Schedule 5 Application for a Compliance Certificate PDF

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APPLICATION FOR A COMPLIANCE CERTIFICATE FOR ADMISSION AS A LAWYER (Schedule 5)

Use this form to apply for a Compliance Certificate if you have never been admitted as a lawyer in Australia. If you have been admitted as a lawyer in New Zealand you must apply under the Trans Tasman Mutual Recognition Act (Commonweath) 1997. Contact the Victorian Legal Admissions Board on 03 9604 2451 or refer to the website www.lawadmissions.vic.gov.au. PLEASE READ THE INSTRUCTIONS IN THIS FORM CAREFUL LY Ensure you complete every question where applicable Your application cannot be accepted if you have not followed the instructions. All applications must be typed. You can save the document electronically, type it out, print and sign under declaration. Attach all the required documentation The form will indicate which documents you are required to attach to your application, according to your own particular circumstances. Please ensure you attach all the required documentation. Your application cannot be processed if any of your documentation is missing. All documents must be originals. We recommend that you take photocopies of ALL of your documents prior to lodgement as we not provide any copies. Sign your form in front of an authorised witness You must sign the statutory declaration at the end of the form, in the presence of an authorised witness. Fees on-line on the website www.lawadmissions.vic.gov.au. Payments acceptable are VISA or Master Card only. Any applicant who requires assistance with online payment contact the Victorian Legal Admissions Board. How to apply Applications are available on the Victorian Legal Admissions Board’s website www.lawadmissions.vic.gov.au Where to apply An application for a Compliance Certificate with the required documentation and photo identification must be made in person at: Victorian Legal Admissions Board Ground Floor, 451 Little Bourke Street, Melbourne VIC 3000 Telephone +613 9604 2451 Hours of Operations: Monday to Friday 9.30am - 1.00pm and 2.00pm - 4.00pm [email protected] www.lawadmissions.vic.gov.au Acceptable forms of photo identification To be eligible to apply for admission in Victoria, we must confirm your identity. Accordingly, when you present to the office of the Victorian Legal Admissions Board, you will need to provide original documents. One of these documents will be viewed by staff. Acceptable forms of photo identification are as follows: Current Australian or Foreign Passport, Australian Driver’s Licence and Tertiary Education ID Card. Checklist: (Tick if applicable) Application (Schedule 5) Photo Identification Disclosure statement (Schedule 8) Capacity Disclosure Statement (Schedule 8A) Two Character Statements (Schedule 9) Two Character Statements (Foreign)(Schedule 9A)

National Police Certificate Overseas Police Certificate Original IELTS Test Qualification Application Graduation Application Change of Name

Page 1 of 10

APPLICATION FOR A COMPLIANCE CERTIFICATE FOR ADMISSION AS A LAWYER (Schedule 5) Part A: Personal Details Q.1

Your Name

Title:

Mr

Mrs

 Ms

Other (please specify):

Given name/s: Surname: will be admitted as a lawyer in the name that is shown on your academic transcript. If you have changed N You your name and wish to be admitted in your new name, you should either: •

contact the issuer of your academic transcript to have it re-issued in your new name OR

•

Attach a certified copy of either i) your marriage certificate, or ii) your change of name certificate (issued by a Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages in any Australian state or territory). /

Q.2

Date of birth

Q.3

Contacts Residential Address

/

(dd/mm/yyyy)

Postcode

Email Home Work Mobile Q.4

Oath of Affirmation (Tick one box only)

Please consider the manner in which you take your oath or affirmation as we are unable to change your preference after you have filed your application. Swear the required oath

Bible

Torah

Holy Qur’an

Other

Make the required affirmation Q.5

Other Australian Jurisdictions (Tick one box only) I have not applied for admission in any other Australian jurisdiction I have applied for admission in

All documents provided by you to the Victorian Legal Admissions Board as part of your admission is subject to the Freedom of Information Act (VIC) 1982. As such, we strongly recommend that you take photocopies of all your documents as under the Act we may not be able to provide copies of your documents after they have been filed.

