vla-2018–19-annual-report · Web view2019-10-15 · On behalf of Victoria Legal Aid’s Board...

Annual Report 2018–19 Access to justice for Victorians

Chairperson’s declarationIn accordance with section 12N of the Legal Aid Act 1978 (Vic) and provisions of the Financial Management Act 1994 (Vic), I am pleased to present the Victoria Legal Aid Annual Report for the year ending 30 June 2019.

Bill JaboorChairperson11 September 2019

© 2019 Victoria Legal Aid. Reproduction without express written permission is prohibited. Written requests should be directed to Victoria Legal Aid, Corporate Affairs, 570 Bourke Street, Melbourne Vic 3000.

Disclaimer

The information contained should not be relied upon as legal advice and should be checked carefully before being relied upon in any context. Victoria Legal Aid expressly disclaims any liability howsoever caused to any person in respect of any legal advice given or any action taken in reliance on the contents of the publication.

Victoria Legal Aid operates on Aboriginal country throughout Victoria; we acknowledge the traditional custodians of the land and respect their continuing connections to land, sea and community.

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Highlights 2018–19 Unique clients* 100,061, up 6 per cent

In-house duty lawyer services 86,272, up 4 per cent

Legal Help

Legal Help Chat – Since October 2018, 7,758 people have received legal assistance through our new online live chat service. We answered 84 per cent of chat requests.

Telephone service – 179,352 incoming calls, down by 9 per cent. 128,708 calls we answered (72 per cent).

We responded to 140,224 requests for help by phone, chat and in person.

Continued commitment

Private Practitioner duty lawyer services, up 5 per cent

Private Practitioner grants of legal assistance, up 7 per cent

Community legal centre duty lawyer services, up 28 per cent

Community legal centre grants of legal assistance, down 13 per cent

Grants of legal assistance 45,180, up 5 per cent.

Our financial future

Taking active steps to remain financially sustainable

A more client-centred organisationOur Digital Legal Aid strategy making it easier for clients to access the help they need

Strengthening relationships Collaborative Planning Committee – building trust with stakeholders and practice partners

Improved coordination of legal information Incorporated Victoria Law Foundation’s legal information, including six print titles and content of the Everyday-Law website, into our own

Designing and delivering services with impact Independent Family Advocacy and Support – our new pilot service providing early support to families who are involved in the child protection system.

Rural and regional Victoria 29,268 clients (30 per cent) live in regional Victoria. Up 8 per cent .

Clients at risk of homelessness Our clients are among the most disadvantaged in Victoria. 6,387 clients, up 21 per cent.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Clients 5.3 per cent of clients, or, 5,192 clients. Up 10 per cent. * A unique client is an individual who accessed one or more of our legal services. This does not include people for whom

a client-lawyer relationship was not formed, who received information via the telephone, website or in-person at court

Victoria Legal Aid - Annual Report 2018–19- ii -

or at a public counter, who participated in community legal education sessions, or clients from community legal centres. Neither does this client count include people assisted by our Independent Mental Health Advocacy service or Independent Family Advocacy and Support.

Victoria Legal Aid - Annual Report 2018–19- iii -

Contents

Our Year.............................................................................................................................................................

About Victoria Legal Aid.................................................................................................................................

Our functions..................................................................................................................................................

Strategy 22.....................................................................................................................................................

Chairperson and Chief Executive Officer’s message......................................................................................

Understanding this report...............................................................................................................................

Snapshot of key service performance............................................................................................................Our clients........................................................................................................................................................

What our clients had to say about us............................................................................................................Our Services....................................................................................................................................................

Preventative and early intervention services................................................................................................

Family Dispute Resolution Service...............................................................................................................

Independent Mental Health Advocacy..........................................................................................................

Independent Family Advocacy and Support.................................................................................................

Family violence legal services......................................................................................................................

Duty lawyer services.....................................................................................................................................

Grants of legal assistance............................................................................................................................

Sub-program performance report.................................................................................................................

Our offices....................................................................................................................................................Our Performance.............................................................................................................................................

Snapshot of financial performance...............................................................................................................

National Partnership Agreement..................................................................................................................

