Help
Background Information / Required Software
The Precedents are downloaded to your hard drive in a zipped (or compressed)
file. If you do not already have an unzipping program you will need to download
a small free program called "Freezip 1.4.8"
to open the zipped file. Downloading Freezip is simple, free and needs only to
be done once. Instructions for downloading Freezip are below. For more
information about FreeZip please visit the
FreeZip site
You will need to be running Microsoft Word 97 or Word 2000. If you use Word 6
you will need to download the Word 97
converter file to read the documents.
Please note that all these downloads are available on Law Society Online (that
is, you will be able to download the programs once you have logged on). All
software downloads are free and only need to be downloaded once.
Getting Started
-
Go to http://www.lawsociety.com.au/precedents/
-
Click on 'Licensee Login'
-
Type in your Login (which is your firm number) and your password. If you have forgotten your
password, go to 'Help' and complete the "I've forgotten my password" form. The
Precedents Administrator will contact you on receipt of this form and tell you
your password after verifying your details. Once you have typed in your login
and password, click 'Login.' You will see once you have logged in that you have
a number of options:
-
Download Freezip. In order to do this, click on this link to
Freezip. If you are using Internet Explorer another box will open.
Click the "Save this program to disk" option. A dialogue box will then open
asking you where to save the program. It is recommended that you save it to the
'Program files' directory on your C drive (c:\program files). Click Save. Next
go to Windows Explorer, open c:\program files, find Freezip and double click on
it. A Licence Agreement will open. Click 'Yes.' You have now downloaded Freezip
successfully and won't need to do it again.
-
Download Adobe
Acrobat Reader or Word 97 converter
if required.
You are now ready to download the Precedents.
Browser Requirements
You will need to use IE 5 or later browser, with cookies
enabled.
Instructions for downloading and printing Precedents
This is a four-step process.
-
Download the Updates (or suite)
-
Unzip the compressed file through Windows Explorer
-
Save the documents in your hard drive (and replace old documents) through
Windows Explorer
-
Print the Precedents
These instructions will take you through this process. It may be confusing the
first time you do it but persevere. If you have problems, please do not
hesitate to call 02 9926 0278.
1. Download the Updates (or suite)
The Law Society Precedents are updated when required. The hard copy of the
Updates contains an Index and a set of filing instructions which gives
information about the Precedents that have been updated. In order to download
the Updates you are licensed for do the following:
1.1. Select the updates, documents or suite(s) you wish to download. If you are
using Netscape Explorer once you click 'Download' a dialogue box headed
'Unknown File Type' will open. Click on 'Save file.' If you are using Internet
Explorer a dialogue box headed 'File Download' will open. Click on "Save this
file to disk."
1.2. Select the directory you wish to save the updates to. It is recommended that
you save them to the Desktop:
1.3 Click Save and a zipped (or compressed) file will be downloaded to the
directory you have selected. If you do not save to the Desktop, it is
recommended that you note the directory where you have saved the zipped file.
For example, c:\temp. The time taken to download the file depends on
the size of the file that you are downloading and the speed of your Internet
connection. Once the download has finished the dialogue box will disappear.
2. Unzip the compressed file through Windows Explorer
2.1. Go into Windows Explorer and open the folder you downloaded the zipped file
to (eg Desktop). If you have downloaded the zipped file to your Desktop,
minimise all Windows to view the Desktop. You will see the zipped file you have
just downloaded there. It is named prec[date]. That is, if it was downloaded on
25 August 2000 it is 'prec20000825'
2.2 Double click on this file. Depending on how many suites are included in the
download, a folder (or folders) will appear as follows:
3. Save the documents in your hard drive (and replace old documents) through
Windows Explorer
3.1. While on the Desktop, double click on one of the folders that has opened
and another folder or folders will open entitled 'doc' and/or 'pdf' The doc
folder has the Word documents and the PDF the PDF files. If you double click on
'Doc' the Word documents will open as follows:
3.2. In order to copy these files into your Precedents directory, click "Select
All" and "Copy" and then paste them into your Precedents directory.
3.3. Repeat for all the Updates you wish to open (both for the 'doc' and 'pdf'
files).
4. Print the Precedents
Precedents in all Suites can be printed from Microsoft Word. Family Law and ASIC
Suites contain prescribed forms so it is recommended that you print (or view)
the documents in Adobe PDF format. In order to print or view documents in Adobe
PDF format you will need to download the free
Adobe Acrobat reader.
