What if I have already completed a law degree overseas and have already had experience working as a lawyer in another country?

If you wish to be admitted as a lawyer in New South Wales, you will need to have your overseas academic qualifications and your practical training experience formally assessed in accordance with the Board's Rules and the Uniform Principles for Assessing Qualifications of Overseas Applicants for Admission.

1.Academic assessment (apply using form 16)

To have your legal qualifications formally assessed you will need to lodge form 16 - Application for Academic Exemption and pay the prescribed fee.

The Academic Exemptions Sub-Committee of the Legal Profession Admission Board is responsible for making the decision as to how many subjects you would need to undertake before you satisfy all the academic requirements for admission. Given this is a Sub-Committee determination, we cannot give you any advice of what exemptions may or may not be granted in advance of any application for exemption.

2. Practical legal training (PLT) assessment (apply using form 17)

To have your practical legal training experience formally assessed you will need to lodge form 17 - Application for Practical legal training exemption and pay the prescribed fee.

If you have been admitted and have worked in a foreign jurisdiction , exemption from parts of the practical training aspect may be possible. Before you consider applying for PLT exemption you must first check the eligibility requirements of the Uniform Principles for Assessing Qualifications of Overseas Applicants for Admission.

You may obtain further information including the Board's guidelines on assessing academic qualifications and application forms from our website (under Assessment of Overseas Qualifications).

Please click on the following link for current methods of payment accepted by the Board: Method of Payment

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What documents do I send to prove I have a law degree?

Please see forms 16 and 17 for a list of the documents you are required to send to the Legal Profession Admission Board in support of your application. You must send original documents or copies certified by a notary public. Copies certified by a Justice of the Peace or Solicitor are not acceptable. All forms are accessible from the forms and fees page on our website.

I have submitted form 16 and received feedback from the Sub-Committee on what academic subjects I need to undertake. How do I complete the remaining subjects?

If you are intending on living in Australia, you may complete the remaining subjects with the Legal Profession Admission Board. You must register as a student-at-law and enrol in the subjects you have been instructed to complete by the Sub-Committee. For more information, please see our website and complete form 1.

If you are intending on completing these subjects externally, you may be able to complete these subjects via an online correspondence course with an alternate institution provided the subjects you wish to take meet the sub-committees requirements. Please see the second schedule of the Legal Profession Admission Rules 2005 for New South Wales accredited law schools. You should contact these law schools directly for more information about their courses.

One you have completed the remaining subjects you will then be required to lodge a further application for academic exemption using form 16 together with a copy of the Board's letter and prescribed application fee. Once determined the board can then provide a final assessment letter.

Alternatively, you can seek a prospective assessment to determine whether the subjects you are proposing to take meet the sub-committees requirements. This can be done prior to enrolment by lodging form 16 together with the course outlines and content for each of the courses together with the prescribed fee.

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I have submitted form 17 and received feedback from the Sub-Committee on what practical training requirements I need to undertake. How do I complete my practical training?

Practical legal training courses are conducted by any of the institutions listed in the fourth schedule of the Legal Profession Admission Rules 2005. Please contact these institutions directly for more information about their courses.

I have now completed all academic and practical training requirements, am I eligible for admission?
Yes. Once all academic and practical training requirements have been completed pursuant to rules 95 and 96 of the Legal Profession Admission Rules 2005, you may make application to the Board for admission as a lawyer.

If you have been admitted in another jurisdiction, you should apply for admission using forms 11 and 3A. If you have not been admitted in another jurisdiction, you should apply for admission using forms 10 and 3.

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What if I have completed a law degree overseas but have not been admitted to practice law in my current jurisdiction?
You will need to have your academic legal qualification formally assessed.

To have your legal qualifications formally assessed you will need to lodge form 16 - Application for Academic Exemption and pay the prescribed fee. The Academic Exemptions Sub-Committee of the Legal Profession Admission Board is responsible for making the decision as to how many subjects you would need to undertake before you satisfy all the academic requirements for admission. Given this is a Sub-Committee determination, we cannot give you any advice of what exemptions may or may not be granted in advance of any application for exemption.

If you are intending on living in Australia, you may complete these subjects with the Legal Profession Admission Board. You must register as a student-at-law and enrol in the subjects you have been instructed to complete. For more information, please see our website and complete form 1.
http://infolink/lawlink/lpab/ll_lpab.nsf/pages/lpab_student_apply

If you are intending on completing these subjects from your home town, you may be able to complete these subjects via an online correspondence course. Please see the second schedule of the Legal Profession Admission Rules 2005 for New South Wales accredited law schools. You should contact these law schools directly for more information about their courses.

Once you have completed the remaining subjects you will then be required to lodge a further application for academic exemption using form 16 together with a copy of the Board's letter and prescribed application fee. Once determined the board can then provide a final assessment letter.

Alternatively, you can seek a prospective assessment to determine whether the subjects you are proposing to take meet the sub-committees requirements. This can be done prior to enrolment by lodging form 16 together with the course outlines and content for each of the courses together with the prescribed fee.

You must then complete a practical legal training course as listed in the fourth schedule of the Legal Profession Admission Rules 2005