Reporting against our priorities in the 2018–19 Corporate Plan...................................................................

Making a difference through casework, advocacy and law reform...............................................................

Our partnerships...........................................................................................................................................

A vibrant legal assistance sector..................................................................................................................

Who are our partners?..................................................................................................................................Managing our organisation.............................................................................................................................

Corporate governance..................................................................................................................................

Supporting our people..................................................................................................................................

Legislative compliance.................................................................................................................................Our Finances..................................................................................................................................................Appendices....................................................................................................................................................Contact details...............................................................................................................................................

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Our Year

About Victoria Legal AidWe serve the broader community by providing information, legal advice and education with a focus on the prevention and early resolution of legal problems.

We prioritise more intensive legal services, such as legal advice and representation, to those who need it the most, using evidence to inform what we do. We also recognise the connections between legal and social issues in the way we do our work and advocate for change.

We work to address the barriers that prevent people from accessing the justice system by participating in systemic reforms and strategic advocacy.

Our visionA fair and just society where rights and responsibilities are upheld.

Our purposeTo make a difference for clients and the community, through the provision of effective legal services and collaborative leadership of a strong and dynamic legal assistance sector.

Our values

Fairness

We stand up for what is fair. We aim to be fair when making choices about which people we help and how we help them.

Care

We care about our clients and the community in which we live. We look out for and take care of each other.

Courage

We act with courage backed by evidence about what is best for clients and the community. We act with courage to be the best we can be.

Our functionsVictoria Legal Aid is a statutory authority established under the Legal Aid Act 1978 (Vic), funded by the Commonwealth and Victorian governments. Our statutory objectives1 are to:

provide legal aid in the most effective, economic and efficient manner

manage resources to make legal aid available at a reasonable cost to the community and on an equitable basis throughout the state

provide to the community improved access to justice and legal remedies

pursue innovative means of providing legal aid directed at minimising the need for individual legal services in the community.

1 Section 4 Legal Aid Act 1978

Victoria Legal Aid - [Document title] – [date]- 1 -

In so doing, we may:2

co-operate with social service or social welfare organisations

undertake research

make recommendations to reform the law

carry out educational programs

provide financial assistance to voluntary legal aid bodies.

As of 1 July 2019, Victoria Legal Aid has two additional statutory objectives:

ensuring the coordination of the provision of legal aid so that it responds to the legal and related needs of the community

ensuring the coordination of the provision of legal assistance information so that information responds to the legal and related needs of the community, including by being:

accessible

current

high quality

of sufficient breadth.

Strategy 22Strategy 22 sets out our strategic organisational goals from 2018 until the end of the financial year in 2022. Through the life of Strategy 22 all areas of Victoria Legal Aid will align their work to meet its goals and directions.

Strategy 22 outlines the three key directions that drive our work over the coming years; Clients, Impact and Together. These directions act as the foundation for more effective and accessible, client-centred services and the collaborative leadership of a strong and dynamic legal assistance sector within budgetary constraints.

The priority areas of Strategy 22 are supporting us to make difficult decisions, respond to evolving client and community expectations, improve our service delivery and strengthen our relationships within the justice sector.

See pages Reporting against our priorities in the 2018–19 Corporate Plan for more information on how we tracked against our 2018–19 priorities.

2 Section 6 ibid

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Chairperson and Chief Executive Officer’s messageOn behalf of Victoria Legal Aid’s Board and Senior Executive Team, we are pleased to present our 2018–19 Annual Report. The report outlines the role we play in providing effective legal services and demonstrating collaborative leadership within the legal assistance sector to make a positive difference and achieve outcomes for individuals and communities.

The 2018–19 year concluded with a small statutory accounting surplus of $3 million. This is entirely due to the accounting for a three-year funding arrangement from the Legal Services Board for our Digital Legal Aid project. Excluding this item, the underlying result was a small deficit of $0.4 million. Despite a series of internal savings measures which were implemented in the second half of the year, we are forecasting significant operating deficits into the future. Because of this we are taking active steps to reverse this trend and return to financial sustainability.