To Print from Microsoft Word
To print individual Precedents simply select Print when you have the Precedent open
in Microsoft Word.
To print Suites and Updates: Please note that the Suites and Updates
often contain a large amount of pages. For example, the Conveyancing Suite
contains over 590 pages. Check the number of pages before you decide to Print
the whole Suite. To print the entire Suite or the updates to a Suite:
-
Open the directory where you have placed the Precedents
-
Select all the documents by clicking on the first one, holding down
<Shift> and then pressing the Down arrow key until all are selected.
-
While pointing at the contents of the dialogue box click the right mouse
button. A menu will appear. Click Print.
To Print the PDF version (for Family and ASIC Suites)
The first step is to download the free
Adobe Acrobat reader. This only needs to be done once.
Once you have downloaded the PDF documents to your hard drive (link here to
instructions for downloading) you can print individual documents as required by
opening the document and then selecting 'Print' or printing from the dialogue
box by selecting the document you wish to print, right clicking your mouse and
selecting 'Print.'
Please note that the Suites and Updates often contain a large amount of pages.
For example, the Conveyancing Suite contains over 590 pages. Check the number
of pages before you decide to Print the whole Suite. To print the entire Suite
or the updates to a Suite:
-
Open the directory where you have placed the PDFs
-
Select all the PDFs by clicking on the first one, holding down <Shift>
and then pressing the Down arrow key until all are selected.
-
While pointing at the contents of the dialogue box click the right mouse
button. A menu will appear. Click Print.
Your Licence Details
This screen gives you the current licence details we have for your firm
including the number of Suites you are licensed for. If you wish to change any
of these details click on "Change Details" and complete the form. This is then
emailed to our Precedents Administrator who will confirm with you the changes
that need to be made.
Your Download History
This screen will give you details of the dates Suites, Updates or individual
Precedents that have been downloaded by your firm so you can keep track of
Precedents.
Forms
Follow the links below to our online forms:
Frequently Asked Questions
1. I' ve forgotten my password.
Complete the I' ve forgotten my password form.
The Precedents Administrator will contact you on receipt of this form and tell
you your password after verifying your details.
2. How do I print?
Print
Instructions
3. How will I be notified when there is an update?
You will be notified by email when updates are available. If you need to change
your contact details complete the Change
Licence details form.
4. How do I know why a Precedent has been changed?
Each time a Precedent is updated we provide the reason(s) for the change. These
reasons are contained in the Filing Instructions. In order to view or print the
Filing Instructions you will need to have downloaded
the hardcopy for that particular suite.
5. What Word Processing Format are the Precedents in?
The Law Society Precedents are provided in Microsoft Word for Windows 97. If you
are using Word 6 you will need a file converter to read Word 97 documents. Open
the Word 97 file converter.
Information for Microsoft Word Users
This information is based on common inquiries directed to the Law Society by
users of the Law Society Precedents.
Word Processing Format
The Law Society Precedents are provided in Microsoft Word for Windows 97. If you
are using Word 6 you will need a file converter to read Word 97 documents.
Please contact The Law Society and we will send you the converter, or you may
download it.
File Identification
The computer files have the same naming conventions as the hardcopy references,
for example LEA6.doc is a 'Deed of Guarantee' precedent within the Lease suite
of Precedents. For a list of file naming conventions see Appendix A.
Text and Variable Fields
The Law Society Precedents are essentially text documents with formatted
variable fields. The variables within a document are distinguished by slashes
and sequential numbers, for example, //1//, //2//, //2a//.
The Law Society Precedents are not distributed with merge codes embedded within
the variable fields, therefore there are also no variable text datafiles.
Document Security
The Law Society Precedents are not distributed as protected or secure documents.
The documents can therefore be changed by anyone with access to them. Care must
be taken not to over-write the original precedent unless it is intended to make
an alteration to the original.
As the documents are not protected any edit functions (eg tabs, carriage
returns) outside of the designated variable fields will also affect and change
the document format, for example, inserting an extra line or pushing text from
one page to another.
Text Boxes/Tables
Some precedent forms contain text boxes and specific cell heights in tables,
which prevent you from accidentally modifying text box sizes. If you are unable
to fit your text into one of the boxes either reduce the font size or type 'See
Annexure' and attach an annexure to the end of the precedent.
