To be given the title "accredited specialist", is the highest

accreditation Accreditation is the independent, third-party evaluation of a conformity assessment body (such as certification body, inspection body or laboratory) against recognised standards, conveying formal demonstration of its impartiality and competence to ...

attainable as a solicitor in Australia. To become an accredited specialist, a solicitor must meet certain requirements and go through various examination stages, testing their skills and knowledge in the specific area of the law that they are competent in. Once a solicitor fulfils the requirements, they are entitled to use the prestigious title of accredited specialist after their name to differentiate themselves as experts in that area of law.

History

Specialis
accreditation
was established in 1992 with aims to: * Provide the

profession A profession is a field of work that has been successfully ''professionalized''. It can be defined as a disciplined group of individuals, '' professionals'', who adhere to ethical standards and who hold themselves out as, and are accepted by ...

and

public In public relations and communication science, publics are groups of individual people, and the public (a.k.a. the general public) is the totality of such groupings. This is a different concept to the sociological concept of the ''Öffentlichk ...

with a reliable means of identifying a

practitioner Practitioner may refer to: *Health practitioner *Justice and public safety practitioner * Legal practitioner * Medical practitioner *Mental health professional or practitioner *Theatre practitioner Spiritual Practitioner * Solitary practitioner ...

with proven

expertise An expert is somebody who has a broad and deep understanding and competence in terms of knowledge, skill and experience through practice and education in a particular field. Informally, an expert is someone widely recognized as a reliable s ...

in their chosen area of law; * Contribute to and encourage continues development and improvement of standards, quality and delivery of legal services; * Promote the advancement of legal knowledge and skills; and * Provide practitioners with the opportunity to demonstrate expertise in their chosen are of law and to have this recognised. To become an accredited specialist a solicitor needs to meet the following requirements: * Hold a current solicitor's practising certificate; * Be a current solicitor member of the Law society or full solicitor member of an equivalent body in an Australian state or territory; * Be engaged in the

practice of law In its most general sense, the practice of law involves giving legal advice to clients, drafting legal documents for clients, and representing clients in legal negotiations and court proceedings such as lawsuits, and is applied to the profess ...

full-time for at least 5 years; * In each of the three years immediately preceding your application, have been engaged in the area of practice of law in which you would like to become an accreditation specialist; * In the three years preceding this application, have practiced in the area for not less than 25% of full-time practice.

Specialist Accreditation exam

The Specialist Accreditation exam occurs every year but once every two years for a specific area of law. For example, there was a specialist accreditation exam for Immigration law in 2018, you'll be expecting the next exam in 2020. The accreditation process takes approximately 6–7 months until results are released. The processes are as follow: * Submitting application for specialist accreditation before closing date * Take home assessments where solicitors are given a timeframe to complete * Formal written exams and live assessments * Results released

Areas of law

Only solicitors as individuals can become an accredited specialist, not firms. Specialist accreditation are offered in 18 areas of law: * Australian immigration law (also see the Migration Act) *Advocacy * Business law * Children's Law * Commercial litigation * Criminal law * Dispute resolution *Employment &

Industrial relations Industrial relations or employment relations is the multidisciplinary academic field that studies the employment relationship; that is, the complex interrelations between employers and employees, labor/trade unions, employer organizations, ...

Family law Family law (also called matrimonial law or the law of domestic relations) is an area of the law that deals with family matters and domestic relations. Overview Subjects that commonly fall under a nation's body of family law include: * Marriage ...

*Government &

Administrative law Administrative law is the division of law that governs the activities of executive branch agencies of government. Administrative law concerns executive branch rule making (executive branch rules are generally referred to as "regulations"), ad ...

Local government Local government is a generic term for the lowest tiers of public administration within a particular sovereign state. This particular usage of the word government refers specifically to a level of administration that is both geographically-l ...

and planning law * Mediation * Personal injury law * Planning & Environment law * Property law * Public law *

Taxation law Tax law or revenue law is an area of legal study in which public or sanctioned authorities, such as federal, state and municipal governments (as in the case of the US) use a body of rules and procedures (laws) to assess and collect taxes in a ...

– also see

Taxation in Australia Income taxes are the most significant form of taxation in Australia, and collected by the federal government through the Australian Taxation Office. Australian GST revenue is collected by the Federal government, and then paid to the states und ...

Wills Wills may refer to: * Will (law) A will or testament is a legal document that expresses a person's (testator) wishes as to how their property ( estate) is to be distributed after their death and as to which person (executor) is to manage the pr ...

& Estates law You can tell when a lawyer is an accredited specialist when they show the logo which is as mark of excellence. When a solicitor or lawyer receives this

it is usually newsworthy due to how hard it is to be obtained. Solicitors that hold this accreditation are usually then appointed to high ranking roles such as the NSW Industrial Relations Commission. A list of those specialists can be found via the respective states law society to validate that an individual is actually accredited. For example, the accredited solicitors in NSW can be found via NSW LAW SOCIETY.

Accredited Specialist by State in Australia

New South Wales Accredited Specialist

The table below consists of Accredited Specialist in some areas of law in New South Wales. Accredited Specialists can also be found in other areas of law and can be found on the

Law Society of New South Wales The Law Society of New South Wales is a professional association which represents over 29,000 solicitors in Australia. The Law Society has statutory powers and regulates the practice of law in New South Wales.http://www.lawlink.nsw.gov.au/law ...

website.

Queensland Accredited Specialist

Queensland Law Society The Queensland Law Society is the peak professional body for solicitors in Queensland, Australia. It represents more than 9,000 members, and is affiliated with the Law Council of Australia. The society provides support and public advocacy for ...

currently recognises 10 areas of specialty.

Victoria Accredited Specialist

Law Institute of Victoria Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior,Robertson, ''Crimes against humanity'', 90. with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. It has been vari ...

recognises 16 areas of speciality but not all areas are available at the same time in a given year. Areas o
Accredited Specialisation in Victoria in 2020 vs year 2021.
''

South Australia Accredited Specialist

The Law Society of South Australia
currently ha
17 Accredited Specialists
in two areas of law,

Family Law Family law (also called matrimonial law or the law of domestic relations) is an area of the law that deals with family matters and domestic relations. Overview Subjects that commonly fall under a nation's body of family law include: * Marriage ...

and Immigration Law.

Western Australia Accredited Specialist

Th
Law Society of Western Australia
offers Specialist Accreditation programmes in

, Mediation an
Quality Practice Standard

References

{{reflist

External links

Accredited Specialist

Legal Services in Australia

Law Society – Solicitor's Practising Certificate

The Law Society of South Australia – Accredited Specialist

Law Society of Tasmania – Accreditation Specialisations

Law Society of Western Australia – Accreditation

Policy on Mutual Recognition of Accredited Specialists

Legal education in Australia Law of Australia