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Regulation & complaints
When you trust a professional with something important — your health, your finances, your legal rights, your home — you expect them to get it right. When they don’t, the harm can be real and lasting. You may be dealing with financial loss you didn’t cause, a health outcome that should never have happened, or a situation that has spiralled because of someone else’s failure.
The instinct to report what happened is a reasonable one. Lodging a complaint with the relevant professional regulator is a legitimate step. But Australia’s system of professional regulation is built around conduct and standards — not compensation. Regulators can investigate, discipline, and sanction. What they cannot do is recover your losses.
This hub explains how the regulatory complaints system works, which body oversees which profession, and — critically — when a legal negligence claim may be the right path alongside, or instead of, a formal complaint.
HOW THE SYSTEM WORKS
Australia does not have a single regulator for all professionals. Instead, each profession is overseen by its own designated authority — typically a national body, a state-based board, or a combination of both. These bodies set the standards professionals must meet, handle licensing and registration, and investigate complaints when something goes wrong.
What regulators can do is significant. They can investigate the conduct of a professional, require them to answer for their actions, impose conditions on their practice, suspend their registration, or cancel it entirely. In serious cases, they can refer matters for prosecution.
What they cannot do is equally important to understand. A regulator has no power to award you compensation. It cannot order a professional to reimburse your financial losses, cover your medical costs, or make good the damage caused by their failure. Its role is to protect the public going forward — not to restore what you have already lost.
This is the most important distinction to understand before deciding how to proceed. A successful complaint may result in the professional being reprimanded or deregistered. It will not put money in your pocket or repair the harm you have experienced. That is what a legal claim is for.
Australia regulates professionals profession-by-profession. Below is a reference guide to the key bodies and what they can — and cannot — do for you.
AHPRA is the national body responsible for registering and regulating health practitioners across Australia. It covers more than fifteen registered health professions — including doctors, nurses, midwives, dentists, pharmacists, psychologists, physiotherapists, and paramedics. AHPRA investigates complaints about clinical conduct, professional behaviour, and fitness to practise. It can impose conditions on registration, suspend a practitioner, or cancel their registration entirely. AHPRA cannot award compensation or financial redress. If you have suffered measurable harm as a result of a health professional's failure, a separate medical negligence claim may be available. AHPRA complaints and medical negligence claims
The regulation of solicitors and barristers in Australia is handled at the state and territory level — there is no single national complaints body for lawyers. Depending on where you are located, complaints may be made to the relevant Law Society, Legal Services Commissioner, or Legal Services Board. These bodies handle complaints about legal practitioners' conduct, including overcharging, conflicts of interest, trust account irregularities, and failures to act competently. If a solicitor missed a limitation period, gave you incorrect legal advice, or failed to act on your instructions in a way that cost you financially, a solicitor negligence claim through the courts is the appropriate pathway for financial recovery. Law Society complaints and solicitor negligence
ASIC is Australia's corporate, markets, and financial services regulator. It oversees financial advisers, credit licensees, insurance brokers, and mortgage brokers, among others. ASIC enforces the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) and can take action against individuals or licensees who breach financial services law. Importantly, ASIC does not resolve individual disputes — the Australian Financial Complaints Authority (AFCA) is the relevant external dispute resolution scheme for individual matters. If a financial adviser's negligent advice has caused you significant financial loss, a legal negligence claim may also be available. ASIC, AFCA and financial adviser negligence
APRA supervises banks, superannuation funds, and insurance companies. Its remit is the financial safety and soundness of these institutions — it is a systemic regulator, not a consumer complaints body. APRA does not handle individual complaints. If you have a dispute with a bank, insurer, or superannuation fund, AFCA is the relevant scheme. If the conduct of a professional within one of these institutions has caused you measurable loss, a legal negligence claim may also be worth exploring. APRA and financial institution negligence
The Tax Practitioners Board registers and regulates tax agents, BAS agents, and tax (financial) advisers across Australia. It investigates complaints about practitioners who breach the Tax Agent Services Act 2009 (Cth), including unregistered practitioners and code of conduct breaches. The TPB can impose sanctions including termination of registration. It cannot award compensation. If an accountant's error has triggered an ATO audit, penalties, or significant financial damage, a legal negligence claim is the appropriate avenue for recovery. Tax Practitioners Board and accountant negligence
The regulation of engineers in Australia varies by state. Some states have formal registration schemes — Queensland and Victoria, for example, have state-based registration boards. Engineers Australia, as the peak professional association, also maintains a conduct and ethics framework for members. Complaints can be made to the relevant state board or Engineers Australia. For structural failures, design defects, or inspection failures that have caused property damage or financial loss, a legal negligence claim is typically necessary alongside any regulatory process.
The AASW is the professional association for social workers in Australia. It maintains a Code of Ethics and handles complaints about members alleged to have breached professional standards. The AASW process is a professional conduct mechanism — it can result in disciplinary outcomes for members, but does not provide compensation for individuals harmed by a social worker's failure. If a social worker's negligent conduct has caused you measurable harm, a legal claim may be available depending on the circumstances.
Most professional regulators follow a similar complaints process, though the specifics vary by profession and jurisdiction. Generally, anyone directly affected by a professional’s conduct — or in some cases a third party — can lodge a formal complaint.