The Victorian Legal Admissions Board must give notice on its website www.lawadmissions.vic.gov.au of an application for admission and any person may object to the issue of a compliance certificate to a particular applicant.

Page 2 of 10

APPLICATION FOR A COMPLIANCE CERTIFICATE FOR ADMISSION AS A LAWYER

Part B: Academic Qualifications In the State of Victoria, eight universities have been approved to provide accredited law courses: Australian Catholic University Deakin University La Trobe University Monash University Q.6

RMIT University Swinburne University of Technology The University of Melbourne Victoria University

Did you obtain your academic qualification in law at an educational institution approved in Victoria?

No  Go to Q.7 Yes  Please enter the details of your qualifications below and go to Q.8 Name of educational institution Name of degree/or qualification Month and year completed must arrange for an original transcript of your academic record to be sent directly to the Victorian Legal N You Admissions Board by the educational institution. Q.7

Did you obtain your academic qualification in law at an educational institution approved in another Australian state or territory?

No  Yes  Please enter the details of your qualifications below and go to Q.8 Name of educational institution Name of degree/or qualification Month and year completed must arrange for an original transcript of your academic record to be sent directly to the Victorian Legal N You Admissions Board by the academic institution. Q.8

Did the final year of enrolment in your qualification fall within the five calendar years preceding the date of your application for admission?

Yes  No  Did you complete a Qualification Application (attach) must arrange for an original transcript of your academic record to be sent directly to the Victorian Legal N You Admissions Board by the academic institution. Q.9

Will you graduate prior to admission?

Yes  Go to Q.11 No  Did you complete a Graduation Application (attach) If you have not completed a Graduation application, contact the Victorian Legal Admissions Board. Q.10

Did you satisfy further academic requirements after having your overseas qualifications assessed?

No  Yes  Name of academic institution Page 3 of 10

APPLICATION FOR A COMPLIANCE CERTIFICATE FOR ADMISSION AS A LAWYER

Part C: Practical Legal Training There are two options for completing Practical Legal Training: 1. Practical Legal Training Course (a)

Completion of a PLT course at an approved PTL provider in Australia. In Victoria two providers have been approved, Leo Cussen Centre for Law and The College of Law.

(b)

Completion of a PLT course at an approved PTL provider whilst working as a graduate at a Law Firm.

2. Supervised Legal Training (a)

Completion of a full time 12-month period of supervised training.

PRACTICAL LEGAL TRAINING COURSE Q.11

Please indicate how you will meet your Practical Training Legal prerequisite (a)

Completion of a PLT Course at an approved PLT provider Name of practical legal training provider Date of Completion / estimated date of completion

(b)

Completion of a PLT Course at an approved PLT provider whilst working as a graduate at a law firm Name of Law Firm

Q.12

Did the final year in which you completed the practical legal training requirement fall within the five calendar years preceding the date of your application for admission?

Yes No  Did you complete a qualification application (attach) If you haven’t sought approval, contact the Victorian Legal Admissions Board. Q.13

Did you commence practical legal training whilst completing your academic qualifications?

No

Go to Q.15

Yes  Approval has been granted by the Victorian Legal Admissions Board. If you haven’t sought approval, contact the Victorian Legal Admissions Board. Go to Q.15

N

You must arrange for an original certificate of completion to be sent directly to the Victorian Legal Admissions Board by the academic institution.

SUPERVISED LEGAL TRAINING Where an applicant relies on Supervised Legal Training, they must attend the Victorian Legal Admissions Board with their application for a compliance certificate. Along with this they must file Schedule 6, Schedule 7 and a diary for viewing. Q.14

Have you completed your supervised legal training?

Yes  Date of Completion No  Contact the Victorian Legal Admissions Board.

