Legal file note requirements in Australia: what the rules actually say

It is not one law - it is a web of obligations

Practitioners sometimes search for the section of the Legal Profession Act that requires file notes. That section does not exist in isolation. What does exist is a set of obligations - around costs disclosure, following client instructions, keeping clients informed, and professional negligence risk - where a well-kept attendance note is the primary evidence you complied. The obligation is distributed. The note is the common thread.

Understanding which rule generates which documentation need is the starting point for building a consistent note-keeping practice. The table below maps the main obligations to what the note needs to show.

The LPUL states and the others: a jurisdiction map

The Legal Profession Uniform Law (LPUL) is the framework that applies in New South Wales and Victoria from 1 July 2015, and in Western Australia from 1 July 2022. It is administered jointly by the Law Society of New South Wales and the Victorian Legal Services Board.

Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania, the Northern Territory and the Australian Capital Territory each keep their own legal profession Acts. For example, Queensland operates under the Legal Profession Act 2007 (Qld). The substantive obligations around costs disclosure and client communication are broadly similar, but the specific provisions, thresholds and enforcement mechanisms differ. If your practice spans more than one jurisdiction, you need to check each applicable Act.

The Australian Solicitors Conduct Rules (ASCR) operate alongside the state and territory frameworks. They are not legislation in themselves, but they are given legislative force by adoption into the professional rules in each jurisdiction. The conduct obligations they impose are enforceable through the relevant disciplinary bodies.

Costs disclosure: the most specific documentation trigger

Section 174 of the LPUL requires a law practice to disclose the basis on which legal costs will be calculated before or as soon as practicable after being retained. This includes an estimate of total legal costs, with ongoing disclosure if the estimate materially changes. Equivalent obligations exist under the state Acts.

The attendance note for a first client call should record that the basis of costs was explained, what estimate was given, and whether the client acknowledged or had questions. If costs change materially during a matter, the note for the conversation where you gave updated disclosure becomes a critical piece of evidence. A costs agreement alone does not show the client was actually told.

See costs disclosure and file notes for a closer look at what the disclosure itself should cover and how the note supports it.

The ASCR conduct obligations: instructions and information

Rule 8 of the ASCR requires a solicitor to follow the client's lawful, proper and competent instructions. Rule 7 requires the solicitor to keep the client informed of significant developments and to give honest and complete advice.

Both of these rules create documentation requirements in practice. When a client gives or changes instructions, the attendance note is the record of what was said. When you give advice on a significant development, the note shows that you communicated it and what the client decided. Without the note, both obligations become a matter of recollection contested after the fact.

This is where the distinction between an email chain and a proper attendance note matters. Emails show what was written. An attendance note captures a conversation, including what the client said, what they understood, and what they decided. A client who later claims they were not advised of a particular risk will point to the absence of any record of that advice being given.

Contemporaneous records and why timing matters

A note written immediately after a conversation carries far more weight than a reconstruction written weeks later when a problem has emerged. Courts treat contemporaneous records as more reliable than later recollection, and insurers rely on the same principle.

The LPLC in Victoria and Lawcover in New South Wales both urge practitioners to keep thorough, contemporaneous file notes as a core risk-management practice. The LPLC's claims experience consistently shows that matters where files lack contemporaneous records are harder and more expensive to defend, regardless of whether the advice given was sound.

See file notes as evidence for a deeper look at how courts have treated attendance notes in professional negligence and costs disputes.

What a good legal attendance note captures

The format varies by practice and matter type, but the elements that matter most are consistent. A defensible attendance note should include:

• Date, attendees and channel. Who was present, whether the meeting was in-person, phone or video, and the duration.
• The purpose of the call or meeting. One sentence on what the conversation was about.
• Instructions received or confirmed. The specific instructions given by the client, or a confirmation of existing instructions.
• Advice given. What you told the client, in sufficient detail that a reader can understand the substance without having been there.
• Significant developments communicated. Anything material you disclosed, including changes to costs estimates.
• The client's response and decisions. What the client said, asked and decided. This is the part thin notes skip.
• Agreed next steps. Who is doing what and by when.
• Disclosures or consents. Any conflicts, costs changes or consents given during the call.

Consistency matters as much as completeness. A practice that captures these elements in the same shape on every file is in a better position than one with detailed notes on some files and sparse entries on others. The sparse files are always the ones where a dispute eventually lands.

Our law firm file note compliance checklist is a free reference you can use to audit your current template against these elements.

How long do you keep client files?

There is no single national retention rule for legal files. The common convention across Australian law practices is to keep client files for at least seven years after a matter ends, but the right period varies by state, matter type and the nature of the client (individual, company, minor). Trust account records have their own retention requirements under the trust accounting rules applicable in each state.

For matters involving personal injury, wills and estates, or clients who were minors at the time, longer retention is standard practice. Your law society and PI insurer will have guidance specific to your practice area. Treat seven years as a floor, not a ceiling, for most general work.

See how long to keep file notes in Australia for a fuller breakdown by matter type.

Attendance note vs file note: the terminology

In legal practice the terms are used interchangeably. "Attendance note" is the older, more formal term common in the courts context - an "attendance" being a formal appearance or meeting. "File note" is the general term used across most practices for any contemporaneous record added to a client file, including phone calls, emails, and office attendances.

For a fuller explanation of the terminology and what courts expect, see what is an attendance note.

How CallNote helps law firms keep good attendance notes

CallNote is built for professional practices that need accurate, contemporaneous notes from client calls and meetings without adding audio storage to their compliance burden.

CallNote never records calls. It receives a transcript that your phone system or meeting platform already produced and generates a structured attendance note from it. You connect a phone system like Dialpad or Aircall and every call transcript becomes a note automatically, or you paste a transcript, upload a voice memo, or forward one by email. The tool works from records that already exist.

You review the generated note against your own template structure, edit what needs editing, then lodge and lock it. Lodging creates a timestamped, SHA-256 sealed record with an append-only audit log. Any later correction is an amendment, not an edit to the original record. That sealed, amendment-only structure is what makes the note defensible.

• Hosted in Australia (AWS Sydney), AES-256 encrypted
• Never trains AI on your data
• Never records calls or sends a bot to your meeting
• Contemporaneous by design - notes generate from the transcript immediately after the call
• Your template, your sections, your headings

The for-law-firms overview at /for-law-firms covers how the workflow fits into a legal practice, including how the lodge-and-lock mechanism satisfies the contemporaneous-record requirement.

Common questions