After section 55 of the Principal Act , the following Part is inserted:

PART 7A - Interstate legal practitioners

Division 1 - Interstate practising certificates

55A.     Interstate legal practitioners entitled to practise in State

(1)  A person who holds an interstate practising certificate is entitled to carry on legal practice in this State as if –

(a) the interstate practising certificate were a practising certificate; and

(b) any conditions of the interstate practising certificate were conditions of the practising certificate.

(2)  A person is entitled to carry on legal practice in this State only if the person –

(a) complies with any applicable requirements of this and any other Act relating to legal practice that would apply to a local legal practitioner whose practising certificate is subject to conditions corresponding to the conditions of the interstate practising certificate; and

(b) complies with any conditions imposed on the person by a regulatory authority.

(3)  A condition imposed on a person by one regulatory authority has no effect for the purpose of this section if it is inconsistent with a more onerous condition imposed on the person by another regulatory authority.

(4)  A failure to comply with this section constitutes professional misconduct or unprofessional conduct under Part 8 .

55B.     Additional conditions

(1)  A regulatory authority in this State, by notice in writing, may impose any condition on the legal practice by an interstate legal practitioner in this State that it may impose on a practising certificate under section 51(3) or section 76(1)(e) .

(2)  A regulatory authority in this State must not impose a condition under this section that is more onerous than a condition it would impose under section 51(3) or section 76(1)(e) in the same or similar circumstances.

(3)  A regulatory authority in this State may vary or revoke any condition imposed under this section.

Division 2 - Indemnity insurance

55C.     Indemnity insurance

An interstate legal practitioner who maintains a State office must not practise as a barrister or solicitor and barrister in this State unless he or she has indemnity insurance in respect of that practice –

(a) that provides the same or higher minimum level of indemnity as that provided for under the Indemnity Rules made under Part 10 ; and

(b) the terms of which are broadly equivalent to those provided under those rules.

Penalty:  Fine not exceeding 20 penalty units.

55D.     Indemnity insurance if no State office

(1)  If the level of indemnity under a policy of indemnity insurance in force in respect of the legal practice of an interstate legal practitioner who does not have a State office is less than that required of an interstate legal practitioner under section 55C , the interstate legal practitioner is to disclose the difference to a client before being retained by the client.

(2)  A failure to comply with this section constitutes professional misconduct or unprofessional conduct under Part 8 .

55E.     Trust accounts

An interstate legal practitioner who maintains a State office must comply with Part 9 as if he or she were a local legal practitioner.

Division 3 - Complaints and discipline

55F.     Complaints relating to local legal practitioners in participating States

A complaint relating to the conduct of a local legal practitioner in respect of his or her legal practice in a participating State may be dealt with under Part 8 as if it were a complaint under that Part.

55G.     Referral to regulatory authority in participating State

(1)  A regulatory authority in this State may refer a complaint made to it to a regulatory authority in a participating State to be dealt with according to the law of that State.

(2)  A regulatory authority in this State may request a regulatory authority in a participating State to investigate the conduct of a legal practitioner in accordance with the law of that State.

(3)  If a referral or request is made under this section, a regulatory authority in this State is not to take any further action in relation to the subject matter of the referral or request, other than any action required under section 55H .

55H.     Dealing with referred matters

(1)  A regulatory authority in this State may investigate a complaint against a legal practitioner referred to it by a regulatory authority in a participating State whether or not the subject matter of the complaint occurred in or outside this State.

(2)  If a regulatory authority in a participating State requests a regulatory authority in this State to investigate the conduct of a legal practitioner, the regulatory authority in this State may investigate that conduct whether or not the conduct occurred in or outside this State.

55I.     Information

(1)  A regulatory authority in this State is to provide without delay any information about a legal practitioner reasonably required by a regulatory authority in a participating State in connection with actual or possible disciplinary action against the legal practitioner.

(2)  A regulatory authority may provide the information despite any law relating to secrecy or confidentiality.

(3)  A regulatory authority in this State is to notify the appropriate regulatory authority in each participating State of any condition imposed by it on a legal practitioner in relation to his or her legal practice as a result of any disciplinary action taken against the legal practitioner.

55J.     Local legal practitioners subject to interstate regulatory authorities

(1)  A local legal practitioner practising in this State must comply with any condition in respect of his or her legal practice imposed by a regulatory authority in a participating State as a result of any disciplinary action against the local legal practitioner.

(2)  A failure to comply with subsection (1) constitutes professional misconduct or unprofessional conduct under Part 8 .

(3)  A regulatory authority in a participating State –

(a) that has power to suspend, cancel, vary the conditions of, impose further conditions on, or order the suspension, cancellation or variation of the conditions of, or imposition of further conditions on, an interstate practising certificate issued to an interstate legal practitioner in that State as a result of any disciplinary action against the interstate legal practitioner; and

(b) to which a local legal practitioner is subject in that State –

has those same powers in relation to the practising certificate of a local legal practitioner as a result of any disciplinary action taken against the local legal practitioner.

(4)  A regulatory authority in this State is to comply with an order of a regulatory authority in a participating State referred to in subsection (3) .

(5)  A regulatory authority in a participating State that has power to order the removal of the name of a person from the roll kept in that State that corresponds to the roll of practitioners in the Supreme Court in this State may order that the name of a local legal practitioner be so removed.

(6)  If an order is made by a regulatory authority in a participating State under subsection (5) , the name of the local legal practitioner is to be removed from the roll of practitioners in this State.

Division 4 - General provisions

55K.     Local legal practitioner receiving trust money interstate

(1)  A local legal practitioner must deal with trust money received in the course of practising outside this State in accordance with Part 9 as if the trust money had been received in the course of practising in this State.

(2)  Subsection (1) does not apply in respect of trust money received in the course of practising in a participating State in which a local legal practitioner has established an office.

55L.   Powers under corresponding law

A regulatory authority in this State may exercise in respect of a legal practitioner any power under a corresponding law conferred on it by the corresponding law.

55M.   Corresponding law

The Minister, by order published in the Gazette, may declare a law of another State relating to the regulation of legal practice to be a corresponding law for the purpose of this Part.

55N.   Agreements and arrangements with other regulatory authorities

A regulatory authority in this State may make any agreement or arrangement with a regulatory authority in a participating State relating to –

(a) the investigation of complaints; and

(b) professional indemnity insurance; and

(c) trust account inspections; and

(d) the appointment of managers and receivers; and

(e) the provision of information under section 55I .