ByLawyers News and Updates

A full description of the sale and purchase process – Conveyancing – NSW

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By Lawyers is pleased to announce the publication of new reference materials within our Conveyancing Guides which provide a full description of the conveyancing process for both sale and purchase. These descriptions provide details on the procedure to follow when conducting a sale or purchase, using the precedents available in the By Lawyers Conveyancing (NSW) Guides, together with LEAP and InfoTrack.

The full descriptions follow the typical progression of a residential sale or purchase and include screen shots to assist with the procedural aspects of running the matter in LEAP. These descriptions are not intended to be a substitute for our comprehensive Conveyancing commentaries, or the detailed Matter Plans and To Do lists provided in our Guides – rather they are intended to be complementary, providing the user with more detailed explanations on the very practical aspects of running a conveyancing matter from start to finish.

Areas covered include:

  • How to open a file;
  • How and when to order quality and title searches;
  • How to create the contract with the correct order of documents;
  • How and when to enter matter information into LEAP;
  • Arranging an exchange;
  • Completing settlement figures and directions – adjusting council rates, water, sewerage, strata.
  • Preparing for settlement – both paper and electronic.
  • Post-settlement procedure.

While these new resources are ideally suited to those with little or no hands-on experience with conducting conveyancing matters, they will also be of benefit to those unfamiliar with running conveyancing matters in LEAP, or who need to step in and conduct a conveyancing file for another team member who is on leave.

Another great advantage provided by these full descriptions is the ability to delegate conveyancing tasks to junior staff and have them understand the conveyancing process without having to direct them every step of the way.

Like all of the practical resources in the By Lawyers Conveyancing Guides, these new reference materials provide firms not currently taking on conveyancing work the ability to do so easily.

By Lawyers Alerts – reducing stress

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To reinforce the currency of our publications, we have extended our Alerts system.

At By Lawyers we are committed to reducing stress for small law firms and ensuring practitioners have what they need, when they need it. Our matter plans provide you with the precedents you are looking for and our commentaries give you as much  – or as little – support as required.

Most importantly, our publications always include the latest in legislative and procedural changes.

Alerts have always been posted in our publications as a way of letting you know, at a glance, of any recent updates to the law and advising you when our precedents and commentaries have been updated. However, sometimes there simply aren’t any changes that you need to know about – and we think you need to know that, too.

From now on, where there are no changes current, our publications will display the reassuring flag ‘Alerts – Nil’.

‘Alerts – Nil’ at the top of a matter plan indicates that there have not been any recent changes in that area of law.

At By Lawyers all members of our editorial team have dedicated areas of law to follow, with state-based cross-checks, ensuring no legislative changes escape our attention. Notifications from legislative, courts and law society sources, to name only a few, are checked and cross-checked daily. When we need to update anything, the digital nature of our publications means that we can post updates – and issue an alert – immediately.

We will always inform you when there is something you need to know. Otherwise, you have no need to worry!

ACT – Estates – New publication

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We are delighted to announce a new publication by our ACT author, Doug Dawson, being a Guide for Probate and Letters of Administration (ACT).

The guide features detailed commentary, a matter plan and all necessary forms and precedents for obtaining a grant, getting in the assets and making the distribution.

The practical nature of this publication allows the practitioner to:

  • take instructions via our comprehensive and methodical instruction sheet;
  • gather information readily using our library of initial letters to asset holders;
  • make an application for probate or letters of administration with ease and confidence;
  • have a deed of release and indemnity and a deed of family arrangement immediately available in the mater when required.

We invite ACT practitioners – and those in other states who may need to conduct ACT estate matters – to explore our Probate and Letters of Administration matter plans, to appreciate the practicality and value of our publication.

The importance of Matter Plans in By Lawyers Guides

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Each of our Legal Guides contains a Matter Plan which follows the typical flow of a matter, with precedents and commentary ordered sequentially, and less commonly used content appearing in ‘If required’ folders.

This structure not only allows members of your team to confidently conduct matters in areas they are perhaps unfamiliar with, but also allows for precise answers to be found quickly. Users have the freedom to access as much or as little guidance as is needed, with the ability to easily navigate to the commentary and precedents required.

Each Matter Plan typically starts with the folder ‘Getting the Matter Underway’. It contains everything you need to get a matter started. There are precedents such as a file cover sheet, retainer instructions, a ‘to do’ list and initial letters. There is also commentary detailing the first things you need to do and be aware of when getting the matter underway. Each Matter Plan proceeds through the logical sequence of a matter, concluding with a ‘Finalisation’ folder, which contains precedents such as a tax invoice and finalisation letters.

This clear structure is a very useful risk management tool and essential to daily practice.

