External

Examiners

What is an External Examiner?

If a law practice has received or held trust money during the trust year, it must have its trust records externally examined by a designated External Examiner (EE).
 

Who can become an EE?

The criteria that must be met, before a person may qualify to be appointed as an EE, is set out in sections 155 – 156 of the Uniform Law and Rule 65 of the Legal Profession Uniform General Rules 2015.

An EE must complete an approved EE course conducted by the Law Society of NSW, the Law Institute of Victoria or the Legal Practice Board of Western Australia.  Register your interest for the next available Law Society of NSW EE course here: Register your Interest.

A register of EE’s qualified to examine the records is available here: Find an External Examiner.

How is an EE appointed?

An EE can only be appointed to the law practice within the Trust Lodgement Portal (TLP).  An EE can be changed or terminated within the TLP also. For further information refer to the Trust Lodgement Portal Guidebook.

What is an External Examiners Report (EER)?

  • An EER is an independent assessment of a law practice's trust records submitted via the TLP on or before 31 May.  The purpose of an EER is to:
  • Confirm that the information submitted in the law practice’s Confirmation and Statement of Trust Money (commonly known as Part A and Part B) is correct.
  • Confirm whether the trust records for all types of trust money have been properly maintained in accordance with the provisions of the Uniform Law and the Uniform General Rules.
  • Detail any observed breaches of the Uniform law and Uniform General Rules.

Information for examiners

We tailor our resources annually based on your feedback and have developed the following to assist you:

  1. External Examiner's Checklist A list of suggested checks to help guide your examination.
  2. External Examiners Guidelines Answers to questions frequently asked by EEs.
  3. Section 370 notice Guidelines for Preparing a Notice under Section 370.
  4. 2025 Live Webinar Silent Signals: What External Examiners Reveal: Join us for a complimentary webinar where you will learn about:
  5. Upcoming key dates
  6. Breaches and how to identify issues which pose a significant risk
  7. How to undertake vital checks and monitor dormant balances
  8. Independence and confidence in external examinations
  9. How to use the Trust Lodgement Portal
  10. TLP Guidance for External Examiners Detailed instructions on how to use the TLP for submitting EERs.