Harris Freidman’s approach to Anti Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing
New compliance requirements are coming.
From 1 July 2026, law firms (along with accountants, conveyancers, real estate agents and certain dealers) will be brought into Australia’s Anti‑Money Laundering and Counter‑Terrorism Financing (AML/CTF) regime.
These requirements already apply to banks and other financial institutions, and are now being extended across professional services to help deter, detect and prevent financial crime.
What this means in practice
As part of these changes, we will be required to:
§ verify your identity before, and sometimes during, the course of our engagement;
§ request additional information where we are providing certain “designated services”;
§ undertake further checks where you are acting on behalf of a company, trust or other entity
In those cases, we may also need to identify and verify the individuals who ultimately own or control the entity (for example, those with 25% or more ownership, or senior decision‑making authority). We are legally required to complete these checks before we can provide certain services. The checks we complete are risk-based. The level of information we request will be proportionate to the associated AML/CTF risk.
What you can expect from us
We understand that providing this information can take time. Our approach is designed to be clear, efficient and secure. We will:
§ only request what is legally required;
§ keep the process as simple and efficient as possible; and
§ handle all information securely and in line with our privacy obligations
This process is mandatory under AML/CTF regulations and ensures we meet our legal obligations while keeping clients and communities safe.
These changes are designed to strengthen the integrity of Australia’s financial system, and we are committed to implementing them in a way that minimises disruption for our clients.
If you would like to learn more about these reforms, you can visit the https://www.austrac.gov.au/.
If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to get in touch with Nicole Eadie, Practice Manager and AML/CTF Compliance Officer.