LEGAL PRACTICE MANAGEMENT COURSE QLD
ARE YOU A LAWYER WHO'S READY TO LEAD?
If you're applying for a Principal Practising Certificate in Queensland, you'll need to demonstrate you have the specialised knowledge and skills to run a legal practice.
The College of Law's Legal Practice Management Course (LPMC QLD) will teach you the practical capabilities every principal needs – from financial management to professional ethics.
You’ll walk away with the business, financial and leadership skills required to run a compliant and sustainable law practice.
Ready to dive in?
WHY QUEENSLAND LAWYERS CHOOSE THE COLLEGE OF LAW
The College has been helping Queensland lawyers prepare for principal practice for over 25 years.
Recognised by the Queensland Law Society, our LPMC combines practical learning with structured assessment to help you demonstrate the capabilities of a principal lawyer.
WHAT YOU NEED TO BECOME A PRINCIPAL IN QUEENSLAND
The requirements for becoming a principal vary across Australia.
In Queensland, you need a Principal Practising Certificate issued by the Queensland Law Society to lead a law practice.
Before you can apply, you'll need to demonstrate the practical competencies expected of a principal lawyer by:
- Completing a trust accounting pre-workshop
- Attending three days of practical workshops with experienced legal practitioners
- Successfully completing assessments in trust accounting, ethics, business planning and risk management
The College of Law guides you through each step, helping you build the evidence you need to support your application and the confidence you need to lead.
HOW THE LPMC QLD PREPARES YOU FOR PRINCIPAL PRACTICE
The College of Law’s LPMC QLD is specifically designed to meet the Principal Practising Certificate requirements. But it also prepares you for the daily challenges you’ll face as a principal.
You’ll gain a thorough understanding of how to run a law firm through realistic scenarios, workshops and assessments – and produce business and risk management plans you can use right away.
| QLD PRINCIPAL PRACTICE CERTIFICATE REQUIREMENT | HOW THE COLLEGE'S LPMC HELPS YOU MEET IT |
|---|---|
| Demonstrate a working knowledge of trust accounting |
You’ll complete a trust accounting workshop before applying your knowledge in a practical assessment. |
| Exercise ethical and professional judgement |
You’ll work through realistic ethics scenarios with experienced practitioners, discussing supervision failures, conflicts of interest, competing duties and more. |
| Show commercial capability across finances, operations and business planning |
You’ll receive structured guidance on financial management, pricing structures and operational models. Plus, you’ll create a business plan to use as a foundation for your own practice or leadership role. |
| Demonstrate effective risk management |
You’ll discover practical frameworks for identifying and managing risk across a legal practice – and create a structured risk management plan. |
"The course effectively presented the practical, ethical and legal aspects of managing a law practice, which I now draw on frequently."
Rebecca Ogge, Principal Lawyer, Ogge Law, LPMC Alumni
"The course helped me understand what goes on behind the scenes of a law firm."
Carla Vinciullo, Director, Kennedy Vinciullo, LPMC Alumni
You'll leave with a business plan that translates to a plan of action - one you can put in place as soon as you're done.
Philip Coates, Principal, Coates Davey Solicitors, QLD, LPMC Alumni
COURSE STRUCTURE
You’ll be able to complete the LPMC QLD alongside practice. Your learning journey is divided into three stages.
Once you've successfully completed these three steps, you'll receive the documentation you need to apply for a Principal Practising Certificate.
First, you'll complete a dedicated trust accounting workshop tailored to Queensland legal practice. This will cover:
- How trust accounts are set up
- How transactions are recorded
- How transactions are reconciled
You must complete this workshop before progressing to the next step.
Next, you'll work through realistic scenarios with experienced Queensland practitioners, applying your legal, commercial and leadership skills to the decisions principals face every day.
Following the workshop, you'll complete four assessments:
- Trust accounting
- Ethics
- Business planning (where you’ll create a business plan)
- Risk management (where you’ll create a risk management plan)
You'll need to pass each assessment before you can apply for a Principal Practising Certificate.
LEARN FROM EXPERIENCED QUEENSLAND PRACTITIONERS
The LPMC QLD is delivered by leading practitioners who understand the realities of running a legal practice in Queensland.
Drawing on their experience across governance, compliance and professional responsibility, they'll share practical insights you can apply immediately in your own career.
Malcom Hinton
Facilitator
Miriam Yates
Director and Research Fellow / Adjunct Lecturer
Equitus and University of Queensland
Leisa Flatley
Adjunct Lecturer
LLB, GDLP, Dip of Law
Leisa Flatley, College lecturer since 2014, is a former insurance litigator and claims manager.
START YOUR JOURNEY TO PRINCIPAL PRACTICE
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
The LPMC QLD is designed for any solicitor who is preparing to apply for a Principal Practising Certificate in Queensland.
This includes lawyers who are:
- Planning to open their own firm or become a sole practitioner
- Preparing to become a partner or take equity in a practice
- Starting a role in an incorporated legal practice that requires a Principal Practising Certificate
- Working in-house or in government and planning to move into principal practice
If you're joining an incorporated legal practice as a principal, make sure your practising certificate category is appropriate for your role.
Before starting the LPMC, think about how prepared you'll be for the assessment tasks.
You'll get the most value from the business planning assessment if you already have a clear idea of the practice you're building or the role you're stepping into.
If you're still 12–18 months away from taking that step, contact us and we can help you decide when to enrol.
There are four assessment components to the LPMC QLD:
- Trust accounting
- Ethics
- Business planning (where you’ll create a business plan)
- Risk management (where you’ll create a risk management plan)
You'll need to successfully complete all four assessments before you can apply for a Principal Practising Certificate.
If you don't pass an assessment, you'll receive feedback and may have the opportunity to re-submit or re-sit it.
Contact us for more information about the resubmission process.
Yes. The trust accounting preparation workshop acts as the foundation for the trust accounting assessment.
It’s a mandatory part of the course. You must complete it before you attend the main workshop.
Your business plan needs to demonstrate that you can design a realistic, sustainable and commercially viable legal practice.
We’re not looking for a highly polished document. Just evidence that you've thought through how your practice will operate, from the business structure and pricing model to your financial projections.
Yes. The LPMC is open to all admitted solicitors in Australia, including lawyers working in-house or in government.
Just make sure you check which practising certificate category applies to your intended role.
Not necessarily. The LPMC QLD is recognised for principal practice in Queensland.
If you're planning to practise as a principal in another jurisdiction, you should check the requirements in that state.
If you're managing registration across multiple jurisdictions, contact us and we'll help point you in the right direction.
Once you've successfully completed all course requirements, you'll receive the documentation you need to apply to the Queensland Law Society for a Principal Practising Certificate.
The assessments you complete during the course – including your business plan and risk management strategy – will become practical resources you can use in your future work.
