Victorian Consolidated Legislation

Legal Profession Act 2004 - SECT 2.4.8.

Application for grant or renewal of local practising certificate

2.4.8. Application for grant or renewal of local practising certificate



(1) An Australian lawyer may apply to the Board for the grant or renewal of a
local practising certificate if eligible to do so.

(2) An Australian lawyer is eligible to apply for the grant or renewal of a
local practising certificate if the lawyer complies with any regulations and
legal profession rules relating to eligibility for the practising certificate
and if-

   (a)  in the case of a lawyer who is not an Australian legal practitioner at
        the time of making the application-

   (i)  the lawyer reasonably expects to be engaged in legal practice solely
        or principally in this jurisdiction during the currency of the
        certificate or renewal applied for; or

   (ii) if subparagraph (i) does not apply to the lawyer or it is not
        reasonably practicable to determine whether it applies to the
        lawyer-the lawyer's place of residence in Australia is this
        jurisdiction or the lawyer does not have a place of residence in
        Australia; or

   (b)  in the case of a lawyer who is an Australian legal practitioner at the
        time of making the application-

   (i)  the jurisdiction in which the lawyer engages in legal practice solely
        or principally is this jurisdiction; or

   (ii) the lawyer holds a current local practising certificate and engages in
        legal practice in another jurisdiction under an arrangement that is of
        a temporary nature; or

   (iii) the lawyer reasonably expects to be engaged in legal practice solely
        or principally in this jurisdiction during the currency of the
        certificate or renewal applied for; or

   (iv) if subparagraph (i), (ii) or (iii) does not apply to the lawyer or it
        is not reasonably practicable to determine whether subparagraph (i),
        (ii) or (iii) applies to the lawyer-the lawyer's place of residence in
        Australia is this jurisdiction or the lawyer does not have a place of
        residence in Australia.

(3) For the purposes of subsection (2)(b), the jurisdiction in which an
Australian lawyer engages in legal practice principally is to be decided by
reference to the lawyer's legal practice during the certificate period current
at the time-

   (a)  the application is made; or

   (b)  in the case of a late application-the application should have been
        made.

(3A) An Australian lawyer is not eligible to apply for the grant or renewal of
a local practising certificate in respect of a financial year if the lawyer
would also be the holder of another Australian practising certificate for that
year, but this subsection does not limit the factors determining ineligibility
to apply for the grant or renewal of a local practising certificate.

(4) An Australian lawyer must not apply for the grant or renewal of a local
practising certificate if the lawyer is not eligible to make the application.

(5) An Australian legal practitioner who-

   (a)  engages in legal practice solely or principally in this jurisdiction
        during a financial year; and





   (b)  reasonably expects to engage in legal practice solely or principally
        in this jurisdiction in the following financial year-

must apply for the grant or renewal of a local practising certificate in
respect of the following financial year.

(6) Subsection (5) does not apply to an interstate legal practitioner who
applied for the grant or renewal of an interstate practising certificate on
the basis that the practitioner reasonably expected to engage in legal
practice solely or principally in this jurisdiction under an arrangement that
is of a temporary nature.

(7) A reference in this section to engaging in legal practice principally in
this or any other jurisdiction applies only to legal practice in Australia.
Accordingly, an Australian lawyer who is engaged or expects to be engaged in
legal practice principally in a foreign country is nevertheless eligible to
apply for the grant or renewal of a local practising certificate if the lawyer
otherwise meets the requirements of this section.

Note The purpose of this subsection is to deal with a case where a person
practises both in Australia and overseas. In that case, overseas practice is
to be disregarded (even if it forms the principal portion of the person's
overall practice), so that eligibility is determined by reference only to the
person's practice in Australia.

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