Welcome
Hello there!
Welcome to the web site of the Australian Corporate Lawyers Association. As a non member, you are welcome to browse the public sections of this site and to visit the abbreviated version of our daily Newsfeed Service. However, if you want to access all facilities on this site, such as the Member Directory, the full Newsfeed Service, the Member Forum, and the on-line Practice Manual, you must be a member of ACLA. So have a look at the key reasons why we think you should be a member and if you agree, simply join up on on-line. Membership of ACLA is great value and also lots of fun. I hope to welcome you aboard soon.
Phil Wallis
National President
This page provides you with some important information about the benefits of membership of the Australian Corporate Lawyers Association. In fact, after reading through this you will probably ask yourself how you could have lived without a membership for so long...
If you are a member already you can access the members only area of our web site for valuable additional information.
Have you moved? Changed your phone number? If you are a member, change your membership details online.
Summary of Current Benefits:
The following is a summary of the major benefits of membership
National Conference
The National Conference is organised by the Australian Corporate Lawyers Association and is held each year in November. The event attracts in-house lawyers from around Australia, as well as from overseas, with presentations bringing up-to-date information on issues, trends and practice management.
Seminars
Each Division of ACLA conducts seminars during the year. Many are conducted in conjunction with the major law firms. These popular seminars are directed towards the practical needs of in-house lawyers and meet very high standards.
Regular Luncheons and Dinners
Arranged regularly by each Division, breakfasts, luncheons and dinners with guest speakers on topical issues are educational and informative as well as providing an opportunity to meet and discuss current issues with fellow in-house lawyers. Guests are welcome at these functions.
The Australian Corporate Lawyer Journal
The Association's journal, The Australian Corporate Lawyer, is published quarterly. It contains articles which are in-depth, timely and directly relevant to the in-house legal profession. Members receive this journal free as part of their membership benefits. You can access the latest issue online in the members' Reading Room (you must have your member login details ready).
Networking
Membership of the Australian Corporate Lawyers Association provides many opportunities throughout the year for members to meet and discuss matters of relevance to their professional careers and to their organisation. The network of contacts is a primary benefit of membership.
Member Directory
ACLA members have unrestricted access to a Member Directory in the secured members only area of the web site, that lists the name, title, organisation and contact details of every member of the Australian Corporate Lawyers Association.
ACLA National Mentoring Program
A National Mentoring Program for ACLA members who are in-house counsel. The program aims to develop both mentors and mentees within the in-house legal profession - providing an opportunity for mentors to give back and gain fresh perspectives; and for mentees to raise fresh ideas in a safe space, gain independent and objective perspectives and enhance their skills and confidence.
Government and Regulatory Bodies
The Australian Corporate Lawyers Association maintains effective relationships with the law societies and institutes e in each State and Territory together with other professional associations. Submissions are prepared on law reform proposals and other issues affecting in-house lawyers.
MCLE/ CPD
Where appropriate, attendance at seminars and conferences entitles members to credits towards mandatory continuing legal education (MCLE) or continuing professional development (CPD) requirements.
Details of all ACLA membership benefits are as follows:
The Australian Corporate Lawyer Journal
The Australian Corporate Lawyer is ACLA's full colour journal which is produced quarterly and sent to all members free of charge.
ACLA In-House Lawyers Practice Manual
This is a 40 chapter publication produced by Middletons Lawyers and available on-line through ACLA’s website to members only. The Manual covers both substantive law issues as well as legal practice management matters that directly affect in-house practitioners.
Lawlex Legislation Alert Service
Lawlex provides to members a co-branded, email-based legislation alert service to ACLA members in the areas of law selected by them. Members are allowed a one month free trial period, a substantially reduced subscription rate for both "single member" and "enterprise wide" versions of the service and 15 months subscription for the price of 12 months in the first year.
Professional Indemnity Cover for In-house Lawyers
Resource Underwriting Pacific Pty Limited has agreed to offer a special Professional Indemnity cover for Australia’s in-house lawyers with the following features:
• a uniform policy limit of $1,000,000 per policy
• an automatic reinstatement of the limit for all insureds
• pro bono work cover applicable to all policies
• a sub-limit for legal costs of $250,000 in all cases
• a single excess (deductible) of $2,500
The new policy covers practice in Australia and New Zealand and can be taken up at any time but the policies have a uniform expiry date of 30 June each year. The premium payable depends in each case on the income of the insured but ACLA members are entitled to a discount of 10% on the quoted premiums at all levels.
