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Legal aid sector on ‘brink of failure’
Rising demands and an urgent need for increased funding may lead to the collapse of Australia’s legal aid sector, a report has found.
Naomi Neilson
Websites and hotlines across Australia’s legal aid sector have experienced a doubling and tripling in demands over recent years, but investments in these programs have remained stagnant – and may mean the end of a sector of law vital to those who need it most.
Executive director Katherine McKernan said there is a “longstanding gap between legal assistance need and legal assistance funding”.
“Ten years ago, the Productivity Commission recommended the government invest in legal assistance to fix this system, but the problem was ignored,” Ms McKernan said.
“Ten years on, the direct and indirect costs of inaction have multiplied.
“This unmet legal need disproportionately impacts disadvantaged communities, including First Nations people, people living with disability, and poor people.”
The report determined that the sector would need $484 million per year to survive, which it would use to then expand its family and civil law areas, provide greater access under the means test, and increase the fees for private practitioners.
If this is done, National Legal Aid said it could deliver $600 million in economic and social benefits, including cost savings from dispute resolutions, improved livelihoods, and reduced government costs.
In addition to the costs-saving measures, the investment would improve the “justice deficit”, with only 8 per cent of households now meeting the strict income tests to access legal aid.
One of the report’s authors, Dr Emily Millane, from Impact Economics and Policy, said the annual cost of maintaining the sector would increase if the government continues to ignore the need for necessary investment.
“Denied justice costs more in the long run. Economic costs, health costs, and ultimately, costs to wellbeing,” Dr Millane said.
Naomi Neilson
Naomi Neilson is a senior journalist with a focus on court reporting for Lawyers Weekly.
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