Clients—becoming a more client-centred organisation The number of Victorians we assist continues to increase. In 2018–19, lawyers supported 100,061 people, an increase of six per cent. This is primarily in response to ongoing demand in summary crime, child protection, family violence and indictable crime. This demand stems from the additional police and child protection workers brought online over recent years, increased family violence reporting and population growth.

We saw a five per cent increase in grants of legal assistance and a three per cent rise in duty lawyer services (including private practitioner duty lawyer services). We now provide legal representation to those before the Bail and Remand Court during day and evening sessions, 365 days per year. This is a challenging, but important, service expansion. We are working closely with our legal partners, such as private solicitors and barristers and the Victorian Aboriginal Legal Service, to support them and their clients outside of business hours.

In 2018–19, we continued to expand access to our Legal Help service by making it easier for people to get help in ways that are easier for them—we opened the phoneline for an extra 90 minutes a day and launched a webchat service for people looking for general information about legal issues, with 7,758 people taking up this new service over nine months. We answered 140,224 Legal Help telephone calls and requests via webchat and in person. This service provides information and advice in 23 languages and continues to be the main entry point in Victoria for people with legal problems. See In different languages for a list of the 23 languages.

Our Family Advocacy and Support Service is an integrated service where duty lawyers and family violence support workers provide holistic support to families affected by family violence at the Family Law Court registries in Melbourne and Dandenong. Funding this important service has recently been extended by the Federal Government for a further three years.

Our second Reconciliation Action Plan was developed in consultation with our First Nations Staff Network, Djirra, the Victorian Aboriginal Legal Service (VALS) and Reconciliation Australia. It outlines how we will work together with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and communities to ensure the services we provide are culturally safe, accessible and responsive.

In 2018–19, we made a concerted effort to highlight the barriers people face in regional and rural Victoria when navigating the legal system. We are conscious that ‘postcode injustice’ leaves too many Victorians without the legal services they need. In order to better understand some of these communities, and with our sector partners we released two comprehensive reports in 2018–19. The


Equal justice for a strong, healthy and resilient Latrobe Valley, a collective report with Gippsland Legal Assistance Forum as well as the Cross-border justice report, delivered in conjunction with Legal Aid NSW. Both highlight that legal need can’t be supported in isolation from other factors impacting on an individual’s life, as well as the specific challenges facing our regional communities.

Impact—designing and delivering services with impactOur commitment to developing an evidence-based approach to understanding legal need across Victoria has seen us strengthen data and evaluation capabilities across the legal sector, as well as taking a more integrated sector planning approach to service delivery. For example, we are developing an interactive data tool, based on the legal needs model developed in 2018, with a user-friendly interface to generate responsive legal needs data and to help answer service design questions. Our coordination and collaboration across the sector is helping us design legal services that better meet the needs of our diverse community.

We continued our strategic advocacy work, proactively seeking positive changes and remedies to systemic legal problems. The outcome of our challenge to compulsory electroconvulsive treatment (ECT) reasserts human rights and will have significant impacts for many people in the mental health system. Our ongoing challenge to the Robo-debt system, through which people have received inaccurate and unfair Centrelink debt notices, is aimed at creating a fairer social security system.

Our Child Protection Services Review recommended providing earlier support to families in the child protection system. This year we launched our new pilot service, Independent Family Advocacy and Support (IFAS), in Moreland, Darebin and Bendigo. This will assist families who are involved in the child protection system before they go to court with non-legal support and advocacy to understand their rights and responsibilities and to speak up about what they need to keep their family strong and children safe. We will evaluate this service to test its impact. The development of IFAS has been supported by a reference group of people with personal experience of the child protection system, further reinforcing our commitment to involving clients in the design and delivery of our services.

We have commenced our three-year Digital Legal Aid strategy, thanks to funding from the Legal Services Board. This is an essential program of work that will ensure we are making it easier for clients to access the assistance they need through new or improved digital services such as online triage and referral tools and a new website. It will also streamline our systems and processes and make it easier for our staff and practice partners to deliver legal aid services. This smarter use of technology and data will enable better client services and help us address the pressures on the criminal justice system, high levels of demand for legal aid, and also embrace higher use of technology and smartphones in the community.

