Application for a New Practising Certificate
This is information for practitioners applying for a new (not renewing) practising certificate
Read the Tips and Checklist before getting started.
Before starting this application for a new practising certificate or new practising certificate type, read the tips and checklist below. Once you have checked the current Fee Guide and have all your necessary documents on hand and in the correct format you are ready to start.
- If you have previously been a Society member (or alumnus), apply using this Alumni Practising Certificate Form.
- If you have never been a member of this Society or have a new practitioner starting at your firm, apply with this Application for a New Practising Certificate Form.
- Practising certificate renewal period for the 2023-2024 financial year is now open. See here.
Please note that it is the view of this Society that the Mutual Recognition Act 1992 (Cth) has no application to the issue of practising certificates given the provisions of the Legal Profession Act 2007 and its reciprocal counterparts in other states and territories.
Tips
- Ideally complete your form in one sitting and stay in your browser tab whilst completing your form. Do not refresh your browser.
- Don’t lose your work – use ‘previous’ and ‘next’ buttons found at the bottom of the form not the ‘back’ and ‘forward’ in your internet browser.
- Links in the form are safe to click on as they will open in a separate tab.
- If necessary, Save and Resume during your application process.
- For technical issues, contact us Monday – Friday between 9am-5pm on
(03) 6234 4133 or at membership@lst.org.au. - Important declaration: A declaration is required to be read and acknowledged by you prior to submitting your application form. The submission of this application form by you is treated as your signature equivalent.
Checklist – as applicable, have the following items handy before you start.
1. PDF statement – Eligibility to Apply (section 48 of the Legal Profession Act 2007): You will be asked where you intend to solely or principally engage in legal practice. If you answer outside Tasmania, provide details of your intended practice as a pdf’d statement and upload it during this application process.
2. PDF statement – Show Cause Events (Sections 4, 73, 74, 75 and 76 of the Legal Profession Act 2007):
– Bankruptcy: If you select yes to any of the following – you have become bankrupt, been served with a Notice of a Creditor’s Petition, presented or declared your intentions to present a Debtor’s Petition, or applied to take the benefit of any law for the relief of bankrupt or insolvent debtors or compounding with creditors or making an assignment of remuneration for the benefit of creditors – provide details as a pdf’d statement and upload it during this application process.
– Notifiable offences: If you select yes to having been found guilty of a serious offence or tax offence whether committed in or outside Tasmania, provide details as a pdf’d statement and upload it during this application process. Note: The Society does not require disclosure of convictions for minor offences such as minor traffic or licensing offences and the like. There is no requirement to repeat disclosures already made to the Society in association with a previous application or renewal unless there has been a material change in the matter disclosed.
3. Part-Time Practitioners: You may be asked, depending on the practising certificate type, if you will be working part-time. This question relates to professional indemnity insurance and may give rise to a fee discount eligibility. Tick the part-time box only if you will be employed no more than 22.8 hours per week for the financial year 2023 – 2024 and will not work an average of more than 22.8 hours per week in that financial year.
4. Law Library Levy: You may be asked you would like access to the Tasmanian Law Library resources (unless automatically included, depending on the practising certificate type). See the current Fee Guide. The library has extensive hard copy and online materials and can assist you to identify and locate primary and secondary legal resources. Subscription also entitles you to Thompson Reuters desktop library services. For more information see Law Library Services and Resources.
5. Society Identity Card: Provide your headshot photo (as a jpeg only) for issue of this ID if you’d like it. Practitioners use this ID primarily for law court security access, and to claim member benefits in person, such as retail discounts.
Important declaration: As stated above, a declaration is required to be read and acknowledged by you prior to submitting your application. The submission of this application form by you is treated as your signature equivalent.