Using the Matter Plan

  1. Open a matter.
  2. From the Details & Correspondence tab, click on the  button. If the Legal Guides tab is not your default view, select the Legal Guides tab to view the By Lawyers Guide for the selected matter type. The Legal Guides tab can be set as your default view from the hamburger menu at the top right of the Guides & Precedents screen.
  3. The Legal Guides tab displays the Matter Plan which proceeds through the logical sequence of the matter.
  4. Commentary is identified by green text and the  icon being C for commentary. Clicking the green commentary title will open the commentary in a browser.
  5. Precedents are identified by blue text and the  icon being W for Word Document. Click the precedent to open it. The precedent will merge information from the matter.

The Matter Plan is your road map for navigating through our Guides, allowing you to maximise the value of our detailed content and get the most from By Lawyers.

LEAP users – Getting the most out of your By Lawyers Guides and Precedents

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By Lawyers is Australia’s leading provider of practical Legal Guides, with over 140 Matter Plans, 7000 Precedents and detailed Reference Manuals in various areas of law. Our legal guides are designed to help you find answers quickly enabling you to work faster and smarter.

Legal Guides Tab

Using the Legal Guides tab properly is the key to getting the most out of each By Lawyers guide.

In the Guides and Precedents window, the Legal Guides tab is the best way to view and use By Lawyers content. Using the Legal Guides tab is an important risk management tool and we encourage all users to set Legal Guides as their default tab, instead of the Browse tab. This can be set in the ‘hamburger’ menu from the Legal Guides tab.

The Browse tab does not show the commentary, the layout is more difficult to navigate, and the precedents and folders do not always appear in the order intended.

The Legal Guides tab shows the relevant guide for the matter type associated with your matter and defaults to your last viewed folder in the guide. Each guide contains a Matter Plan which follows the typical flow of a matter, with precedents and commentary ordered sequentially, and less commonly used content appearing in ‘If required’ folders.

At the top of the Legal Guides tab, you will see:

  • a ‘Related Guides’ drop down;
  • a ‘Browse more guides’ button; and
  • a Search Bar.

Related Guides drop down

The Related Guides drop down will show other guides that are related to the current guide, including any Reference Manuals. For example:

 

Browse more guides button

If you are looking for a guide that is not related to your current matter type, you can search for and open any other guide from the ‘Browse more guides’ button which allows you to narrow your navigation and searching by state. Any precedent that you open from another guide will merge with your current matter and can be saved into this matter.

Search Bar

If you are unable to find a precedent after navigating the Matter Plan, you can use the Search Bar at the top of each guide. You can search both precedents and commentary, or you can confine the search to either precedents or commentary. For example:

If you are still having trouble, please contact our Client Services Manager on (02) 4858 0619 or by email at support@bylawyers.com.au who is always happy to help.

By Lawyers Contract of Sale of Land – Victoria

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A new form of contract, co-authored by Russell Cocks, providing a vendor’s statement and contract in one document.

The contract is specifically designed for residential conveyancing transactions and seeks to smooth some of the traditional road blocks that arise in these transactions.

The By Lawyers Contract of Sale of Land is located in the Contract folder in the Sale of Real Property Guide.

Seven reasons to use the By Lawyers contract

  1. The Contract and Vendor’s Statement are combined into ONE document, with the Vendor’s Statement, logically, coming FIRST. The Vendor’s Statement is formatted in such a way as to deal with the obligatory fields first and then group the optional fields in way that makes removal of those fields simple if they are not required.
  2. Particulars of Sale in the Contract includes a “sunset date” for off the plan approval. No more searching through mountains of Special Conditions.
  3. Non-derogation warranty. General Conditions can be amended by Special Conditions BUT not such as to reduce the rights created by the General Conditions. No more contracts that say one thing on page 1 and reverse that on page 15. This Contract is fair to both parties; if someone wants to create an unfair contract they cannot hide it within this contract.
  4. General Condition 12 – deposit release. Establishes a clear protocol for release by requiring timely objection to title.
  5. General Condition 14 – loan condition. Extends time for approval to 21 days and allows for automatic extension, subject to vendor’s ability to end the extension by notice.
  6. General Condition 25 – losses. Removes disputes relating to default losses from the settlement process and allows the parties to resolve these issues after settlement.
  7. General Conditions 27 & 28 – default and rescission notices. Divides the process into two steps with specified legal cost in respect of notices.

There are also other improvements, such as simple off the plan and electronic conveyancing conditions, a requirement that a vendor produce a copy lease at settlement and a clause passing ownership of abandoned goods to the purchaser. This Contract continues the quest commenced by the 2008 Contract (remember Requisitions?) to simplify conveyancing by ironing out the speedhumps.

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