Together—strengthening relationships with our staff, partners and stakeholders Across 2018–19 we continued to work closely with our partners in the justice and community sectors to better assist Victorians.

We are conscious of the impact of workload on our staff and practice partners working in an increasingly busy legal sector, so we are developing effective and timely wellbeing and support programs to help address these pressures. It’s vital that we work together to protect and bolster personal safety and wellbeing, so we can continue to assist those who are marginalised in our society.


The issues identified in our Summary Crime Evaluation, and the flow on effects of an increase in frontline police numbers, as well as reform of sentencing and bail laws are being addressed through collaborative cross-sector working groups.

Our newly established Collaborative Planning Committee gives VLA a key role in supporting genuine collaboration across the sector and will provide strategic advice on legal and related community needs to the VLA Board and other stakeholders. This will aid a deepening of relationships with partners across the sector and in the community, to build trust in the justice system more broadly.

We are continuing to work with our practice partners, and the family violence sector, to support the rollout of the Specialist Family Violence Courts, and to fulfil other recommendations from the Royal Commission into Family Violence.

The Community Legal Services Reform Project aims to deliver a more streamlined, transparent and accountable framework for funding for community legal centres. We are committed to working closely with CLCs to ensure the framework promotes targeted, high-quality services that better meet the need of our clients and communities. In doing so, we will continue to promote CLC diversity, independence and the mix of services they provide.

Future outlook We are now well underway in embedding the foundations and goals of our Strategy 2018–22 (‘Strategy 22’), where we will continue to focus on ensuring our services are client centred, designed using evidence and data and delivered with a strengthened spirit of trust and collaboration with the legal assistance sector.

As previously indicated, our financial future is challenging. The Department of Justice and Community Safety has provided some one-off budget relief for the 2019–20 year while the state government undertakes its baseline review of departmental and agency funding. We are also developing savings measures in the absence of additional funding to our base, which will be implemented in 2019–20 or the following financial year. Some will be pursued as a matter of good practice, some will be subject to further consultation with staff and our practice partners and other measures will be subject to the outcome of the baseline review of our funding. This lack of certainty means we must continue our preparations for the implementation of our savings measures during the second half of 2019–20. Of course, another key consideration in this context is the outcome of the next National Partnership Agreement (NPA), the current NPA agreement concluding in June 2020.

We will continue to seek fairness for our clients from court proceedings, pursue ways to improve the productivity of the justice system and to find innovative solutions to address the legal and non-legal problems our clients encounter. We will continue to provide assistance and information to vulnerable people, before their problems exacerbate, assisting them to access support services, in the context of the broader justice system. We remain keen to be part of the public discussion about appropriate policy responses to ensure community safety through early investment in justice, diversionary, therapeutic and support services.

Thank you It is a privilege to work at VLA. We have highly dedicated private partners, community legal centre practitioners and staff who seek to improve the lives of Victorians, and we thank them for their professionalism and ongoing commitment.


We thank the Attorney-General of Victoria, the Hon. Jill Hennessy and the Attorney-General of the Commonwealth of Australia, the Hon. Christian Porter. We also extend our gratitude to the Victoria Legal Aid Board of Directors, the members of our Collaborative Planning Committee and our community and justice sector partners.

The past 12 months brought several changes to our Senior Executive Team. We farewelled Katie Miller as Executive Director of Legal Practice and recently appointed Dianna Gleeson to the role. Katie recognised the pressures on all lawyers in the legal aid sector and worked across the sector to ensure we could to find ways of relieving that pressure together, while ensuring the continued quality of services and the sustainability of legal practices. We also farewelled Elizabeth Jennings as Chief Financial Officer (CFO) and welcomed Matthew Dale to the CFO role. Elizabeth brought clear advice and leadership to our policy and resourcing decisions and significantly strengthened our forecasting, budgeting and reporting capability. We thank Stephen Kendall for acting in this role from the end of 2018 to mid-2019.

In 2018–19 we were delighted to welcome George Habib as a new Non-Executive Director. We look forward to welcoming Andrew Saunders to the Board, filling the vacancy following the conversion of the Managing Director role to that of CEO.

