As a new-look Federal Parliament prepares to sit in July, Queensland Law Society is supporting the Law Council of Australia’s national campaign to encourage barristers and solicitors to write to their newly elected or re-elected members.
Elizabeth Shearer, Chair of the QLS Access to Justice Pro Bono Committee and LCA Treasurer, said the funding of delivery of legal aid by the private profession was critical in Australia.
“At the start of a new term of parliament, we want to make sure that every elected representative in Australia is alerted to the access to justice crisis, particularly in regional Australia, caused by the failure to support private lawyers who want to do legal aid work,” Elizabeth said.
“We encourage practitioners to tell their own story in their letter to their MP, explaining why this matters so much to the profession and the community.
“But we know how busy everyone is, so there is a template letter, prepared by the Law Council, that you can easily adapt.
“It would be great if, after practitioners send their letter, they also send a copy to us. Our committee would really value hearing how this issue is impacting solicitors in Queensland and being able to see how many MPs QLS members are able to engage with.”
She said it was important all members of parliament understand that this “isn’t about greedy lawyers seeking more money”.
“It’s about small businesses wanting to do legal aid work, but not being able to do that and keep their doors open to serve their communities,” she said.
“The QLS Access to Justice Pro Bono Committee is encouraging all our QLS members to get involved in this campaign, and write to your federal MP about the issue. Even better, call them up and make a time to go and see them.”
Elizabeth said the National Legal Aid’s Private Practitioner 2024 Census report highlighted the remarkable dedication of private practitioners across Australia who deliver legal aid.
“The majority of whom are women and from sole or small practices, despite the very real financial, administrative, and emotional pressures this can create,” she said.
“The private profession delivers over 70 per cent of the more than 150,000 legal aid grants nationally. However, the rates paid to lawyers for legal aid work are so low, that in many cases it is not enough to cover overheads, particularly after the cost-of-living challenges of recent years.
“Consequently, firms are very reluctantly having to make the decision to stop doing legal aid work. This is creating an access to justice crisis with devastating impacts on the vulnerable Australians who rely on this assistance.”
Practitioners can now access the template letter.
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