The Victorian Legal Services Board and Commissioner (VLSB+C) are independent statutory authorities responsible for the regulation of the legal profession in Victoria.
Our Service Charter is our commitment to you.
It summarises our role and function, how you can expect us to treat you, and what we need from you.
Why we exist
To maintain and enhance public trust and confidence in the legal profession in Victoria.
What we do
Our key objectives are to:
- Protect and empower consumers
- Improve legal practice and ethics
- Improve access to justice.
Our key functions include:
- providing an independent, impartial, and accessible system for managing complaints about lawyers
- regulating the legal profession and maintaining its professional standards
- overseeing lawyers’ management of trust accounts.
We are also the stewards of the public purpose fund and administer this to support legal regulation and access to justice in Victoria.
Our commitments to you
We are committed to:
- working with lawyers and the Victorian community in a respectful, open, and professional manner
- providing a quality service and ensuring all Victorians can access our assistance when they need it.
Our work is supported by our values:
Integrity
- We will engage with you and handle your issue honestly, ethically, and professionally.
- We treat everyone with respect and courtesy.
Access
- We make it easy to access and understand our services.
- We listen and provide help and assistance to those who need it.
Transparency
- We clearly explain how we handle your issue.
- We explain how we make our decisions, and we will give reasons for our decisions even if we cannot provide you with the outcome you hoped to achieve.
Timeliness
- We progress matters as quickly and easily as possible.
- We will let you know how long it will take to respond to and handle your issue.
- We will update our timeframes if things change and, if we need more time, we will explain why.
- We will also give you a reasonable opportunity to provide us with information when we need it.
Fairness
- We act independently and make decisions that are fair in the circumstances and in line with the law.
Privacy
- We manage personal information carefully, according to law and our privacy policy.
Accountability
- We are accountable for our decisions.
- We provide clear and accessible information about how some of our decisions can be reviewed.
Continuous improvement
- We learn from your feedback and from our data to improve the quality of our services, and also to educate lawyers on how they can provide better services for consumers.
- You can provide feedback about our services here.
What we expect from you when you contact us
To help us perform our role we ask that you:
- treat our staff with courtesy and respect
- remain engaged in our process
- let us know if you are experiencing difficulties accessing our services or have any special requirements
- give us information we ask you for within the timeframes we ask for it or let us know if you need more time. How efficiently we progress a matter often depends on the quality of the information we receive and how quickly we receive it.
Contact us
You can find out more information about how we manage your enquiry or complaint on our website at lsbc.vic.gov.au or call us on (03) 96798001 or 1300 796 344 (local call).
If you require interpreter assistance or would like this document in an alternate format, please contact us.