Continuing General Trust Account where Statutory Deposit Held

If the general trust account has been open for some time and the law practice held a statutory deposit during the previous applicable period:

(a) Note that the minimum balance of the general trust account consists of the following two elements:
(i) authorised ADI statement balance; and
(ii) the statutory deposit (on the same day as (i)).
(b) Review the authorised ADI statements and the statutory deposit details for the previous applicable period. Select the lowest authorised ADI statement balance and add the amount held on statutory deposit on that day.
(c) If the minimum balance is less than $10,000, it is not a requirement to maintain a statutory deposit. The current statutory deposit may be withdrawn. The position is not required to be reviewed until the next applicable period. Any withdrawal should be recorded in the Statutory Deposit ledger account (as a credit entry).

(d)
(i) If the minimum balance is $10,000 or greater, this minimum balance is the statutory deposit, subject to the further calculation referred to in (ii) below. It is requested that the statutory deposit be rounded up to the next hundred dollars. The deposit is required to be made not later than 20 banking days after the end of the previous applicable period.
 
 
(ii) Complete a further calculation as per (b) above for the period beginning with the end of the previous applicable period to 15 banking days thereafter. If the minimum balance is lower than the minimum balance calculated in (b) above, then you are only required to deposit 80% of the minimum balance. If you are unable to deposit this amount, see Chapter 14.6 of the Legal Accounting Handbook “Insufficient Funds to Make Statutory Deposit”.

(e) The current statutory deposit should therefore be adjusted as follows:
(i) Where the new required statutory deposit is less than the current statutory deposit, the current statutory deposit may be reduced to the level of the new required statutory deposit. (See Chapter 14.7 of the Legal Accounting Handbook “Withdrawals from Statutory Deposit During any Applicable Period”.)
(ii) Where the new required statutory deposit is more than the current statutory deposit, it is a requirement to increase the current statutory deposit to the level of the required statutory deposit.
(f) The adjustment (increase) must be made not later than 20 banking days after the end of the previous applicable period.
(g) It is a requirement to maintain this required statutory deposit at this level until the next applicable period, except where a withdrawal is necessary. (See Chapter 14.7 of the Legal Accounting Handbook “Withdrawals from Statutory Deposit During any Applicable Period”.)