TrustReq Help Documentation
  • Welcome Page
  • Account Management
    • Creating a New Primary Account
    • Important Account Association Warning
  • Clio integration
    • How to import your Clio contacts into TrustReq
  • Security
    • Two-Factor Authentication (2FA)
  • Billing and Payment
    • Understanding Per Seat Pricing
    • Understanding how annual billing works
    • Handling Downgrades and Credits
  • Remote Identity Verification (IDV)
    • How to invite your client to verify their identity on TrustReq
    • Is TrustReq's remote identity verification tool compliant with the Law Society of Ontario?
  • Types of By-law 9 forms
    • Form 9A
    • A note about para. 1 of subsection 12(2) in By-Law 9
    • Form 9B
    • Form 9C
    • Form 9D and 9E
  • Trust Reconciliations
    • Monthly trust reconciliations for Ontario lawyers and paralegals
    • How to generate a trust listing report on Clio
    • How to record bank errors when performing a trust reconciliation
  • Cash Limits and Exceptions
    • Watch: How to perform a cash acceptance pre-check
    • Watch: How to record a cash transaction
    • What is the definition of cash?
    • How much cash can a licensee accept in a client matter?
    • When does the limit on accepting cash apply?
    • Are there any exceptions to the cash limit?
    • Definition of "public body" regarding cash limit exceptions
    • How much cash can a licensee accept in foreign currency?
    • Cash limit if the licensee is acting for more than one client on one client file
    • Example: If a client provides a licensee with $15,000...
  • Understanding how permissions work on TrustReq
  • Recording Keeping Guide
    • Record keeping requirements if cash received
    • Record keeping requirements if referral fee paid or received
    • Email money transfers into and out of a trust account
    • Circumstances when Ontario lawyers are not required to use a Form 9D nor a Form 9E under By-Law 9
    • Valuable Property Records
  • Referral Fees
    • Watch: How to generate a referral fee agreement
    • Watch: How to fill and manage the Law Society of Ontario's "Referral Fee Checklist"
    • Watch: How to record a referral fee transaction
    • Is the LSO's "Referral Fee Agreement" form mandatory?
    • What's the difference between a "matter" and a "referral fee matter" on TrustReq?
  • REFERENCE: Text of By-Law 9 (Financial Transactions and Records)
    • Part I - Interpretation
    • Section 1
    • Part II - Handling of money by bankrupt licensee
    • Section 2
    • PART II.1 - Handling of money by licensee whose license is suspended
    • Section 2.1
    • Section 2.2
    • Section 2.3
    • Section 2.4
    • Part III - Cash Transactions
    • Section 3
    • Section 4
    • Section 5
    • Section 6
    • Part IV - Trust Account
    • Section 7
    • Section 8
    • Section 8.1
    • Section 9
    • Section 10
    • Section 11
    • Section 12
    • Section 13
    • Section 14
    • Section 15
    • Section 16
    • Section 17
    • PART V - Record Keeping Requirements
    • Section 18
    • Section 19
    • Section 19.1
    • Section 20
    • Section 21
    • Section 22
    • Section 23
    • Section 24
  • TrustReq Referral rewards program
  • Project Roadmap
  • Terms of Use
  • Privacy Policy
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  • Current Features
  • Other By-Law 9 Requirements

Project Roadmap

At TrustReq, we provide comprehensive and efficient solutions to help law firms comply with the Law Society of Ontario's By-Law 9 record-keeping requirements. We are focused on developing features that address the nuanced and specific needs of By-Law 9, complementing other software that serves broader needs. Below is an outline of our current features, and possible development plans.

Current Features

1. Referral Fees

  • Retention Period: 6 years plus current

  • Summary: Our platform tracks all referral fees received and paid. This includes the date, method, amount, and relevant licensee details, along with all related documents as required by subsection 19.1. This feature ensures compliance by maintaining detailed records of each transaction.

