Welcome to the Law Society of South Australia

An individual who is admitted and enrolled as a solicitor and/or barrister and/or legal practitioner of the Supreme Court of a State or Territory of Australia (a legal practitioner) may be admitted as a Member (Admitted Member) of the Society.

You are eligible to apply to become an Admitted Member, if your employment or practice is inline with one of the following classifications:

*Available to those who qualify as low fee earners for the purposes of the Professional Indemnity Insurance Scheme with gross fee income less than $50,000.
**Available to those who qualify as low fee earners for the purposes of the Professional Indemnity Insurance Scheme with gross fee income less than $25,000.

Membership Application (Online) Membership Application (PDF)

The Society in its discretion may admit as a Pre-Admission Member any person who satisfies the Society that he or she has fulfilled such academic and other training required for admission as a legal practitioner. Pre-Admission Members are not entitled to vote at any election or at any meeting of Members nor to stand for election as a Member of the Council or Officer of the Society or nominate, or endorse other Members to stand for election as a Member of the Council.

You may be eligible to join as a Pre-Admission if you have completed such academic and other training required for admission as a legal practitioner; and have not been admitted as a legal practitioner in South Australia or elsewhere.

Pre-Admission Member Application (PDF)

The Society in its discretion may admit as an Associate any of the following who reside in South Australia:

• a member of the academic staff of a School, Faculty or Department of Law of any University in South Australia;
• an individual employed in a law practice or a Government department or instrumentality that is involved in the practice of law as follows: in a managerial capacity / serving articles of clerkship / a specialist law clerk / in a personal administrative or secretarial capacity / a conveyancer / an employee of a law practice; or
• an individual holding a Bachelor of Laws from a South Australian based University but has not sought admission and does not intend to undertake a Practical Legal Training course.

Associate Application (PDF)

The Society in its discretion may admit as an Associate (Student) to any of the following who reside in South Australia:

• Students currently enrolled or eligible to enrol in a practical legal training program or persons who have successfully completed a practical legal training program during the current membership year;
• Undergraduate law students currently enrolled at any university law school or law school graduates who have completed their studies during the relevant membership year; or
• Students undertaking the TAFE Certificate IV in Legal Studies (or equivalent).

Membership as an Associate (Student) is free.

Associate (Student) Application (Online) Associate (Student) Application (PDF)

The Society in its discretion may admit as an Associate (Affiliate) any of the following who reside in South Australia:

• Qualified Accountants who are Members of either the Institute of Charted Accountants in Australia or CPA Australia;
• Bank employees holding formal banking, finance or other suitable qualifications;
• Medical practitioners holding a Bachelor of Medicine or equivalent or higher; or
• Elected local council councilors.

Associate (Affiliate) Application (PDF)

A Company Member is defined by the Rules of the Society as an incorporated legal practice which is entitled to practise law in South Australia and where each of whose legal practitioner directors (South Australian and Interstate) are Admitted Members of the Law Society of South Australia.

Company Members who participate in the Scheme can benefit by having their occupational liability capped to an amount of $1.5M or $10M depending on the number of practitioners in the law practice and the annual fee income of the law practice (and to the extent that liability can be capped under the Act). For more details, please click here.

Company Membership Application (PDF)

Platinum Membership

A Member becomes a Platinum Member on 1 July following 30 years of consecutive membership and receives the following additional benefits:

• Attend any Law Society of South Australia Standard CPD Session* free of charge; and
• Discounted pricing for other selected CPD and Members events.

*A Standard CPD Session is a CPD run solely by the Law Society of South Australia that is up to 1.5 hours long and has a maximum registration fee of $110 for Members admitted more than 3 years, or $85 for Members admitted less than 3 years. This is non-transferable and excludes all workshops and conferences.

