Legal Profession Act 2006

(1) Disclosure under section 303 or 304(1) is not required to be made in any of the following circumstances:

(a) if the total legal costs in the matter, excluding disbursements, are not likely to exceed $1 500 (exclusive of GST) or the amount prescribed by the regulations (whichever is higher);

(i) the client has received one or more disclosures under section 303 or 304(1) from the law practice in the previous 12 months; and

(ii) the client has agreed in writing to waive the right to disclosure; and

(iii) a principal of the law practice decides on reasonable grounds that, having regard to the nature of the previous disclosures and the relevant circumstances, the further disclosure is not warranted;

(ii) a public company, a subsidiary of a public company, a large proprietary company, a foreign company, a subsidiary of a foreign company or a registered Australian body (each within the meaning of the Corporations Act); or

(iii) a financial services licensee (within the meaning of that Act); or

(iv) a liquidator, administrator or receiver (as respectively referred to in that Act); or

(v) a partnership that carries on the business of providing professional services if the partnership consists of more than 20 members or if the partnership would be a large proprietary company (within the meaning of that Act) if it were a company; or

(vi) a proprietary company (within the meaning of that Act) formed for carrying out a joint venture, if any shareholder of the company is a person to whom disclosure of costs is not required; or

(vii) unincorporated group of participants in a joint venture, if any member of the group is a person to whom disclosure of costs is not required and if any other members of the group who are not such persons have indicated that they waive their right to disclosure; or

(viii) a local government council constituted under a law of a jurisdiction or the Commonwealth; or

(ix) a minister of the Crown in right of a jurisdiction or the Commonwealth acting in his or her capacity as such, or a government department or public authority of a jurisdiction or the Commonwealth;

(d) if the legal costs or the basis on which they will be calculated have or has been agreed as a result of a tender process;

(e) if the client will not be required to pay the legal costs or they will not otherwise be recovered by the law practice, including, for example, if the law practice acts in the matter on a pro bono basis;

(2) Despite subsection (1)(a), if a law practice becomes aware that the total legal costs are likely to exceed $1 500 (exclusive of GST) or the amount prescribed by the regulations (whichever is higher), the law practice must disclose the matters in section 303 or 304 to the client as soon as practicable.

(3) A law practice must ensure a written record of a principal's decision that further disclosure is not warranted as mentioned in subsection (1)(b) is made and kept with the files relating to the matter concerned.

(4) The reaching of a decision referred to in subsection (3) otherwise than on reasonable grounds is capable of constituting unsatisfactory professional conduct or professional misconduct on the part of the principal.

(5) Nothing in this section affects or takes away from any client's right:

(b) to obtain reasonable information from the law practice in relation to any of the matters specified in section 303; or

(c) to negotiate a costs agreement with a law practice and to obtain a bill from the law practice.