Around 800,000 Australians who couldn't afford to hire a lawyer received free or low-cost support from legal assistance organisations in 2022–23. Without this, the outcome of their dealings with the legal system would almost certainly have been much worse. 

But a report released in May last year confirmed what legal assistance centres across Australia had known for a long time – there would have been many more who needed legal help but couldn't get it. Despite years of campaigning by legal assistance advocates, the level of government funding has been chronically insufficient. 

The government-subsidised legal assistance system in Australia is made up of a loose network of organisations including Legal Aid commissions, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander legal services, Community Legal Centres, Family Violence Prevention and Legal Services, and Women's Legal Services. 

In many outlying parts of Australia there simply are no legal assistance services, leaving marginalised people to fend for themselves

The May report took a hard look at the viability of the five-year National Legal Assistance Partnership (NLAP), an agreement between federal and state and territory governments to supply the money to keep this system afloat. 

The findings by the report's author, Dr Warren Mundy, were unequivocal – the NLAP had not provided enough dollars to meet the increasing demand for legal help. The report recommended a $459 million increase in government funding for 2025–26 alone, mainly for assisting with civil and family law issues, in particular family violence. (From 2015 to 2018, Mundy was the director of Westjustice, a Melbourne-based community legal service.)  

In many outlying parts of Australia there simply are no legal assistance services, leaving marginalised people to fend for themselves.

Hundreds of thousands turned away

Tim Leach, CEO of Community Legal Centres Australia, tells CHOICE that 388,000 people were turned away from the approximately 160 community legal centres across Australia in the last financial year. There just weren't enough staff and resources on hand to handle the case overload.  

People who face the legal system on their own generally don't fare well, Leach says. 

"A lot of them get dragged through legal proceedings that they should have been able to avoid. They get convictions they don't deserve. They end up in jail when they shouldn't be there. They get stuck in violent relationships when they really need to get out. They get evicted from homes that they're entitled to occupy. They get sacked from jobs when they're entitled to continue working. They pay fines that they don't owe. They just give up taking action when their own rights have been infringed." 

The NLAP expires in June 2025 and will be replaced by the National Access to Justice Partnership (NAJP), which was announced in November last year. Through the NAJP, the federal government will provide $3.9 billion in funding over five years. Commonwealth funding for the five-year NLAP was $2 billion. 

A lot of them get dragged through legal proceedings that they should have been able to avoid. They get convictions they don't deserve. They end up in jail when they shouldn't be there

Tim Leach, CEO of Community Legal Centres Australia 

The NAJP package includes additional funding for women's legal services and family violence prevention legal centres. Legal Aid offices across Australia also handle about 130,000 cases a year in these areas, 86% of which involve domestic and family violence. 

It's almost double the money, but the number of people needing legal help has also increased exponentially. 

A 2016 analysis by the Law Council of Australia found that around 45,000 Australians had faced the courts without legal assistance over the previous five years.

'I had been dismissed a lot' 

Without the five years' of legal assistance provided to her by the Caxton Legal Centre in Brisbane, domestic violence survivor Samantha Schulte says she could never have challenged the way the Queensland police had dealt with her pleas for help. 

Her many years of abuse finally came to an end when her partner shot himself on Christmas Day using a gun he had previously used to threaten her. Their two children had spent the previous night at their father's house. The couple were living separately at the time. In Schulte's view, the incidents leading up to that point were mishandled by the police, and she pushed for an ethical standards command investigation – or colonial inquest. Caxton Legal helped prepare her case and provided representation. 

It's very hard to understand the legal systems around you and the processes that are happening because you're just trying to get through the trauma that you're living with and that you're dealing with

Domestic violence survivor Samantha Schulte

"Usually, in the case of a domestic and family violence-related coronial inquest, the victim hasn't survived, but I survived," Schulte says. "I was just thrust into something after already having suffered extreme abuse for a long time. It's very hard to understand the legal systems around you and the processes that are happening because you're just trying to get through the trauma that you're living with and that you're dealing with. I had been dismissed a lot, and they were the first people that really recognised and legitimised what I had been through." 

Schulte says the legal representation Caxton Legal provided was just one facet of the support. The centre also became a reliable partner to assist with her ongoing "social, psychological, and emotional well-being". 

"They really provided a holistic and trauma-informed approach. They wanted to see me succeed beyond the close of my legal matters so I could move forward and have better outcomes for my children," Schulte says.

'Trapped in dangerous situations'

Lara Freidin, executive officer of Women's Legal Services Australia, tells CHOICE that data collected by the organisation revealed that 1018 women seeking help from a women's legal service over a five-day period in 2023 couldn't get it due to lack of capacity. 

Women experiencing domestic, family, and sexual violence are being left without crucial legal advice and support at a time when they need it most

Lara Freidin, executive officer of Women's Legal Services Australia

"This means more than 1000 women each week – or over 52,000 women a year – could not access the support they desperately needed," Freidin says. "The impact of this is profound. Women experiencing domestic, family, and sexual violence are being left without crucial legal advice and support at a time when they need it most. Without access to legal assistance, many women remain trapped in dangerous situations or face ongoing economic insecurity."

A 2023 report commissioned by National Legal Aid called for an increase of $484 million per year from the federal government to keep up with the demand for legal assistance.

Cultural competent support 

Cathy Pereira, principal solicitor at the Townsville-based First Nations Women's Legal Services Queensland (FNWLSQ), tells CHOICE that the organisation has long advocated for "culturally competent and gendered services for First Nations women". 

FNWLSQ takes its services to small towns around the area where First Nations women would otherwise not have access to legal help. It also supports women on Palm Island with a domestic violence lawyer and other caseworker staff. 