Times New Roman Font
The font used in most of the Precedents and forms is regular Times New Roman.
The point size (eg 9, 10, 11,12, 13) can vary depending on the document or
form. In some prescribed forms other fonts such as Arial are also used to
accomplish the required formatting features. Your printer will need to be able
to print Times New Roman font to be able to use the Precedents. The printer
setup is for a generic printer type that should work with most printers.
Numbering Consistency
The Law Society has been working to introduce consistency to the numbering of
variable fields in each of its precedent suites. This means, for example, that
variable //1// in each form or precedent of a particular suite will always be
the matter number field and //2// the applicant's name and so on.
All precedent suites have number consistency except for Conveyancing - Mortgage
and Wills.
Index Document
The precedent suites each have an index document which is identified by the
prefix of the precedent suite. The Word Bankruptcy index file for example is
'bnkindex.doc.' A hardcopy of the index file is also found in the precedent
folders. The index lists each file with a description, for example:
BNK1 Bankruptcy Notice
BNK2 Trustee's account of receipts and payments
The index document also provides a list of standard variables for each suite
where variable number consistency has been introduced.
Hidden text
Explanatory author notes and special instructions for completing Precedents are
contained in the Word Precedents as hidden text. If you are not familiar with
hidden text, click the Show/Hide button () on the toolbar to display hidden
text. If, for example, you work with your show/hide button off, some Precedents
may appear to have a blank first page.
The 'Print Preview' function ignores hidden text and displays text on the screen
as it will print. (N.B. depends on settings). At the time of printing a
document, an option is given to print with or without hidden text, otherwise
the operator may chose to print from page 2 to exclude the hidden text page.
Retrieving a Precedent
From Word select File from the menu, then Open. Find and select
the appropriate precedent. Please note, you will retrieve the original
precedent. Rename the document immediately to avoid over-writing the original
precedent.
You may also protect your original Precedents from being accidentally
over-written by making them read-only.
Alternatively, select File then New to open a blank document. Then
find and open the precedent document and either 'Select All' from the Edit
menu, or Ctrl A, to copy all of the text. Paste the text into the blank
document. When finished processing the precedent give the document another name
(the blank document has a generic name 'Document [number]') and save it to the
hard disk.
You can also open a blank document and use the Insert File option.
View - The view options are Normal, Page Layout or outline. Which view option
you have selected influences what you see on the screen. The usual view for the
Precedents is normal. View options can be set by document defaults and in the
Normal.dot file.
Moving from Variable to Variable
The most efficient way to move through the document from one variable to another
is as follows:
F11 function (Field Codes)
All precedent suites except Wills incorporate the F11 function.
Field Codes, or the F11 function, work so that when you press F11 your cursor
automatically moves to and highlights the next variable. You can then either
delete or type over the variable eg // 1 //. Variables are highlighted in those
Precedents which incorporate the F11 function. N.B. cursor will also stop at
Field Codes eg date code, cross referencing.
Find Function
In the event the precedent is not coded with Form Field Variables, the following
would be the better alternative:
Make sure the cursor is at the top of the document. Select Edit from the
menu then Find. The Find dialogue box will open. At 'Find What' type //
and click Find Next. The // in the first variable will be highlighted. Click
once on the highlighted variable. You can now type in the variable information
without closing out of the Edit Find Dialogue box. After you have typed in the
variable information, click on Find Next to proceed to the next
variable. Once you have completed all the variables, close the Edit Find
Dialogue box by either pressing Esc or click on the Cancel button
in the dialogue box.
A variation is to select the Find option 'Pattern Matching'. At 'Find
What', type //*// and work your way through the document. Please note, this
pattern match also highlights the last two // from a variable and the first two
// from the next variable and any text in between eg:
//5 [// to be my proxy //] 6//.
Click on Find Next to proceed to the next variable.
As a pattern match you can also use a question mark. A single ? will replace one
character, two ?? two characters and so on. Therefore //?// will find numbers
1-9 but not 10-99 or combinations such as //4a//.
Point & Click
Alternatively, you can position your cursor on the first variable and click with
the left mouse button to highlight the variable field and then begin typing.
You can then work your way through the document by 'pointing and clicking'.
|