What is the difference between controlled money and investment money?

Essentially, the only difference is how the money is dealt with in the trust accounting records.

Both controlled money and investment money are trust money that is invested on behalf of the client so that the client receives the interest earned on the money. Money held in a general trust does not earn interest for the benefit of the client. Interest on this money is paid to the Department of Justice & Attorney General's Legal Practitioners Interest on Trust Accounts Fund ("LPITAF").

If a client provides trust money to a law practice and instructs the law practice to invest the money so that the client receives the interest on the money, the law practice can either:

1. issue a trust account receipt, deposit the money to a general trust account, withdraw the money from the general trust account and deposit the money to an investment account opened in the name of the law practice as trustee for the client - the invested money will be accounted for in the Investment Register and must be returned to the general trust account before the money is distributed to the client or as the client directs; or
2. issue a controlled money receipt, open a controlled money bank account in the name of the law practice as trustee for the client and deposit the money to that controlled bank account - the controlled money will be accounted for in the Controlled Money Register and can be distributed to the client, or as the client directs, from the controlled money account.