Ways to get help
Disbursements are expenses other than legal fees (e.g. photocopying costs, court fees). You should confirm with your lawyer whether you are required to pay for disbursements and ask for an estimate of the amount of disbursements likely to be payable. Children's Court of Victoria (ChCV) acknowledges Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as the First Peoples and Traditional Owners and Custodians of the land and waterways upon which our lives depend.
A 20 minute appointment costs $35 (or $25 for pension and concession card holders). Member firms benefit from Justice Connect’s innovative solicitors in canterbury approach to improving access to justice. Different members can access to Justice Connect’s Pro Bono Portal, generalist legal clinics and specialist referral services. You can read about membership options on the membership page of its website. Support for women attending court is provided by the Women's Domestic Violence Court Advocacy Service. The Children's Court Assistance Scheme provides legal assistance to children.
Some of these organisations have the capacity to legally represent you in your matter, while others provide free legal advice and guide you in the right direction. We do not provide legal advice, and we cannot refer your matter to a law firm. However, we have included some information below about organisations that do provide legal help. Please contact these organisations directly to ask if they can assist you.
If you’re representing yourself in your matter, then you won’t have to pay a cent for legal advice. Further, the internet means you can find a lot of useful information which may be relevant to your case online. However, self-representation is usually not recommended for those who do not have a good working knowledge of the law.
Once we have referred you to the pro bono law firm who has agreed to help with your matter, you will then be a client of that law firm, and not a client of Justice Connect. Justice Connect will no longer have any involvement in your matter, and you should direct all future communication about your matter to the law firm that is assisting you. Unfortunately, other services and legal advice are limited to people who need them most. We follow guidelines to try and make our legal help as fair as possible.
You can visit the law society website of your State or Territory for further information. With You is a national training program for trauma-informed, rights-based legal services to people experiencing distress, mental health concerns or suicidality. Your lawyer is paid directly by us, and they are not allowed to ask you to pay any costs for services performed under your grant of legal assistance. We have guidelines that set out our rules about when we will give a grant of legal assistance. You can only get a grant of legal assistance if your legal problem and your financial circumstances meet our guidelines.
We help you with court, Centrelink, police, Child Protection, victims of crime tribunal, creditors and our immigration system. There are numerous Community Legal Centres (CLCs) across the state which you can consult about different legal matters. There is also a wide range of websites for free legal information to help you navigate the court system. Other Australian law schools offering clinic-based experience include Griffith University, Deakin University, Bond University, and more. The Scheme relies on the goodwill and generosity of firms of solicitors who are prepared to give their time and skill to help eligible applicants.
Dominic is the CEO of Lawpath, dedicating his days to making legal easier, faster and more accessible to businesses. Dominic is a recognised thought-leader in Australian legal disruption, and was recognised as a winner of the Australian Legal Innovation Index and recently a winner of the LexisNexis 40 Under 40 (APAC). If we can’t answer your call, please leave a voice message with your name, contact number and legal problem.
Some solicitors offer 'no win, no fee' as a way of paying for civil cases, such as personal injury. A no win, no fee agreement is sometimes known as a 'conditional fee agreement' (CFA). A free or fixed-fee appointment can help you find out your rights and legal position.