Bill Jaboor

Chairperson

Louise Glanville

Chief Executive Officer


Understanding this reportThis annual report details our activities and performance against the Legal Aid Act 1978 and the goals we have committed to in:

Our Strategy 2018–22 (‘Strategy 22’)

Our Corporate Plan 2018–19

National Partnership Agreement on Legal Assistance Services 2015–20

Victorian Budget 2018–19 (Budget Paper 3).

This report reflects our commitment to accountability, providing financial details and an account of how we have used public funds. It reports against our statutory objectives, strategic direction, output measures and forms part of our efforts for continuous improvement and to be more transparent.

Following a review into our methodology in some aspects of our data, some key metrics have been revised. As a result, the 2017–18 client and service figures presented in this year’s annual report are slightly different to what was reported last year. Using the new data, a more accurate comparison is available.


Snapshot of key service performanceClients 2018–19 2017–18 % change

Unique clients* 100,061 94,485 6

Requests responded to by our Legal Help service** 140,224 143,219*** -2

Independent Mental Health Advocacy+ 2018–19 2017–18 % change

High intensity occasions of service (advocacy and self-advocacy)

7,424 8,301 -11

Low intensity occasions of service (information and referral) 17,223 17,070 1

Preventative services 2018–19 2017–18 % change

Requests for Legal Help assistance 192,322 196,177 -2

Community legal education participants 17,065 13,958 22

Community legal education sessions 556 359 55

Sessions on our website 2,583,255 2,268,256 14

Early intervention services 2018–19 2017–18 % change

Legal advice, minor assistance and advocacy 47,438 41,901 13

Family Dispute Resolution Service 2018–19 2017–18 % change

Number of conferences 1,010 1,010 0

Duty lawyer services 2018–19 2017–18 % change

In-house duty lawyer services 86,272 82,978 4

Private practitioner duty lawyer services~ 11,524 10,968 5

Community legal centre services 15,697 12,267 28

Grants of legal assistance 2018–19 2017–18 % change

Grants of legal assistance 45,180 43,095 5

In-house grants of legal assistance 10,031 10,139 -1

Private practitioner grants of legal assistance 34,478 32,181 7

Community legal centre grants of legal assistance 671 775 -13

The change in grants by community legal centres is impacted by changes in service delivery models (including the conclusion of the Family Violence to Family Law Continuity Pilot in northeast Victoria), capacity of centres to take on new clients, and service delivery decisions made by centres. * A unique client is an individual who accessed one or more of our legal services. This does not include people for whom

a client-lawyer relationship was not formed, who received information via the telephone, website or in-person at court or at a public counter, who participated in community legal education sessions, or clients from community legal


centres. Neither does this client count include people assisted by our Independent Mental Health Advocacy service or Independent Family Advocacy and Support service.

** This includes phone, webchat and in person requests.

*** This does not include webchat, which was launched in 2018–19.

~Duty lawyer services provided by private practitioners includes services delivered by solicitors and barristers.

+ Data presented is occasions of service provided, not client figures.


Our clients 5 per cent identified as Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander

32 per cent had no income*

47 per cent were receiving some form of government benefit

30 per cent were living in regional or rural Victoria

4.5 per cent required the assistance of an interpreter

25 per cent were from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds**

18 per cent were younger than 19 years of age

12 per cent were in custody, detention or psychiatric care

25 per cent disclosed having a disability or mental illness

6.5 per cent were at risk of homelessness

These figures do not include clients seen by a private practitioner duty lawyer.* Examples include children and young people, people experiencing homelessness, people in custody and immigration

detention, and psychiatric patients.

** This is based on the Australian Bureau of Statistics definition of people from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds. It includes people who speak a language other than English at home and people who were born in a non-English speaking country.

Performance against Victorian Government targets*Major output/deliverable performance measures

2017–18actual

2018–19 target

2018–19actual

% change on 2018–19

target

Clients who accessed one or more of our legal services

94,485 96,300 100,061 4

Client satisfaction with services provided by Victoria Legal Aid

N/A** 80 per cent 70 per cent -12.5

* The Victorian Budget sets a number of output performance measures and targets for departments and their agencies and statutory bodies in Budget Paper 3.

