Estate Agents Act 1980

A person is not qualified to act as an auditor under section 64, 64A or 64B in respect of an estate agent—

unless he or she is an approved auditor;

if he or she is, or at any time within 2 years before the last day of the period in respect of which the audit is to be made, has been, an employee or partner of the agent, or of any partner of the agent, whose accounts of trust money are to be audited.

A person shall not audit the accounts of an estate agent—

if he is an employee or partner of that estate agent;

if he is an employee of any other estate agent actually in practice;

if he is himself an estate agent carrying on business as such;

if he is in any way engaged in keeping or entering up the trust account records of an estate agent or has those records in his custody or control; or

in the case of an estate agent being a corporation, if he is a member, director, officer or employee of the corporation.

A firm shall not be qualified to act as auditor under section 64, 64A or 64B unless it is approved by the Director and—

at least one member of the firm is ordinarily resident in a State or Territory of the Commonwealth;

all the members of the firm ordinarily so resident are approved auditors; and

no member of the firm is or at any time within two years before the last day of the period in respect of which the audit is to be made has been—

a partner or employee of the estate agent or of any partner of the estate agent; or

in the case of an estate agent being a corporation, an officer or employee of the corporation—

The appointment of a firm as auditor shall be taken to be the appointment of all persons who are members of the firm, whether resident in a State or Territory of the Commonwealth or not, at the date of the appointment.

When a firm has been appointed as auditor and the members constituting the firm change by reason of the death, retirement or withdrawal of a member or by reason of the admission of a new member, the firm as newly constituted shall, if it is not disqualified from acting as auditor by virtue of subsection (3), be deemed to be appointed under section 64, 64A or 64B as auditor of the estate agent and the appointment shall be taken to be the appointment of all persons who are members of the firm as newly constituted.

A report made or given by a firm appointed as auditor under section 64, 64A or 64B shall be signed in the firm's name and in his or her own name by a member of the firm who is an approved auditor.

Subject to the provisions of this section the auditor by whom the audit of and reports on an estate agent's accounts are to be made shall be selected by the agent.

The fees payable by an estate agent to an auditor for an audit under this section shall be such as are agreed on between the agent and the auditor.

The Director, if in his or her opinion just cause exists for doing so, may vary or revoke any approval permission or authority granted or given by the Director under this section.

A person who ceases to be qualified to audit accounts of trust money must immediately cease auditing any accounts of trust money under this Act.

Any audit of an account of trust money purportedly carried out under section 64, 64A or 64B by a person who is not a qualified auditor is not a valid audit for the purposes of section 64, 64A or 64B.