2. Cash

  • Retention Period: 6 years plus current

  • Summary: TrustReq records all cash received in a duplicate cash receipts book, capturing the date, person from whom cash was received, amount, client details, file number, and signatures, as stipulated in subsection 19(1).

3. Teranet (for Lawyers)

  • Retention Period: 6 years plus current

  • Summary: TrustReq helps users generate Form 9B authorizations for withdrawals made through Teranet, aligning with the requirements of subsection 18(12).

4. Electronic Trust Transfer Records and By-Law 9 Forms

  • Retention Period: 10 years plus current

  • Summary: TrustReq handles signed electronic trust transfer requisitions (Form 9A) and printed confirmations of electronic transfers, ensuring all records are kept as per subsection 18(11). The platform also helps users create, manage and store all other By-Law 9 forms, including Forms 9B, 9C, 9D and 9E, which are governed by various sections of By-Law 9.

5. Valuable Property Record

  • Retention Period: 10 years plus current

  • Summary: We provide a detailed record-keeping solution for valuable property held in trust, including descriptions, dates, values, and recipient details, meeting the standards of subsection 18(9).

6. Monthly Trust Reconciliation and Comparison

  • Retention Period: 10 years plus current

  • Summary: Monthly comparisons of trust account balances against accounting records, with explanations for discrepancies, required by subsection 18(8).

7. Remote identity verification

Other By-Law 9 Requirements

TrustReq's development prioritizes features that address the specific and often complex requirements of By-Law 9. Some record-keeping tasks are already effectively managed by other software solutions, so TrustReq aims to provide robust tools for the more nuanced aspects of compliance. Our ongoing and future developments are aligned with this goal, ensuring that law firms have the specialized support they need. For these reasons, we encourage users to engage with TrustReq as a compliment to their overall legal accounting software environment.

We are committed to continuous improvement and welcome feedback from our users to refine and expand our feature set. Together, we can ensure that your firm remains compliant with all By-Law 9 record-keeping requirements.

The following is a list of other By-Law 9 record keeping requirements that may or may not become a part of our feature set. Keep in mind that we are also working on features for law firms that are not stated on this page, nor disclosed to the public generally, but are designed to improve the overall compliance practices of law firms in a way that provides meaningful and functional value to legal professionals in Canada.

1. Trust Receipts & Disbursements Journal

  • Retention Period: 10 years plus current

  • Planned Features: A journal to log all trust money received and disbursed for clients, including dates, amounts, methods, document identifiers, and purposes, as required by subsections 18(1) and (2).

2. Client Trust Ledger

  • Retention Period: 10 years plus current

  • Planned Features: A record showing all money received and disbursed for each client separately, along with any unexpended balances, in line with subsection 18(3).

3. Trust to Trust Transfer Journal

  • Retention Period: 6 years plus current

  • Planned Features: A record of all trust money transfers between client trust ledger accounts with explanations for each transfer, complying with subsection 18(4).

4. General Receipts & Disbursements Journal

  • Retention Period: 6 years plus current

  • Planned Features: A journal for all non-trust money transactions, detailing dates, methods, amounts, document identifiers, and recipient details, as per subsections 18(5) and (6).

5. Fees Book or Chronological File of Copies of Billings

  • Retention Period: 6 years plus current

  • Planned Features: A record of all fees and billings to clients, including dates, clients, and amounts, following subsection 18(7).

6. Bank Statements or Pass Books, Cashed Cheques, Detailed Duplicate Deposit Slips

  • Retention Period: 10 years plus current

  • Planned Features: Keeping detailed records for all trust and general accounts, ensuring compliance with subsection 18(10).

PreviousTrustReq Referral rewards programNextTerms of Use

Last updated 2 months ago

Summary: Effective January 1, 2024, lawyers and paralegals who choose to verify the identity of an individual using video conferencing technology or other forms of virtual communication are required to have a process or method to authenticate the individual’s government-issued photo identification document. Verifying identity by only viewing an individual and their identity document virtually is . Our IDV system complies with the complex requirements of this obligation.

not permitted