Conveyancer or solicitor: who should handle your property settlement?

"Conveyancer" and "solicitor" are often used almost interchangeably when people talk about buying or selling a home, and for a straightforward transaction the day-to-day work the two do can look very similar. Underneath that, though, the two are genuinely different professions with different training, different scope of practice, and — in a couple of states — different rules about how they are allowed to operate.

The qualification path is the clearest difference. A solicitor completes a four-year law degree followed by practical legal training before being admitted to practise, and that broader legal training means a solicitor can generally advise across other areas of law as well as property, and can typically pivot to help if an unexpected legal issue — a dispute, an unusual title, a deceased estate — comes up mid-transaction. A licensed conveyancer typically completes a diploma in conveyancing followed by supervised practical experience, and their licence is specifically for property transactions rather than law in general.

Scope of practice follows from that training difference. A conveyancer's expertise and licensing is squarely focused on the conveyancing transaction itself — contract review, searches, settlement coordination — which is exactly what most residential purchases and sales need, and is a large part of why conveyancers are commonly the more cost-effective choice for a standard transaction, as our separate article on conveyancing costs describes. A solicitor's licence, once admitted, generally extends further, giving more flexibility if the transaction turns out to involve something outside a standard sale, such as a legal dispute or an overlap with another area of law.

There is also a state-based rule worth knowing before you choose. In Queensland and the ACT, licensed conveyancers are required to work within a law firm alongside a solicitor rather than run an independent conveyancing business — so a conveyancer in those jurisdictions is still supervised within a legal practice. In New South Wales and Victoria, by contrast, licensed conveyancers can and commonly do run independent conveyancing businesses without being attached to a law firm. This affects how the market is structured in each state more than it affects the quality of the service, but it is a genuine structural difference worth being aware of.

For a straightforward residential purchase or sale with no unusual complications, a licensed conveyancer is commonly the choice most buyers and sellers make, largely on cost and because the transaction sits squarely within a conveyancer's core expertise. Where a transaction looks likely to involve something beyond a standard settlement — a contested boundary, a complicated deceased estate, or a dispute with the other party — engaging a solicitor from the outset, rather than switching partway through, is a pattern commonly seen in more complex matters, since it avoids duplicating work already done.

This article describes general differences between the two professions and is not advice on which is right for your specific transaction. Requirements and typical practice can vary by state and by the individual matter, so discussing your specific situation directly with a conveyancer or solicitor is worthwhile if you are unsure. Our directory lists both licensed conveyancers and property solicitors across Australia by area if you are ready to compare.

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