WHAT IS AML/CTF?

As of 1 July 2026, reforms to Australia’s anti-financial crime (AML/CTF) regime resulted in certain legal services being defined as ‘designated services” and certain organisations including law firms being subject to new regulatory obligations including an obligation to report certain transactions and suspicious activities to AUSTRAC.  The AML/CTF legislation is comprised of the Anti-Money Laundering & Counter-Terrorism Financing Act 2006 (Cth) and the Anti–Money Laundering & Counter-Terrorism Financing Rules 2025 (Cth).

Adhering to these obligations is part of a national approach to deter, detect and disrupt financial crime in Australia, helping authorities to track and limit the flow of funds that support drug trafficking, human exploitation, financial fraud and terrorism.

‘Financial crime’ includes the following criminal activity:

  • Money laundering – hiding, disguising or legitimising the true origin and ownership of money or property used in or derived from crime;
  • Terrorism financing – providing money, property, or financial support to terrorist individuals, groups, or organisations; and
  • Proliferation financing – providing funds, financial services, or assets to help develop, acquire, or spread weapons of mass destruction.


The obligations: reducing Australia’s financial crime risk

The  regulatory obligations will apply to the provision or prospective provision of a designated service to a client.  Examples of providing “designated services” to a family law client  occur when:

  1. a third-party puts money into the firm’s trust account to pay our client’s legal fees and outlays (for example: barristers, expert accountant’s costs) or other client costs without a court order requiring the payment into trust or payment from trust, or
  2. under a binding financial agreement (and not a court order), settlement monies are paid to the trust account.


Examples of third parties making payment of client’s legal fees or outlays or client’s other expenses, include:

  1. a litigation lender,
  2. a friend or relative of the client,
  3. the “other side” of the client e.g. client’s opponent,
  4. a company owned, or part-owned by the client.
  5. A trust controlled by the client where the client is a beneficiary


If a client pays their own money into our firm’s trust account on account of their legal fees and outlays, then our firm is not providing the client with a “designated service” and is not subject to the AML/CTF regulatory obligations.

Information and documents required from our clients

Before commencing your new client matter, we will ask you to verify your identity and to provide your Government-issued identification documents (such as a passport or driver’s licence) and a Medicare Card.  If our office is providing a client a ‘designated service”, if relevant, we will complete client identity checks and ask for information that will help us verify the identity of anyone who control or benefits from the client such as trustees or beneficial owners.  In some cases, you may also need to provide additional documents and allow us to complete identity verification of certain individuals.  In some matters we may also be required to obtain additional information about the source of funds or source of wealth used in a transaction.

We will provide you with more detailed guidance on the secure completion and submission of the required information, required documentation and identity verification procedures at the time of arranging your initial appointment with our office.

Our commitment

We are committed to supporting our clients under the AML/CTF regulatory framework and ensuring the smooth and uninterrupted continuation of our legal services. If you need any further clarification, please do not hesitate to contact us at info@millyardfamilylawyers.com.au

Secure and responsible handling of your data

Any personal information collected as part of the AML/CTF checks process, including information relating to relevant client representatives, beneficial owners or other individuals connected with your client entity, will be handled securely. Access will be limited to those who need it for the purpose of meeting our AML/CTF compliance obligations. Further information is available in our firm’s Privacy Policy.

This page was last updated August 2026”