New South Wales Consolidated Regulations

LEGAL PROFESSION UNIFORM GENERAL RULES 2015 - REG 43

43 Method of payment

(1) If a withdrawal of trust money from a general trust account of a law practice is made by cheque, the cheque--

(a) must be made payable to or to the order of a specified person or persons and must not be made payable to bearer or to cash, and

(b) must be crossed "not negotiable" and

(c) must include--

(i) the name of the law practice or the business name under which the law practice engages in legal practice, and

(ii) the expression "law practice trust account" or "law practice trust a/c".

(2) A cheque must be signed by, or an electronic funds transfer must be effected under, the direction or authority of--

(a) an authorised principal of the law practice, or

(b) if such a principal is not available--

(i) an authorised legal practitioner associate, or

(ii) an authorised Australian legal practitioner who holds an Australian practising certificate authorising the receipt of trust money, or

(iii) two or more authorised associates jointly.

(3) A written record of the required particulars--

(a) must be kept of each payment made by cheque or electronic funds transfer, unless those particulars are recorded by a computerised accounting system in the trust account payments cash book at the time the cheque is issued or the transfer is effected, and

(b) must be kept in a way that is sufficient to enable the accuracy of the particulars recorded by the computerised accounting system to be verified.

(4) For the purposes of subrule (3), the
"required particulars" are as follows--

(a) the date and number of the cheque or electronic funds transfer,

(b) the amount ordered to be paid by the cheque or electronic funds transfer,

(c) in the case of a cheque, the name of the person to whom the payment is to be made or, if the cheque is made payable to an ADI, the name or BSB number of the ADI and the name of the person receiving the benefit of the payment,

(d) in the case of an electronic funds transfer, the name and number of the account to which the amount was transferred and relevant BSB number,

(e) details clearly identifying the name of the person on whose behalf the payment was made and the matter reference, or in the case of a payment to an ADI, the name or BSB number of the ADI and the name of the person receiving the benefit of the payment,

(f) details clearly identifying the ledger account to be debited,

(g) particulars sufficient to identify the reason for the payment.

(5) Written records relating to payments by cheque or electronic funds transfer (including cheque or transfer requisitions) must be kept in the order in which the cheques or transfers were issued or effected.