See: Specimen Policy , Proposal Form and Premium Table
ACLA Linex Alerter - weekly update service
ACLA Linex Alerter - weekly update service provided by Linex Legal .The service is available for free to all ACLA members. It brings together major legal articles and reviews published each week by leading law firm practitioners. There are 3 elements to the service:
1. An Email Alerter consisting of a selection of the most relevant legal articles and reviews for in-house counsel published in the previous week. Members must register with Linex Legal to receive the Email Alerter.
2. A searchable database of legal articles and reviews published by Australia's leading law firms and other relevant organisations. This database is accessible from the Linex Legal website (www.linexlegal.com.au) and also from the members' section of the ACLA website.
3. An XML feed on the members' section of the ACLA site consisting of links to the most recently published legal articles and reviews.
To register for the Email Alerter please visit www.linexlegal.com/acla.
If you have any queries about the service please contact editor@linexlegal.com
National Conference and Seminars
ACLA, both nationally and through its Divisions, offers a large number of conferences, seminars and other continuing legal education events either free of charge or at a substantial discount to members. A National Conference is held each year - usually in November in Sydney or Melbourne. These events assist members to gain mandatory continuing legal education points and/or continuing professional developments where required.
Networking
The many and varied social functions and continuing legal education events held by ACLA provide an ideal opportunity for in-house lawyers to network with their colleagues and peers. Where payment is required for attendance at these events a discount is normally available to members.
Ethics for In-House Counsel Handbook
In conjunction with the St. James Ethics Centre, an Ethics for In-House Counsel handbook has been published by ACLA and is available free of charge to all members in either hard copy or through ACLA's website. It now includes further ethics guidelines for public sector lawyers. In addition, members of ACLA's General Counsel Group are available to assist members with particular ethical problems.
ACLA_LINK Program
ACLA_LINK is a marketing program that allows selected suppliers to introduce and promote their products and services more readily to the in-house legal profession. Substantial discounts are available to members who purchase these products or services.
LexisNexis Discounts
As a major sponsor of ACLA, legal publisher LexisNexis offers the following discounts to members:
- Legal Profiles (free)
- LexisNexis books published in Australia (17.5%)
- LexisNexis Professional Education seminars (20%)
- All LexisNexis newsletters (10%)
- ASX Rules Publications (10%)
- New subscriptions to LexisNexis (10% - first year only)*
* Individual member not corporation
Lawyers Weekly Magazine
LexisNexis, the publishers of Lawyers Weekly, provides full members with a complimentary subscription to the magazine which is posted to them each week.
ALB (Australasian Legal Business) Magazine
ACLA has reached a special agreement with the publishers of ALB (Australasian Legal Business) magazine whereby all full ACLA members can receive the magazine every month free-of- charge.
If you are a full member click on the subscribe link and fill out your contact details.
Guide to Leading Heads of Practice
LexisNexis provides a free copy to full members of its annual publication Guide to Leading Heads of Practice which provides a precise of the leading private practitioners in selected areas of legal practice.
ACC Online
ACLA has negotiated with the Association of Corporate Counsel (formerly the American Corporate Counsel Association) a licence which permits full members to access ACC Online (including ACC's on-line Virtual Library) without the need to be a financial member of ACC. Members pay less than half the price of full ACC membership to access ACC's on-line resources.
Website
Members are provided with a user ID and password to enable them to access the members only area of ACLA's website at www.acla.com.au.
Member Directory
ACLA's Member Directory is incorporated in the members only area of the website in a number of searchable formats.
Alliances with Overseas In-House Lawyer Associations
ACLA has forged solid strategic alliances with similar overseas associations including the Corporate Lawyers Association of New Zealand (CLANZ), the Association of Corporate Counsel - America (ACC), the Canadian Corporate Counsel Association (CCCA), the Hong Kong Corporate Counsel Association (HKCCA), the Singapore Corporate Counsel Association, the European Company Lawyers Association, the Corporate Lawyers Association of South Africa and the Corporate Counsel Forum of the International Bar Association. ACLA has entered into a formal Co-operation Agreement with CLANZ, CCCA and HKCCA, which includes the exchange of materials of interest to members. All of these associations can be accessed through ACLA's website.
ACLA is also a member of the International Roundtable of Associations of Corporate Counsel - one of the objectives of which is to connect up in-house lawyers around the world electronically allowing direct member-to-member contact from their desktop computers.
Member Representation
ACLA maintains close ties with Australian law societies and institutes, the Law Council of Australia and peak professional and industry groups. Submissions are made on behalf of members regarding issues relevant to in-house lawyers and their employers.
Member Enquiries
ACLA has set up a 1300 telephone number (1300 558 550) at its National Office, at Suite 2, Level 1, 620 Bourke Street, Melbourne to assist members with any enquiries. Alternatively, members can email the Association at membership@acla.com.au