You will typically be required to describe what happened, identify the professional and when the conduct occurred, and provide any supporting documentation. Regulators will then assess whether the complaint falls within their jurisdiction and whether it warrants investigation.
Investigations can be slow. It is not uncommon for a regulatory complaint to take six to eighteen months to resolve — and in complex cases, longer. Possible outcomes range from no further action, through informal resolution, to formal disciplinary proceedings, conditions on practice, suspension, or cancellation of registration.
What will not happen at the end of a regulatory process — regardless of the outcome — is financial compensation flowing to you. Many people who have been through this process feel the outcome did not reflect the seriousness of what happened. That reflects the fact that regulators are not designed to deliver personal redress. A legal claim operates differently, and for many people, it is the more appropriate path.
Know the difference
This is the distinction that matters most, and it is one that is not always explained clearly. Both pathways can be pursued at the same time. A regulatory finding — positive or negative — does not determine the outcome of a legal claim. Courts assess negligence independently. A legal claim is the only pathway that can result in financial recovery for what you have been through.
Complaint to a regulator
Asks: did this professional behave appropriately?
Legal negligence claim
Asks: did their failure cause me measurable loss?
Many people pursue both simultaneously — and that is a legitimate approach. A free case evaluation can clarify whether a legal claim is available alongside any complaint you have already lodged. For a more detailed comparison, see our guide: Complaint vs. legal claim — what’s the difference?
Act before time runs out
In most Australian states, professional negligence claims must be commenced within 3 years of the date you became aware — or reasonably should have become aware — of the negligence. This timeframe varies by state and by the nature of the claim. Importantly, lodging a complaint with a regulator does not pause or extend your legal time limit. Both processes run on independent clocks. If you are unsure whether your limitation period is still open, contact our team for a free assessment as soon as possible.
Is a legal claim right for you?
A legal negligence claim may be available to you if any of the following apply to your situation. You do not need to have already lodged a complaint, and you do not need to wait for a complaint to be finalised before acting.
Why Fair Go Australia
Our specialist professional negligence lawyers focus exclusively on claims where a professional has failed a client and caused measurable harm. We do not handle general litigation. This is all we do — and that focus means our experienced legal team understands the specific standards that apply to each profession, and how to build a claim that reflects them.
Our Australia-wide coverage means it does not matter where the professional was based or where you are located. We can assist you regardless of your state or territory, and we handle the process remotely where needed.
We offer a free case evaluation as your first step. There is no cost, no obligation, and nothing you need to prepare in advance. We will listen to what happened, ask the questions that help us understand whether a claim is viable, and give you a straight answer. If there is a case worth pursuing, we will tell you how we can help.
We operate on a no-win, no-fee basis — which means the financial barrier to getting proper legal advice is removed. You should not have to absorb the cost of finding out whether you have a right to claim.
A free case evaluation takes the guesswork out of what comes next. Our team will review your situation, explain whether a legal claim is available alongside any complaint you have already lodged, and give you a straight answer — at no cost and with no obligation to proceed.
Common questions
Yes. A complaint to a professional regulator and a legal negligence claim are separate processes that can be pursued simultaneously. Lodging a complaint does not affect your right to make a legal claim, and beginning a legal claim does not prevent you from reporting a professional to their regulator. The two pathways serve different purposes — one addresses professional conduct, the other addresses financial recovery — and neither is a substitute for the other.
Regulators can investigate the conduct of the professional, require them to explain their actions, and impose a range of outcomes — from an informal caution through to formal disciplinary action, conditions on their registration, suspension, or cancellation of their licence to practise. In serious cases, they may refer matters to another authority for prosecution. What they cannot do is compensate you for the loss you have suffered. Their role is to protect the public and maintain standards, not to restore your individual position.
No. AHPRA and other professional regulators do not have the power to award compensation to individuals. A complaint may result in disciplinary action against the practitioner, which may give you some sense of accountability. But if you have suffered financial loss, physical harm, or other measurable damage as a result of a professional’s failure, a legal negligence claim through the courts is the only pathway that can result in compensation being paid to you.
It depends on the complexity of the claim and whether it settles or proceeds to a hearing. Many professional negligence claims resolve through negotiation and settlement without reaching court — this can happen within several months to a year or two of the claim being formally commenced. More complex matters, or those that proceed to trial, can take longer. A free case evaluation will give you a clearer sense of the likely timeframe for your specific situation.
Yes. A regulator’s finding — whether it finds fault or not — does not determine the outcome of a legal negligence claim. Courts assess negligence independently, applying legal principles around duty of care, breach, causation, and loss. A regulator may decline to take action for reasons entirely unrelated to whether a legal duty was breached. If you believe you have suffered loss due to a professional’s failure, a regulatory outcome does not close the door on a legal claim.
It depends on the nature of the complaint. ASIC oversees the licensing and conduct of financial advisers and can take enforcement action for serious breaches of financial services law. However, ASIC does not resolve individual consumer disputes. The Australian Financial Complaints Authority (AFCA) is the external dispute resolution scheme that handles individual complaints against financial advisers, mortgage brokers, insurers, and other financial service providers. If a financial adviser’s negligent advice has caused you significant financial loss, a legal negligence claim may also be available — a free case evaluation can help clarify whether that applies to your situation.
Our goal is to help people in the best way possible. this is a basic principle in every case and cause for success. contact us today for a free consultation.
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