PRESIDENT'S REPORT
Rebecca Lee President, The Law Society of Western Australia
Welcome to the April edition of Brief. On behalf of the Law Society, I warmly thank our CPD Chairs and Speakers for generously giving their time and valued expertise during the 2021/2022 CPD year, which concluded on 31 March. Our thanks also extend to our delegates for actively participating and engaging in our CPD programmes. Due to COVID-19 restrictions, many of our CPD sessions were presented via Zoom and webinar, but that didn’t seem to lessen either the value of the engagement or the positivity of the feedback. With the generosity of the Western Australian legal profession providing their time and knowledge, the Law Society is in a strong position to present excellent content across the four competency areas this new CPD year. We look forward to you joining us again at our next CPD programme event.
Submissions Since the last Advocacy Column in Brief, the Law Society has made submissions on: Tendency and coincidence evidence in Western Australia Review of the Contentious Business Determinations Inquiry into the next statutory review of the Commercial Tenancy (Retail Shops) Agreements Act 1985 Statutory Review of the Mental Health Act Law Council of Australia – Call to Parties Document Air Conditioning in Roebourne Prison The Law Society has also progressed updating the Joint Form of General Conditions which will be released in coming months. This period has also resulted in some positive activity in the WA Parliament, with two long awaited and highly anticipated pieces of legislation progressing through the Legislative Assembly and Legislative Council:
Statutory Legacy On Wednesday, 23 March 2022, the Administration Amendment Bill 2021 (WA) finally passed through State Parliament. The Law Society has long advocated for this overhaul of the statutory legacy scheme, regarding these important and long overdue legislative changes in WA that affect people who die without a valid will — which is nearly half of our community.
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The updated scheme increases the payment to a surviving spouse or partner from $50,000 to $472,000 if the deceased dies leaving direct descendants, such as children or grandchildren. If the deceased dies leaving a surviving spouse or partner but no direct descendants, the amount is increased from $75,000 to $705,000. A surviving partner includes a de-facto partner or same-sex partner. This updated legislation brings WA into line with other Australian jurisdictions, whose legacies were updated decades ago.
committees and to be part of the drive to a more equitable future for all members of the legal profession.
Legal Profession Uniform Law
Law Week celebrates the good work performed by lawyers which benefits the wider community. Throughout WA you will find lawyers using their skills to help others in a wide range of ways, and the Law Society seeks to showcase positive stories and highlight the benefits of seeking legal representation to the community.
On 5 April 2022, the Uniform Law Application Bills finally passed the WA Parliament, another occasion years in the making. The passage of amendments through both the Legislative Council and Legislative Assembly means that Western Australia will now join New South Wales and Victoria as a Uniform Law jurisdiction. It is anticipated the scheme will become operational from 1 July 2022, following further consultation with stakeholders. Uniform Law is designed to harmonise regulation of the legal profession, cut red tape and create a single system to govern legal practice. A single, largely uniform set of professional conduct rules providing interjurisdictional consistency will benefit the legal profession and regulators, especially with national and international firms now being commonplace. The Law Society has also developed resources to assist the Western Australian legal profession in preparing for the changes brought about by the Uniform Law. The Law Society has already run a series of CPD Seminars on Uniform Law, and will continue to host seminars on topical Uniform Law matters such as Costs Disclosure, Complaints and Conduct Rules. Visit the CPD Seminars section of the Law Society website for more information.
International Women’s Day International Women’s Day marks a call to action for accelerating gender parity, and on 2 March 2022 representatives from the Asian Australian Lawyers Association, the Society of African Australian Lawyers, Pride in Law, the Society of Jewish Jurists and Lawyers, and Midlas came together for an evening of full of storytelling and conversations. The panel was organised by the Joint Law Society/Women Lawyers of WA committee. The overarching question was, what does it mean to truly embrace diversity and foster a profession where everyone can feel that they belong? As President, it was my pleasure to Chair, and my hope is that we may all be given the space to be discovered for who we truly are. The Society is proud to reflect inclusion and diversity throughout its management and
Law Week 2022 Every year Law Week brings an opportunity to connect the legal profession and the broader community to build a shared understanding of the law. This year’s programme again promises to be an exciting one, with events for both the profession and the community from Monday, 16 May to Friday, 20 May – Mark your Diaries!
I invite you to save the date for two very special events that open and close Law Week 2022. On Monday, 16 May, the President of the Law Society of England and Wales, I. Stephanie Boyce will share her thoughts on leadership and access to justice in a special CPD forum via webinar. To close Law Week, the Law Society is hosting a Long Table Lunch Live at The Westin on Friday, 20 May starting at 12.00pm – make sure you don’t miss out! Please visit lawsocietywa.asn.au/lawweek/#law-week-events for details of the major events taking place.
Country Lawyers CPD Day Country lawyers, more than most, understand the isolating impact of distance that make it difficult to get together as a profession, to share collegiality and support, and to learn from each other through tailored Continuing Professional Development initiatives. I encourage country practitioners to save the date for our Law Week Special CPD Day for Rural, Regional and Remote Legal Practitioners on Friday, 20 May 2022. Please click here for information. This CPD Day is FREE to Law Society Country Members with CPD Freedom and is heavily discounted for Country Members and Non-member Country Practitioners. (Conditions apply.)
Happy Easter Balancing work and life can be challenging, and I would like to remind you that your membership of the Law Society provides complimentary access to LawCare WA, a valuable, free, and confidential, support programme to assist you. Visit lawsocietywa. asn.au/lawcarewa for more information and to access these resources. Finally, with the long weekend upon us, I wish you a happy, healthy and safe Easter break.
