Are law firms subject to AML obligations?
In most major jurisdictions — yes, when providing certain "designated" services. The EU (AMLR), UK (MLRs 2017), Canada (with the long-running Federation of Law Societies litigation history), Singapore, and most FATF members already include independent legal professionals as obliged entities. Australia brings legal practitioners in scope on 1 July 2026 under the tranche 2 reforms. The United States historically does not regulate lawyers federally for AML; the gatekeeper rules in the AML Act 2020 study and various state bar initiatives are narrowing this gap.