The Legal Services Council (Council) has published a consultation paper (PDF, 3.3 MB) seeking feedback on the draft Legal Profession Uniform General Amendment (Costs Disclosure) Rule 2026 (Cost Disclosure Amendment Rule).
The Cost Disclosure Amendment Rule would make the following amendments to the Legal Profession Uniform General Rules 2015 (Uniform General Rules).
The proposed amendments arise from an independent review of cost disclosure thresholds commissioned by the Council in 2023. The final report from that review is available on the Council’s website. Following the review, the Council redesigned the shortform disclosure forms to be more user-friendly for legal practitioners and consumers of legal services. The Council commissioned user-testing of the updated forms and revised the forms to reflect user feedback – the updated forms are at Annexure B of the paper. A report summarising the results of the user testing, published in February 2026, is available on our website.
We note that many stakeholders have previously provided input on issues canvassed in this consultation paper during consultation for the 2023 final report, and during a targeted consultation earlier this year. We are, through this consultation, seeking stakeholder views on the draft Cost Disclosure Amendment Rule at Annexure A of the paper, as required under s 425(3)(b) of the Uniform Law.
To contribute to this consultation, please email your responses to the questions in the Consultation Paper to [email protected] by COB 16 July 2026. If you would like your submission to be treated as confidential, please clearly indicate this when sending it to us.
Should you have any questions, please contact us at [email protected].
The consultation paper click here (PDF, 435.6 KB) seeks feedback on practical issues arising from the current framework for corporate legal practitioners employed by entities that are not companies within the meaning of the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth). In particular, the Council is seeking views on whether the Uniform General Rules should specify additional persons or classes of persons for the purposes of paragraph (b) of the definition of “related entity” in section 6 of the Uniform Law.
The Consultation Paper seeks feedback on:
Click here (DOCX, 20.4 KB) for the submissions template. Submissions can be sent to [email protected] on or before 22 July 2026, and may be published on the Council’s website unless you advise otherwise.
The Legal Services Council’s Admissions Committee and the Law Admissions Consultative Committee (LACC) thank those who responded to the national survey on PLT. The research report prepared by Urbis Ltd on the survey findings is available here (PDF, 6.3 MB).
The Committees now invite your feedback on proposals to reform PLT. These proposals consider the development of practical knowledge and skills across the spectrum of legal education, from law courses to post-admission legal training.
Click here (PDF, 4.3 MB)for the consultation paper and here for the optional feedback form (DOCX, 32.3 KB).
Please send submissions to [email protected] by Thursday 14 May 2026.
The Admissions Committee and the Law Admissions Consultative Committee thank those who provided submissions on the review of practical legal training (PLT) and participated in the stakeholder roundtables.
In recognition of the range of views expressed through the process so far and the need for further consultation, the Committees are pleased to announce that a National PLT Consultation Conference will be held in early November 2026. Attendance to the Conference will be by invitation.
The Conference will bring together stakeholders from the legal profession, law schools, PLT providers, admitting authorities and regulators to discuss and collaborate on options for reform. The agenda for the two days will be designed around a series of workshops focused on:
To support discussion at the Conference, the Committees are establishing six working groups made up of representatives from across the sector. These groups will consider key policy issues and reform options in greater detail for the purpose of preparing discussion materials that will guide the workshop sessions. The working groups will bring together potential options and considerations to inform discussion at the Conference.
In advance of the Conference, papers prepared by the working groups may be published on this website for review and comment. If you would like to be alerted when those papers are available, please contact us at [email protected].
In response to feedback about the proposed implementation date of reforms to PLT and the additional policy development process proposed, the Committees have resolved to defer the targeted implementation date from 2028 to 2029. However, the Committees have not foreclosed the possibility of an earlier partial implementation of reforms (where possible).
Tuesday 25 November 2025
The Admissions Committee of the Legal Services Council (Council) and the Law Admissions Consultative Committee (LACC) wish to acknowledge and thank those who made a written submission to the public consultation on proposed revisions to the Accreditation Standards for Australian Law Courses.
Having considered the feedback, the Committees have decided to engage in targeted consultation before finalising the revisions.
The targeted consultation will enhance awareness of the key revisions amongst law schools, admitting authorities and other key stakeholders representing the legal profession and students, as well as provide a further opportunity for stakeholders to comment before the revisions and transitional arrangements are confirmed as final.
