If you have a lawyer helping with your claim, they must complete a Law Practice Certificate. If you don’t have a lawyer, you don’t need to worry about this.
Legal practitioners must complete a Law Practice Certificate (LPC) at various stages of a claim. The LPC must be signed by the supervising principal and verified by a statutory declaration. By signing the LPC, the legal practitioner must certify that they/their firm have not engaged in car crash scamming (also known as ‘claim farming’) activities in relation to the specific claim. If the claim is a speculative claim, the practitioner must also certify that the costs agreement complies with section 79 of the Motor Accident Insurance Act 1994 (Qld) and the ‘50/50 rule’ under section 347 of the Legal Profession Act 2007 (Qld).
To complete and digitally sign the LPC, download and open the form using a PDF application (e.g., Adobe Acrobat). Some features may not work if the form is opened directly in an internet browser. For more information, visit the Queensland Government Downloading and viewing documents page.
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When are LPCs required?
Law Practice Certificates (LPCs) are required at various stages of the claim process, including:
- when a legal practitioner is retained
- at settlement or judgment
- if the law practice is sold.
More information on when legal practitioners are required to sign an LPC is available in our Law Practice Certificate Scenarios.
If a supervising principal cannot complete the LPC due to a planned absence
When a supervising principal is the only principal of the law practice and has a planned absence, they may nominate another lawyer to give a LPC on their behalf, in accordance with section 36C(2)(b) of the Motor Accident Insurance Act 1994. To do this, MAIC suggests the supervising principal prepares a written nomination before the planned absence. This document should be provided to insurers for any claim where an LPC is required during the principal’s absence. The document should:
- be printed on the law practice’s letterhead
- be addressed “To whom it may concern”
- cover the requirements in s.36C by stating:
- I am (name of principal) and I am the supervising principal of (the law practice)
- I am the only principal of the law practice
- I am intending to be absent from the law practice from (insert dates)
- pursuant to s.36C(2)(b) Motor Accident Insurance Act 1994, I nominate another lawyer, (name of lawyer), to give a Law Practice Certificate on my behalf during my period of intended absence.
- include the signature of the supervising principal
- include the signature of the nominated lawyer
- include the date the document was signed.
Disclaimer
The Motor Accident Insurance Commission (MAIC) provides these common scenarios as an information source only. These scenarios are not intended to be an exhaustive list of all scenarios which may occur.
Penalty for non-compliance
It is an offence not to complete the LPC as and when it is required, and to provide false and misleading information therein. Failure to provide an LPC attracts a maximum penalty of 300 penalty units (currently $51,810 for an individual from 1 July 2026).
In addition to the penalties under the offences, if a law practice does not give an LPC as and when required, the law practice may need to refund, or may not be entitled to recover, fees and disbursements paid in connection with a claim.
Where MAIC is notified of a suspected non-compliance with respect to the provision of a Law Practice Certificate (LPC) as and when required under the Motor Accident Insurance Act 1994 (the Act), MAIC will investigate and may prosecute any breach of the LPC provisions under the Act.