Issue 2
Should consumer disputes be dealt with in the same system as disciplinary matters?

Issue 3
How can the needs of consumers be better addressed in the current system?

Issue 4
Are the current definitions of unsatisfactory professional conduct and professional misconduct satisfactory?

Issue 5
Should there be a time limit for making complaints?

Issue 6
If there should be a time limit, should it apply to all complaints, including complaints initiated by the Councils and the LSC?

Issue 7
If there should be a time limit, how long should it be?

Issue 8
If there should be a time limit, should time start to run from the date that the conduct allegedly occurred or the date that the complainant became aware of it?

Issue 9
How should complaints against bodies other than individual practitioners (eg firms or incorporated firms) be dealt with?

Issue 10
Should the LSC be permitted to refer to a Council any conduct issues that require investigation following mediation of a consumer dispute?

Issue 11
Should the informal arrangement in place for the transfer of a complaint to a Council at any time by consent be given a statutory basis under Part 10?

Issue 12
Should s 151 be amended to provide that independent investigators should report to the LSC, and that decisions under s 155 in relation to such complaints should be made by the LSC?

Issue 13
Should the procedural requirements in Part 10 for the treatment of additional complaints be modified in response to the decision of the High Court in Barwick v Law Society of NSW? If so, how?

Issue 14
Should the LSC and the Councils be able to institute Tribunal proceedings other than by conducting an investigation into a complaint? If so, in what circumstances should this be permitted?

Issue 15
Should the exception to client legal privilege in s 171S be extended? If so, how?

Issue 16
What should be required by Part 10 in order to clarify the requirement of procedural fairness to the practitioner and the complainant in respect of a decision under s 155?

Issue 17
How extensive should the notice requirements of s 171J be?

Issue 18
Are the powers of the LSC and Councils to compel practitioners to co-operate with investigations adequate? If not, what additional powers should the LSC and Councils have?

Issue 19
Are the sanctions for failure to respond to a s 152 notice adequate? If not, what additional sanctions should apply?

Issue 20
Should the service requirements under s 152 be amended?

Issue 21
Should complainants be entitled to a review of a decision to transfer a complaint from a Council to the LSC? If so, who should conduct the review?

Issue 22
Should the Tribunal be given power to cure any non-compliance with the provisions of Part 10?

Issue 23
Should Part 10 be amended to provide for waiver of the procedural fairness requirements?

Issue 24
Should Part 10 be amended to include a provision validating Tribunal proceedings regardless of procedural defects?

Issue 25
Should the right to a review of Council decisions be restricted in any way? If so, how?

Issue 26
Should Part 10 of the Legal Profession Act 1987 (NSW) prescribe a test for referral of complaints to the Tribunal? If so, is the current “reasonable likelihood” test appropriate? If not, what should the test for referral to the Tribunal be?

Issue 27
Should the LSC and Councils be given the power to enter enforceable undertakings with practitioners in relation to complaints?

Issue 28
Should the LSC be given a power to order practitioners to pay compensation to complainants? If so, should there be a statutory maximum amount? If so, what should it be? What other restrictions on such a power would be appropriate?

Issue 29
Should the LSC and Councils be given the power to impose reprimands on practitioners without their consent? If so, in what circumstances?

Issue 30
Should the time limit for costs assessment apply to matters referred to costs assessors by the LSC or Councils?

Issue 31
Should the power of the LSC to refer complaints to a costs assessor also apply when the LSC is conducting a review of a complaint initially dealt with by a Council?

Issue 32
Should the LSC be given a power to compel the parties to a complaint to attend a conciliation conference?

Issue 33
Are the current practice rules for proceedings before the Tribunal adequate?

Issue 34
Should there be a means of expeditiously listing and disposing of less complex cases before the Tribunal?

Issue 35
Should it be possible to remove a practitioner from the roll by consent?

Issue 36
Should the rules of evidence apply to all Tribunal proceedings?

Issue 37
Should any hearings of the Tribunal be conducted in the absence of the public?

Issue 38
In what circumstances should the names of parties and witnesses to proceedings be disclosed to the public?

Issue 39
Should the Tribunal be given the power to make declaratory orders as to whether particular conduct breaches relevant standards?

Issue 40
Should the current provisions relating to costs before the Tribunal be altered in any way?

Issue 41
What powers should the Tribunal have in relation to compensation?

Issue 42
Who should be able to apply to the Tribunal for compensation?

Issue 43
Should the Supreme Court be able to hear appeals on the merits of a decision of the Tribunal and, if so, under what circumstances?

Issue 44
Is the appeals process from decisions of the Tribunal adequate?