ByLawyers News and Updates

Practice Management — Enhanced reference material — 101 Policy and Procedures

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Our reference guide — 101 Policy and Procedures has been enhanced.

This guide forms part of our Practice Management publication and provides a ready reference for all team members in a law firm about all aspects of the practice. A few excerpts:

Client service and communication standards

The firm strives to deliver the highest level of service and value to its clients. This means that team members are expected to be well mannered, engaged and responsive to phone calls, emails and other correspondence….

Cost disclosure and billing practices

In all matters, use the Retainer Instructions provided in the matter plan under Getting the Matter Underway and disclose costs in writing. Costs disclosure must be by way of a formal Costs Agreement where costs are likely to exceed $3000, or otherwise disclosed in the initial correspondence, as done for example in the precedent letters in the matter plan for conveyancing matters….

Supervision of practice and staff

The system adopted by the practice, if followed, will ensure that the practice is run efficiently and safely to the satisfaction of all participants. This simply involves adherence to all policies and procedures. …

Other topics covered include Asset register, Closing files, Email policy, Petty cash, Sexual harassment and Trust accounting.

Practice Management — New reference material — 101 Trusted and useful sites by area of law

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Here at By Lawyers we spend a lot of time researching and fact-checking, in all of the areas of law that our publications cover. Over time we have compiled a list of credible and helpful websites which we regularly use – and that list is now available to you, with the publication of our new reference tool — 101 Trusted and useful sites by area of law.

This handy resource brings together in one place hyperlinks to some of the most trusted and useful websites you might need, organised according to areas of law.

The new reference tool is located as a separate guide in the By Lawyers Practice Management publication.

By way of example, these are the Federal websites we have included for the Business & Franchise area of law:

FEDERAL

Business & Franchise
GST and Taxes – Australian Taxation Office (ATO)
Franchises

There are also sites under that subject heading for each state. There are subject headings for all of the areas of law covered by our publications.

As with all of our publications this resource will be regularly updated.

This ready reference tool is a convenient starting place for everyone in the firm seeking trusted information to assist clients in any area of on any practice.

Accounts management

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By Guy Dawson, CEO

There are many practitioners who through fear of mistake and the weight of responsibility do not run a trust account. This makes client transactions difficult for them as for example they are asked on short notice to provide bank cheques for settlements. It prevents money being held in trust on account of the practitioner’s future fees for counsel, consultants and contractors. It makes management of getting in estate cash assets cumbersome.

The fear is not really justified as the rules are readily understood and managed.

The simplest way to comply with state trust account regulations is to use an approved accounting software package with appropriate written delegations and procedures. All accounting records are required to be accurate, up to date and regularly monitored. The trust account department of all Law Societies and Institutes is available to assist with any questions. The Handbook on Trust Money and Trust Records, is a comprehensive guide to the statutory trust accounting requirements contained in the Legal Profession Uniform Law Application Act 2014, and the Legal Profession Uniform Law Application Regulation 2015.

By Lawyers provides a comprehensive straightforward appreciation of trust accounting in its Practice Management Guide.

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