Page 4 of 10

APPLICATION FOR A COMPLIANCE CERTIFICATE FOR ADMISSION AS A LAWYER

Part D: Student Conduct Report All applicants for admission must arrange for an original conduct report from each educational institution where they have undertaken: (i) an academic qualification required under Rule 5 Legal Profession Uniform Admission Rules 2015 (ii) practical legal training required under Rule 6 Legal Profession Uniform Admission Rules 2015 The report should disclose any incident of misconduct in respect of which the educational institution holds a record. The report must disclose academic and general misconduct and should not be limited to misconduct, which has been found proven as a result of formal proceedings. General misconduct includes but is not limited to offensive behaviour, property damage, sexual harassment, racial vilification or other breach of the rules of conduct of the educational institution. Matters which a report should disclose include circumstances where a student has received a warning, marks have been deducted, an allegation was made, or an investigation took place, even if the student was subsequently exonerated. Applicants should note that their individual duty of disclosure to the Victorian Legal Admissions Board is not limited to matters which appear on the Report. Q.15

Have you ever been the subject of any disciplinary action by an educational institution in relation to student conduct?

No  Arrange for a student conduct report Yes  Set out full details in Schedule 8 and arrange for a student conduct report.

N

You must arrange for an original conduct report to be sent directly to the Victorian Legal Admissions Board by the educational institutions.

Page 5 of 10

APPLICATION FOR A COMPLIANCE CERTIFICATE FOR ADMISSION AS A LAWYER

Part E: Police Report Every applicant for admission must attach an original National Police Certificate from Victoria Police to this application which shows whether or not you have any criminal history in Australia. This applies without exemption even if you have never lived in Australia. Go to the Victoria Police Website at www.police.vic.gov.au 1.

Click on “Our Services’ link on the left hand side of the page

2.

Click on “Police Record Checks” link on the left hand side of the page

3.

Scroll to the bottom of the page and click on the “Online Application Form for the National Police Certificate”

4.

In Section A (Type of Check Required) click the “National Name Check’” box

5.

In Section E (Purpose of Check), Choose in Option 1 “Other”

6.

“Other” type the words “Legal Admission”

Your National Police Certificate must: •

be dated no earlier than 6 months prior to the date your application is received

•

include all previous names by which you have been know

•

be a type of certificate that includes spent convictions

If you have any questions regarding your eligibility to obtain a Report from the Victorian Police, please contact the Victorian Legal Admissions Board to discuss the matter before making an application.

Q.16

Have you ever been found guilty of a criminal offence, including spent offence, in Australia or a foreign country?

Yes  Set out full details in Schedule 8 and attach police report No  Attach police report

If you have ever lived in a foreign jurisdiction for more than two years over the age of 18, you may be asked to provide a police report from each of these jurisdictions.

Q.17

Have you ever lived in a foreign jurisdiction for more than two years over the age of 18.

No  Go to Q.18 Yes  List all of the countries that you have resided in

Page 6 of 10

Years of Residence

APPLICATION FOR A COMPLIANCE CERTIFICATE FOR ADMISSION AS A LAWYER

Part F: English Language Proficiency Each Admitting Authority requires any applicant for admission to the legal profession to demonstrate a high level of English proficiency in writing, speaking, reading and listening. Those applicants who have been prescribed the International English Language Testing System (IELTS) must meet minimum scores in each field of the academic module of IELTS two years immediately proceeding an applicant’s application for admission.

Q.18

Writing

8.0

Speaking

7.5

Reading

7.0

Listening

7.0

Have you been prescribed the IELTS test?

Yes  Go to Q.19 No  Go to Q.20 Q.19

Have you attached an IELTS Academic Test Report

Yes No  You must attach your IELTS Academic Test Report to proceed with your application.

Certificate of Good Standing Q.20

Have you ever been admitted in a foreign jurisdiction?

No Yes  You must provide an original certificate of good standing to be sent directly to the Victorian Legal Admissions Board from all relevant professional bodies in any jurisdiction that you have been admitted to. The certificate of good standing must state that you are in good standing and are not subject to any current or pending disciplinary matters.

