The short answer
A law firm needs to screen every client, and the beneficial owners behind corporate clients, against PEP, sanctions and adverse-media data, then keep monitoring them as matters run. The best fit is software that handles both individual and business screening in one place, records every decision for your file, and lets everyone who opens a matter run a check without a per-seat cost.
What matters for a legal practice
Law firms have a particular shape of risk: many clients, corporate structures behind them, and partners who each open matters. These four criteria reflect that.
Screen individuals and, for corporate clients, the entity and its ultimate beneficial owners. KYB in the same workflow saves chasing ownership data separately.
A client cleared at intake can change status mid-matter. Automated re-screening with alerts keeps you current without re-running checks by hand.
AML software law firms compare
MemberCheck is our own platform, so its capabilities are set out in full, with every other vendor kept to a neutral, factual summary from their own public materials. Confirm current details with each provider.
MemberCheck is an Australian-built AML platform, running PEP and sanctions screening since 2008. For a law firm, it handles individual client screening and corporate KYB in one workflow, keeps monitoring clients as matters run, and lets the whole firm screen without per-seat costs.
Founded in Australia and New Zealand and widely used by professional-services firms, First AML focuses on client onboarding and due-diligence collection, including beneficial-ownership mapping, using integrated third-party data across more than 300 corporate registries and data sources. ISO/IEC 27001:2022 certified, with dedicated Tranche 2 guidance for legal practices.
MemberCheck — Our platform
MemberCheck is an Australian-built AML platform, running PEP and sanctions screening since 2008. For a law firm, it handles individual client screening and corporate KYB in one workflow, keeps monitoring clients as matters run, and lets the whole firm screen without per-seat costs.
- PEP, sanctions and adverse-media screening across 1,000+ global watchlists, including the DFAT Consolidated List
- KYB and beneficial-ownership verification for corporate clients, alongside individual screening
- Daily ongoing monitoring with alerts only when a client's risk changes
- Exportable due-diligence and activity reports for your matter file
- Unlimited users with no per-seat fee, so every partner and paralegal can screen
- AML consulting and Compliance as a Business if the firm wants help standing up its programme
First AML — Also consider
Founded in Australia and New Zealand and widely used by professional-services firms, First AML focuses on client onboarding and due-diligence collection, including beneficial-ownership mapping, using integrated third-party data across more than 300 corporate registries and data sources. ISO/IEC 27001:2022 certified, with dedicated Tranche 2 guidance for legal practices.
ComplyAdvantage — Also consider
A London-headquartered provider, founded in 2014, running its own AI-native platform (Mesh) on a proprietary risk database, delivered API-first with a dashboard also available. ISO/IEC 27001:2022 certified. Best suited to firms with technical resource that want to embed screening into their own systems.
World-Check (LSEG) — Also consider
LSEG's risk-intelligence database of over 4 million records across 240 countries and territories, screened through the World-Check One platform and its APIs, certified to ISAE 3000 for its sanctions process. Built for very large institutions on enterprise subscriptions.
LexisNexis — Also consider
Enterprise financial-crime data through the WorldCompliance dataset (more than 8 million profiles across 250 countries, monitored in 58 languages) and the Bridger Insight XG screening engine. Sold on enterprise contracts and aimed at very large compliance functions.
Preparing your firm for Tranche 2?
Book a 15-minute call and see how client screening, KYB and ongoing monitoring map to your firm's obligations.
This guide is written for compliance and risk teams evaluating AML technology. Facts about other vendors are taken from their own public materials at August 2026 and can change over time, so verify current specifications and pricing directly with each provider. First AML, ComplyAdvantage, Mesh, World-Check, World-Check One, LSEG, LexisNexis, WorldCompliance and Bridger Insight XG are trademarks of their respective owners and are used here only to identify and compare the products.
This page gives general information about AML/CTF software and obligations and is not legal advice. Firms should seek their own advice on their obligations under the AML/CTF Act and AUSTRAC guidance.