NSW has been named as the home jurisdiction for the new National Legal Services Board and the Office of the National Legal Services Commissioner following a ballot earlier this week.

Attorney-General Robert McClelland announced the decision to locate the board and commissioner in NSW as part of the National Legal Profession Reforms. “National reforms to the legal profession have been four years in the making and I’m delighted we can now confirm the final steps in implementing the scheme,” he said.

The Law Society of NSW president Stuart Westgarth welcomed the decision: “The fact that the national board and commissioner will be operating from NSW is a sensible decision having regard to the fact that the NSW profession is the largest segment in Australia, representing more than 40 percent of the national profession,” he said.

McClelland also announced that Victoria has agreed to introduce legislation to implement the reforms that will be replicated across participating jurisdictions. “These reforms will serve the interests of both consumers and the legal profession by improving consumer protection, protecting the independence of the legal profession and ensuring access to justice,” he said.

However, Law Institute of Victoria CEO Michael Brett Young said he had hoped the Attorney-General would choose Victoria as the venue for the board and commissioner as the jurisdiction has had its own legal services board and legal services commission since 2005 operating in a similar way to the proposed national model. “However, we are keen to see the introduction of the national reforms,” he added.

The national regime will include just four of the eight states and territories in Australia: NSW, Queensland, Victoria and the Northern Territory, representing around 85 percent of Australia’s practising lawyers. Western Australia, South Australia, Tasmania and the ACT have yet to agree to participate. McClelland said he remains hopeful that the remaining jurisdictions will “come on board” once the scheme is up and running.

Related stories:
A truly national legal profession still a long way off, say critics 12 September 2011

Leaders try to salvage national legal reform 1 September 2011