Page 7 of 10

APPLICATION FOR A COMPLIANCE CERTIFICATE FOR ADMISSION AS A LAWYER

Part G: Suitability for admission disclose the details of any matter(s) which: N You must a reasonable applicant would consider that the Victorian Legal Admissions Board might regard as not being favourable to you when considering whether you are currently of good fame and character and a fit and proper person to be admitted to the Australian legal profession.

Before completing Q.21 you must read “Disclosure Guidelines for Applicants for Admission to the Legal Profession” Q.21

Have you read the Disclosure Guidelines?

Yes No  Read the Disclosure Guidelines Q.22

Do you have anything to disclose in accordance with the Disclosure Guidelines (except a disclosure as to capacity)?

Yes Provide Disclosure Statement (Schedule 8) with this application No  I have read and understood the Disclosure Guidelines for Applicants for Admission to the Legal Profession. I further state that I am and always have been of good fame and character. I am not aware of any matter or circumstance that might affect my suitability to be admitted as an Australian lawyer and officer of the Court.

N WARNING: Attempts to mislead may have serious consequences A lack of candour or any attempt to mislead the Victorian Legal Admissions Board may result in your application being deferred or refused. If a matter is not disclosed at the time you apply for admission but subsequently comes to light it may lead to your name being struck off the Roll of Practitioners. You have an ongoing obligation of disclosure to the Board whilst your application is in progress. If any relevant matter occurs subsequent to signing your application, you must notify the Board in writing in a statutory declaration. Rule 10 (1) of the Legal Profession Uniform Admission Rules 2015 under the Legal Profession Uniform Law requires the Victorian Legal Admissions Board to have regard, when deciding whether to grant a Compliance Certificate, to whether the person is currently unable satisfactorily to carry out the inherent requirements of practice as an Australian legal practitioner. A mental health condition may be relevant to consideration of this question and hence may need to be disclosed to the Victorian Legal Admissions Board. If you wish to make disclosure relating to capacity, provide a Capacity Disclosure Statement (Schedule 8A). Q.23

Are you making a disclosure relating to capacity?

No Yes  Provide Capacity Disclosure Statement (Schedule 8A) with this application.

Page 8 of 10

APPLICATION FOR A COMPLIANCE CERTIFICATE FOR ADMISSION AS A LAWYER

Part H: Character Statements All applicants must provide two character statements in the form of Schedule 9 or Schedule 9A (foreign) For applicants who have never been admitted in a foreign jurisdiction

You must provide two character statements (Schedule 9) with your application. N Each character statement must: •

be made by a person who is not related to you by blood, marriage or as a domestic partner

•

be made by a person who has known you for a least 2 years

•

include a statement to the effect that the referee has read any disclosure statement you have made in connection with your application

•

be made by statutory declaration, in the presence of an authorised witness

OR For applicants who are or who have been a legal practitioner in a foreign jurisdiction

must provide two character statements (Schedule 9A) with your application N You Each character statement must:

N

•

be made by a person with whom you have been associated in legal practice in that jurisdiction

•

be made by a person who is not related to you by blood, marriage or as a domestic partner

•

be made by a person who has known you for a least 2 years

•

include a statement to the effect that the referee has read any disclosure statement you have made in connection with your application

•

be made by statutory declaration, in the presence of an authorised witness

A person who supplies a character statement need not be aware of any disclosure about the applicant’s capacity. (Schedule 8A)

Page 9 of 10

APPLICATION FOR A COMPLIANCE CERTIFICATE FOR ADMISSION AS A LAWYER

Part I: Declaration and Consent STATUTORY DECLARATION You must sign this declaration and consent in the presence of an authorised witness as set out in s107A of the Evidence (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1958. I, Given Names

Surname

of Residential Address

Occupation

do solemnly and sincerely declare that:a. my answers to all questions on this form are true and complete and my documents are accurate and authentic b. I consent to the Victorian Legal Admissions B...