Legal Profession Act 2007

This section applies if a complaint is received by the commissioner more than 3 years after the conduct happened that is the subject of the complaint, including conduct that happened before the commencement of this section.

The commissioner may—

refer the complaint to mediation; or

dismiss the complaint unless the commissioner decides that—

it is just and fair to deal with the complaint having regard to the extent of, and reasons for, the delay; or

the complaint involves conduct of the following type and it is in the public interest to deal with the complaint—

conduct of an Australian legal practitioner that the commissioner considers may be professional misconduct;

conduct of a law practice employee that the commissioner considers may be misconduct of the employee in relation to the relevant practice.

If the commissioner dismisses the complaint, the commissioner must give an information notice to the complainant about the decision.

For working out whether it is more than 3 years since conduct that is the subject of the complaint happened, the commissioner must calculate from the last day that the conduct happened.

This section does not limit the commissioner’s power to dismiss a complaint under section 432.

In this section—