Starting a law firm in South Australia
The Law Society of South Australia issues the certificate under the Legal Practitioners Act 1981, its Law Claims scheme insures every practitioner at a fixed contribution, and notice goes in within a month after starting. Here are the steps in order and what each costs in 2026-27.
Category A may receive trust money and needs a trust account; Category B does not. Notice of a new unincorporated practice goes to the Supreme Court and the Society on Form H within one month after you start; a company lodges Form G before.
The steps in South Australia
1. Finish two years of supervised practice
Rule 11 of the LPEAC Rules 2018 requires at least two years full time, at 38 hours a week and pro rata part time, with volunteer work counting for up to three months. Apply to the Board of Examiners on its forms to lift the restriction. Rule 12(3) then allows a Category A or B certificate.
2. Complete an accredited law practice management course
Required since 1 April 2021 for every current and prospective Category A and B holder, evidenced on Form X. The Law Society's own course covers eight modules over about 25 contact hours, including trust accounting, risk, finance and staff, and its next intake starts 2 February 2027 at $1,800 for members or $2,000 for non-members. The Society's list of other accredited providers sits behind its member login.
3. Join the Professional Indemnity Insurance Scheme
Section 52 of the Act establishes the Society's scheme and section 19 bars a certificate without it; practising uninsured suspends the certificate automatically, and a practitioner cannot buy cover elsewhere instead. Law Claims administers it. For 2026-27 the contribution is $2,730 plus GST a practitioner and a $600 plus GST administration fee, which for a sole practitioner at 100% comes to $3,663 including GST. A sole practitioner with fee income under $50,000 can apply on Form E for a 20% reduction, and under $100,000 for 50%. A practice starting after 1 January pays half the contribution. Cover is $2 million a claim.
4. Apply for a Category A or B certificate
Category A is a principal who may receive and manage trust money; Category B is a principal who does not. The Society processes applications within about five business days. For 2026-27 the fee is $770 plus a $242 levy, $1,012 in total, or $432 plus $121 for a certificate of six months or less. An affidavit is needed if more than a month has passed since admission or your last certificate.
5. Give notice within a month after you start
Regulation 4 of the Legal Practitioners Regulations 2014 requires a practitioner to notify the Supreme Court and the Society in writing within one month of commencing practice, and within one month of opening a new place of business. The Society's form is Form H, Notice of Establishing a New Practice, Not Incorporated. An incorporated legal practice instead lodges Form G before it starts, under Schedule 1 clause 4 of the Act, with a practice profile, an ASIC search and a $33.50 fee; the notice is complete only when the fee is paid.
6. Set up trust money for Category A, and lodge the statement either way
A Category A practitioner must establish a general trust account with an approved bank. Give the Society notice on Form T within 14 days of opening, notify the signatories, and appoint an external examiner who is a designated person on Form J within two months. The examination year ends 30 June with the report due by 31 October. The Combined Trust Account deposit is calculated for the periods ending 31 May and 30 November and paid, or a notice of withholding lodged, by 14 June and 14 December. Every practice, Category B included, lodges the online Statement Regarding Receipt or Holding of Trust Money by 31 August; Statement A, for no account and no money, means no external examination.
What it costs in 2026-27
The regulatory costs before rent, software and marketing.
| Item | Amount | Source, read 23 October 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| Practising certificate, Category A or B | $770 fee plus $242 levy, $1,012 | Law Society of SA, 2026-27, published in the Government Gazette |
| Professional indemnity insurance, sole practitioner | $2,730 plus GST, plus $600 plus GST administration: $3,663 including GST | Law Claims scheme, 2026-27 |
| Low income sole practitioner reduction | 20% off the contribution under $50,000 fee income, 50% under $100,000 | Law Claims scheme, on Form E |
| Law practice management course | $1,800 for members, $2,000 for non-members | Law Society of SA, February 2027 intake |
| Incorporated legal practice notice | $33.50 | Law Society of SA, Form G |
As published on 23 October 2026. The Society's pages do not state whether the certificate fee, the levy or the course fee include GST. The $242 levy is published with the fee; the Society's page does not say what it funds.
If the practice will hold client money
A Category A certificate requires a trust account. Notify the Law Society within 14 days of opening, appoint an external examiner within two months, and make Combined Trust Account deposits by 14 June and 14 December. Every practice, with or without trust money, lodges the annual trust money statement by 31 August.
The part the regulator does not cover
The Law Society's course has a module on technology and one on marketing, and Form H takes the practice's address. The calls a new Adelaide practice cannot answer in its first months are nobody's module. Our phone and intake checklist for a new law firm covers the number, who answers when you are in court, the questions the first call has to capture, and where the record of each call goes. EzyBiz LEX was built for a practice at this stage: an Australian business number in an app on the phone you already carry,
Questions about starting a law firm in South Australia
After, for a sole practitioner or partnership: regulation 4 gives one month from commencing practice to notify the Supreme Court and the Society in writing, on Form H. A company gives notice on Form G before it starts. Either way the certificate and the Law Claims cover must be in place before the first client.
Yes, unlike the fee-income percentages in the eastern states. Every practitioner pays the same contribution, $2,730 plus GST in 2026-27, and the practice pays one $600 plus GST administration fee. The only reductions are for sole practitioners with fee income under $100,000, barristers and restricted certificate holders in their first two years.
Only for Category A. A Category B certificate is a principal who does not receive trust money and needs no trust account. Both categories lodge the annual Statement Regarding Receipt or Holding of Trust Money by 31 August, and a Category B practitioner lodges Statement A.
Section 16 of the Act says the Supreme Court issues them; in practice the Law Society of South Australia's Legal Practitioners Registry processes and issues them and the Society's page says so. The Board of Examiners decides eligibility for Category A and B under the LPEAC Rules.
Primary sources and further reading
Every section reference and figure in this guide traces to one of these. They are listed so you can check the guide rather than take its word for it.
- Practising certificates, Law Society of South Australia. Categories, fees, supervised practice and the course requirement.
- Law Practice Management Course, Law Society of South Australia. The fee and the February 2027 intake.
- Law Claims, Law Society of South Australia. The scheme, the 2026-27 contribution and the reductions.
- Form G, notice of intention to provide legal services by an incorporated legal practice, Law Society of South Australia.
- Forms, Law Society of South Australia. Forms H, T, J and X.
- Legal Practitioners Regulations 2014, South Australian legislation. Regulations 4, 33 and 49.
- Legal Practitioners Act 1981, South Australian legislation.
- Important dates for legal practitioners, Law Society of South Australia. The 31 August statement, the 31 October report and the Combined Trust Account dates.
- Guidance notes, Statement Regarding the Receipt or Holding of Trust Money, Law Society of South Australia.
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