Stakeholders who made a submission to the public consultation and other key stakeholders will be contacted directly and invited to provide feedback on a draft consultation report and draft revised standards that have been further developed since the consultation version. The adjusted revisions undergoing targeted consultation seek to clarify and provide additional guidance to facilitate compliance and transition to the new requirements in the Standards.
Submissions to the targeted consultation are due by 20 March 2026.
Unless stakeholders advise us otherwise, submissions may be published on the Council’s website and shared with the Council, Admissions Committee and the LACC, and may also be shared with other organisations that contribute to the targeted consultation.
Monday 24 March 2025
The Legal Services Council (Council)’s Admissions Committee and the Law Admissions Consultative Committee (LACC) invited written submissions on proposed revisions to the Accreditation Standards for Australian Law Courses. The revisions will update the Standards to address the emergence of online delivery and new digital technologies, as well as other matters such as intensive or block delivery.
Click here (PDF, 304.3 KB) (PDF, 304.3 KB) for the consultation paper and click here (PDF, 255.3 KB) (PDF, 255.3 KB) for the draft revised Standards.
11 December 2023
The Legal Services Council received the report of Dr Matthew Butlin AM, independent expert consultant and leader of the review of the costs disclosure thresholds, at its meeting on 28 September 2023.
The Council has agreed in principle to progress the recommendations in the report and endorsed a plan for the implementation of the recommendations over 2024. This work will begin with the development of updated standard costs disclosure forms and associated guidance and an updated information sheet for legal practitioners.
Click here (PDF, 2.9 MB) for the final report and here (PDF, 93.4 KB) for the implementation plan.
5 May 2023
A consultation paper has been released as part of the Council’s review of the costs disclosure thresholds (Review).
The consultation paper invites feedback on:
The consultation paper is informed by discussion with key stakeholders including government agencies, regulatory authorities, legal professional associations and those who work with consumers.
The Review is considering and will report on the effectiveness and regulatory impact of the costs disclosure thresholds referred to in s 174(4) and (5) of the Uniform Law, including whether they meet the objectives of the Uniform Law.
The Council appointed Dr Matthew Butlin as the expert consultant and leader of the Review. Submissions in response to the consultation paper will inform Dr Butlin’s final report which will be considered by the Council.
Submissions can be sent to [email protected] by 2 June 2023 and will be published on the Council's website unless you ask for your submission to be treated as confidential.
Click here for the consultation paper (PDF, 2.0 MB)
A letter from Justice Connect was also received during the initial consultation period:
Dr Butlin is considering the submissions received in response to the consultation paper.
30 September 2022
The Legal Services Council (Council) has established a Review of the Costs Disclosure Thresholds in the Legal Profession Uniform Law (Uniform Law).
The Review will consider and report on the effectiveness and regulatory impact of the Costs Disclosure Thresholds referred to in section 174(4) and (5) of the Uniform Law, including whether they meet the objectives of the Uniform Law. The Terms of Reference for the Review outline matters that the Review will have particular regard to and are available here (PDF, 64.1 KB).
The Review will take an evidenced-based approach and may make recommendations for amendments to the Legal Profession Uniform General Rules 2015, the Short Form Costs Disclosure Forms, the Costs Disclosure Forms Information Sheets and the Guidelines and Directions on Costs Estimates, if considered necessary. The Review will not consider or make recommendations for amendments to the Uniform Law, as any such recommendations may be considered during the five year review of the Uniform Law.
The Review will consult widely with relevant bodies, including the Designated Local Regulatory Authorities, other legal regulatory authorities, Law Societies, Bar Associations and consumer and business groups. The Council will contact relevant bodies to arrange consultation meetings in due course. A public consultation paper, inviting submissions, will also be published once initial consultations have taken place.
The Council has appointed Dr Matthew Butlin as the expert independent consultant and leader of the Review. Dr Butlin’s former roles have included Commissioner of the Australian Productivity Commission (2007-2008), Executive Chair of the Victorian Competition and Efficiency Commission (2008-2015) and the South Australian Productivity Commission (2018-2021), and the Victorian Red Tape Commissioner (2015-2018). Dr Butlin is also an honorary Enterprise Professor at the Melbourne University’s Institute of Applied Economic and Social Research. A copy of Dr Butlin’s CV is available here (PDF, 102.6 KB).
Dr Butlin will report to the Council at the conclusion of the Review.
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