"Funding has been insufficient to meet the demand for services and the need remains great. In October 2023, we counted about 49 'turn-aways' in one week," Pereira tells CHOICE. 

"Cultural differences with mainstream services can lead to women giving up on getting legal representation," Pereira says. She cites some harrowing examples, including a First Nations woman who sought help from a non-specialised legal assistance service to prepare an affidavit regarding a family law matter.

"Funding has been insufficient to meet the demand for services and the need remains great

Cathy Pereira, principal solicitor at First Nations Women's Legal Services Queensland

"She was given a sheet of instructions on how to do an affidavit, but the information seemed to lack any appreciation of the fact that an affidavit is evidence that can critically impact the outcome of a case. The woman was in tears of frustration," Pereira says. 

FNWLSQ's family law solicitor prepared the documents for her. "We were able to assist her in a way that was culturally competent and took into consideration her culture and what she wanted to say in the matter," says Pereira.

Other cases range from the removal of babies, which FNWLSQ has been able to stop, to the denial of kinship care for children removed from their parents, where FNWLSQ has been able to advocate for children being placed with kin, "where they have better prospects of maintaining connections with family and culture".

FNWLSQ has also assisted in cases where First Nations women have been held legally accountable for defending themselves against domestic abusers.

Adverse rulings, unfair outcomes 

Monique Hitter, CEO of Legal Aid NSW, told us that ​when people represent themselves, "their lack of legal knowledge can result in court delays, misinterpretation of the law, adverse rulings and unfair or unjust outcomes".

Hitter says the NAJP funding due to take effect in July this year won't be enough and may reduce the organisation's capacity to provide critical services, especially those that assist people experiencing domestic violence.

Demand for Legal Aid NSW services has surged. In 2023–24, we provided over half a million services – a 10% increase on the previous year

Monique Hitter, CEO of Legal Aid NSW

"Demand for Legal Aid NSW services has surged. In 2023–24, we provided over half a million services – a 10% increase on the previous year. Calls to our free helpline jumped 25%, while demand for our domestic violence and disaster relief services has skyrocketed," Hitter says. 

Underfunding has a long history 

The lack of government funding for legal services highlighted in the May 2024 report is not a new problem. A 2014 Productivity Commission report recommended $200 million in additional Commonwealth funding per year for the legal assistance sector, but that didn't happen. Warren Mundy was one of the commissioners who helped prepare the report. 

A 2016 analysis by the Law Council of Australia found that around 45,000 Australians across the country had faced the courts without legal assistance over the previous five years due to inadequate funding for the sector. 

It's difficult to retain workers when wages are so much lower than you can get if you are working in private practice

Tim Leach, CEO of Community Legal Centres Australia

More recently, a 2023 report commissioned by National Legal Aid (Justice on the Brink – Stronger Legal Aid for a Better Legal System) called for an increase of $484 million per year from the federal government to keep up with the demand for legal assistance. Meanwhile, Legal Aid lawyers as well as their community centre counterparts earn a fraction of what lawyers make outside the sector, and keeping legal centres adequately staffed is an ongoing struggle. 

Freidin says the frontline staff at women's legal services, most of whom are women, are often underpaid and repeatedly exposed to distressing situations. Tim Leach of Community Legal Centres Australia says, "it's difficult to retain workers when wages are so much lower than you can get if you are working in private practice," adding that the problem is particularly acute in regional and remote Australia.

Navigating the legal system on your own generally leads to poor outcomes.

Only 8% are eligible for Legal Aid 

Then there's the matter of access. Many people who need help from Legal Aid can't get it because the rules around means testing limit availability to those who live below the poverty line. According to National Legal Aid, only around 8% of Australian households are eligible. Despite sustained advocacy to address this issue, the NAJP will not raise the threshold of the means test. 

Many people who need help from Legal Aid can't get it because the rules around means testing limit availability to those who live below the poverty line

And, due to limited resources, eligibility doesn't guarantee access. 

"Many people who are below the poverty line miss out on critical support when they face a serious legal problem. That has serious consequences for those individuals, their families, and the wider community," says Monique Hitter. 

Will the NAJP fill the bill?

All of the legal assistance organisations we talked to welcomed the $3.9 billion in NAJP Commonwealth funding, especially a dedicated funding stream for women's centres. 

But the backlog of unmet legal needs in Australia will likely continue to grow. Tim Leach of Community Legal Centres Australia points out that only one state, Queensland, has committed to contributing its own funds. Funding shortfalls around the country have been so deep for so long that nothing short of a combined effort between the federal government and all states and territories will begin to turn the tide, Leach says. 

"We've got a commitment from the Commonwealth which falls short of what is required, and a commitment from only one state, which is kind of a disappointing outcome." 

For Lara Freidin of Women's Legal Services Australia, the situation remains dire. "Sustainable funding is not only critical for supporting women and children to recover from violence but also for ensuring that our workforce is supported and valued. This funding is an important foundation, but we'll keep fighting to ensure no woman is left behind." 

This will significantly restrict the availability of legal assistance, especially for people in regional areas who are dealing with family breakdown and domestic violence

National Legal Aid executive director Katherine McKernan

National Legal Aid executive director Katherine McKernan tells CHOICE that the NAJP package falls short in a number of critical areas, including funding that would allow Legal Aid commissions to expand their coverage of domestic violence cases and funding to enable private sector lawyers to deliver legal aid services. 

"This will significantly restrict the availability of legal assistance, especially for people in regional areas who are dealing with family breakdown and domestic violence," McKernan says.

Stock images: Getty, unless otherwise stated.

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