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Practising Certificate types

The application form details the different types of certificate you may be eligible to hold. Your certificate type will reflect the style of practice you choose for the year. This may be:

• principal (issued to private practice sole practitioners, partners and legal practitioner directors)
• non-principal (private practice employees)
• government (employed by the State or Federal government)
• corporate or non-lawyer entity (employed by a corporation, unincorporated entity, non-NSW firm)

For an explanation of these terms download the Practising Certificate Types and Conditions information sheet. 

If you change your practising arrangements you may be required to change the type of Practising Certificate you hold. For more information see the Changing your Practising Certificate section of this website.

Conditions and undertakings

Your Practising Certificate type will reflect if your certificate is subject to a period of Supervised Legal Practice (Condition 2). It will either be:

• restricted (subject to a period of Supervised Legal Practice)
• unrestricted (NOT subject to a period of Supervised Legal Practice)

The Practising Certificate issued by the Law Society of New South Wales will also reflect the conditions and undertakings to which you are subject to as a solicitor.

Conditions

1. Mandatory Continuing Legal Education/Continuing Professional Development (MCLE/CPD) must be completed each year in accordance with the requirements of the Legal Profession Act 2004 and the Legal Profession Regulation 2005.
2. A period of  Supervised Legal Practice (usually two years) is required under the Legal Profession Act 2004 and you must only engage in legal practice under supervision until this condition has been removed from your Certificate.
3. Completion of a Practice Management Course is required before you become a principal or solicitor on the record.
4. Any Special Condition imposed by the Council of the Law Society or under the provisions of the Legal Profession Act 2004 must be complied with.

Undertakings

In addition to the conditions above, you are required to comply with any undertaking you have given to the Law Society of NSW. For example, a solicitor may have given the Society an undertaking to complete a Practice Management Course.

Another example is that if a solicitor is an undischarged bankrupt, the certificate will be subject to an undertaking imposing some limitations on the solicitor’s right to practice. If you are an undischarged bankrupt you will need to complete the Bankruptcy Undertaking Form and return it to the Law Society Registry.

An undertaking is represented by a ‘U’ on a Practising Certificate.

Compliance

Failure to comply with these conditions and undertakings can result in disciplinary action. If there is evidence of non-compliance the Council of the Law Society may cancel, suspend or refuse to issue your Practising Certificate, or attach additional conditions to its issue.