Page 2932 - Week 07 - Wednesday, 30 June 2010

Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . . Video


The Assembly voted—

Ayes 10

Noes 5

Mr Barr

Mr Hargreaves

Mr Coe

Ms Bresnan

Ms Hunter

Mrs Dunne

Ms Burch

Ms Le Couteur

Mr Hanson

Mr Corbell

Mr Rattenbury

Mr Seselja

Ms Gallagher

Mr Stanhope

Mr Smyth

Question so resolved in the affirmative.

Motion, as amended, agreed to.

Community legal centres

MR RATTENBURY (Molonglo) (4.34): I move:

That this Assembly:

(1) notes:

(a) equitable access to justice is a cornerstone of a modern democratic society;

(b) one measure of access to justice is the individual’s ability to get the advice of a lawyer when faced with legal issues;

(c) that unmet legal need occurs when people cannot secure the assistance of a lawyer and that the negative impacts of unmet need include:

(i) specifically, people being forced to self-represent themselves in court; and

(ii) generally, a lack of awareness of rights and how they might be enforced;

(d) the important role community legal centres (CLCs) play in catching people who would otherwise fall through the cracks because they cannot afford a private lawyer and do not qualify for legal aid;

(e) due to cramped office conditions, CLCs are not operating at capacity because they cannot supply a work desk for all funded staff positions and are forced to reject offers of additional pro bono legal work; and

(f) the Survey of Legal Needs in Australia, due for release in September 2011, which was commissioned by Legal Aid Commissions to give a jurisdiction by jurisdiction snap shot of unmet legal need; and

(2) calls on the Government to work with CLCs to reduce the number of people falling through the cracks by:


Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . . Video