Senior Membership

Members who achieve 45 years membership with the Society become a Senior Member and receive the following additional benefits:

• Free Law Society membership subscription each year;
• Invitation to attend the Society’s annual Senior and Honorary Members luncheon; and
• Name displayed on the Senior Member Honour Board at the Society and in the Annual Report

Parental Leave Membership

The Society offers a membership category for Admitted Members going on Parental Leave for three to 24 months (this membership category commenced on 1 July 2021). Parental Leave Membership is complimentary for the period of leave. Members' rights, privileges and benefits are not affected in any way. Members will continue to receive all information disseminated by the Society, can stand and vote in elections (if applicable to the Member's category of membership) and continue to receive one complimentary Standard CPD Session per year. Members in this category are also entitled to the concession rate for CPD offered by the Law Society for the period of Parental leave. Members must apply for Parental Leave Membership.

If you would like further information about Parental Leave Membership, please click here. To apply for Parental Leave Membership, please click here.

For more information or to apply for a reduction in your MCPD obligations, please visit our MCPD webpage by clicking here.

Lobbying for positive outcomes for the legal profession in SA

• Vigorous advocacy on law reform, improved access to justice and the Rule of Law.
• The benefits of regular contact with law and policy makers, key stakeholders and community groups and engagement with the media to lobby for and on behalf of the legal profession.
• Influence over law-related policy and legislation through submissions to Parliament, the courts and other stakeholders.

Quality Publications

• Annual subscription to the Bulletin, the Society's flagship journal;
• Subscriptions to our suite of information e-newsletters such as Advocacy Notes, InBrief, in the news, What's On!, Riskwatch and Member & Risk Alerts keep you up to date with all the latest developments in the legal profession and justice system.
• Access to a range of digital and print resources essential to practice.

Connecting you with the legal profession

• Members below to a network of over 4,000 legal practitioners and associates in South Australia.
• The Society provides a variety of opportunities to attend legal and cross-industry networking events, of both a professional and social nature.

Support for you and your family

• Access to counselling and support services for legal practitioners, their staff and their families, including LawCare Counselling Service, Professional Advice Service, Young Lawyers Support Group and online resources.
• A regular column in the Bulletin with tips for staying physically and mentally healthy.
• Events designed to support wellbeing and resilience by encouraging practitioners to stay healthy and active.

CPD by practitioners for practitioners

• Over 120 seminars, conferences and workshops delivered each year both face-to-face and by webinar.
• Members receive up to 30% off registration rates.
• All revenue from CPD sessions is reinvested in Member services and keeps membership costs down.

The Society has the resources to help, with a range of services for practitioners and benefits to support your practice

• Access to the LawCare Counselling Service for assistance with social and psychological problems, or any problem that is interfering or could interfere with your work performance.
• The Society's Small Practice Committee provides specific benefits and opportunities for sole practitioners and members of small firms to assist with establishing and maintaining a small practice.
• Advice and support on your ethical dilemmas, your trust account, your practice certificates and your MCPD compliance.
• Access to the Ethics and Practice webpage, an important resource for all practitioners.

Community Engagement

• The Litigation Assistance Fund is a charitable trust which has been in existence for over 20 years and helps people prosecute civil claims.
• The Legal Advisory Service has been connecting members of the community with practitioners for over 20 years.
• The Mock Trial Competition provides senior secondary school students with an opportunity to gain first-hand experience of legal system, with practitioners volunteering as coaches and judges.

Easy to find information

• Over 30,000 referrals are made each year through the See a Lawyer Service, which connects members of the community with relevant firms who have registered to be on the database.
• The Find Another Practitioner directory allows practising Members to search for, and make contact with, fellow practitioners quickly and easily.
• The Online Resources Hub is a centralised, searchable location for guidelines, articles and other resources on the Society's website.

Membership pays for itself

• Access to our networks of partners, sponsors and preferred suppliers offer Members Only savings, events and benefits.
• Access to our Member Advantage Program, saving your hundreds (or thousands) of dollars on travel, electrical goods, shopping and leisure activities.