with the skillset to proactively support and assist it. The presenter is a Certified Hogan’s Assessor and will draw upon how effective leadership styles can have a positive influence on workplace culture.

Business development and client service

Legal practice marketing and business development is becoming increasingly more ambitious, competitive and sophisticated. Understand how marketing and business development can support legal practices, and common marketing activities and selling techniques that are used.

Client perceptions of the quality of client service have a dramatic impact on client retention, referrals, justifying fee levels, fee recovery, cash flow and profitability. Learn the skills to deliver excellent client service in terms of personal skills, practice systems and culture.

Demystifying information technology

Explore the relationship between performance, productivity and competitive advantage in legal practice and how use of effective technology and knowledge can be combined and applied.

Trust Accounting Workbook

Although this workbook is not graded, it is mandatory for you to complete it as part of the Substantial Participation requirement under rule 37(1) of the Queensland Law Society Administration Rule 2005. To be submitted to the LMS on the Monday following the Workshop.

Business Plan

Business Plan assessment to be submitted to the LMS three weeks after the Workshop date.

Risk Audit and Scenario

Risk assessment to be submitted to the LMS three weeks after the Workshop date.

Trust Accounting Exam

Multiple choice online exam with 45 questions and a duration 45 minutes, testing your understanding and application of trust accounting and costs disclosure concepts and regulations. To be commenced and completed on the LMS at a convenient time for you between 7am – 2pm on the Monday following the Workshop.

Ethics Scenario

Ethics Scenario assessment to be submitted to the LMS three weeks after the Workshop date.

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