Queensland Consolidated Acts Queensland Consolidated Acts(1) This section applies if an amount payable by a legally assisted person to Legal Aid under section 36(2) or 38(1) is not paid when it becomes due.
(2) The amount may be recovered by Legal Aid as a debt in a court of competent jurisdiction.
(3) Until payment or recovery, the amount is a first charge in favour of Legal Aid on any property of which the person's ownership or entitlement is preserved, or which is actually recovered, because of the judgment, order, settlement or compromise mentioned in section 36(1).
(4) Legal Aid may enforce the charge as if it had been given to Legal Aid under a written agreement between Legal Aid and the legally assisted person.
(5) A conveyance or act done to defeat, or purporting to operate so as to defeat, the charge is void against Legal Aid.
(6) Subsection (5) does not apply to a transfer or conveyance of the property to a genuine purchaser for value without notice of Legal Aid's interest under the charge.
(7) The charge is declared to be a statutory interest to which section 73(2) of the Personal Property Securities Act 2009 (Cwlth) applies.
(8) If the proceeds of sale of property are more than the amount payable to Legal Aid, Legal Aid must pay the balance of the proceeds in the following order—
(a) if there is an amount owing to an entity under a security interest registered for the property under the Personal Property Securities Act 2009 (Cwlth)—in payment of the amount owing under the security interest;
(b) in payment of any balance to the legally assisted person.