** This is a new performance measure for 2018–19 to reflect the recommendations of the Access to Justice review.

The above results reflects continued increasing demand for our services due to a range of factors, including amendments to the law, additional police and child protection officers and Victoria’s growing population. We have seen increases in the number of legal advice services provided, along with an increase in demand for adult summary crime duty lawyer services and grants of legal assistance. These increases are driven by changes to bail legislation and continued increasing demand for services in family violence matters. Client satisfaction levels have remained consistent at 70 per cent since 2017. We are currently working on a client services strategy which aims to improve the experience of clients across our services.

What our clients had to say about us This year, we surveyed 997 clients to help us better understand our clients’ experience and their expectations of our service. The clients surveyed were chosen at random and had received either


Legal Help information, legal advice, duty lawyer services, or a grant of aid between July 2018 and February 2019. They were surveyed through a mixed method of online and telephone surveys, and 20 clients also participated in follow up qualitative interviews.

Key findings 84 per cent of clients thought it was easy to contact us

85 per cent of clients would recommend our services to others.

Clients were generally satisfied with the performance of their lawyer, with:

82 per cent agreeing that their lawyer or advisor listened to them

77 per cent of clients felt that their lawyer or advisor helped them understand their situation

86 per cent felt empowered to seek legal help in the future.

Clients’ overall satisfaction levels remain high in 2019, with 70 per cent of clients satisfied, or very satisfied with our services. There have been no changes in overall rates of satisfaction since the last survey in 2017. This is an encouraging finding and is reflective of quality service delivery, as well as the dedication and hard work of staff at all levels in the face of increasing demand for our services.

The results indicate that our services have a very positive impact on clients’ wellbeing. Before receiving our help, clients had relatively high levels of stress, depression and anger, with lower levels of calmness, confidence and feeling informed. After our help, their feelings of stress, depression and anger reduced. While feelings of calmness, confidence and feeling informed increased.

There was no significant difference in satisfaction for clients by gender, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander background, whether the client resided in a metropolitan or regional area or via disability status. While findings of client satisfaction were mainly positive, the study has also revealed some areas where we can improve. The survey indicated that 45 per cent of clients with personal/cultural needs felt that VLA met those needs. It is important to note, however, 31 per cent of clients did not feel strongly either way in response to this question – this is a very high neutral response and should be taken into consideration when analysing the results.

Out of each of the key performance measures assessed, feeling that our service met the clients’ expectation was rated the lowest across all service types (Legal Help information, legal advice, duty lawyer or a grant of aid) and client types (criminal, family, youth and children’s law, civil). This is possibly due to a mix of:

ineligibility for services in relation to expectations

lower than expected quantities or types of service

perception of under-resourcing (non-attentive staff).

Findings from the in-depth interviews revealed that clients who were deemed ineligible as well as clients who received a less intensive service than what they expected, demonstrated higher dissatisfaction than those who received greater or more intensive services. Among duty lawyer clients, those who had received only information and advice had lower rates of satisfaction than those who received representation.


The most common suggested improvement by clients across all service types was more funding and resources.

‘Give them more funding so they can help more people.’ client quote from the Client Satisfaction Survey 2019

In response to the survey, we will focus on the following areas of improvement:

improving our referrals to other sources of help, including other legal and non-legal support

keeping clients better informed at key stages of their legal matter

improving our explanation around eligibility criteria

looking at other ways to engage with clients to gain a better understanding of the client experience and how we can improve our services, which is distinct from client dissatisfaction with service eligibility and limited services.

‘The Duty Lawyer was helpful and assisted me through the day and made the day much less dark.’ – client quote from the Client Satisfaction Survey 2019

‘When I first called them I was beside myself. I was completely distraught. After talking with them I felt relieved I’d be able to get some help.’ – client quote from the Client Satisfaction Survey 2019

‘[Have] more lawyers, so that they may spend more time with their clients, so that they can actually speak for them at court and appropriately handle their case.’ — a response when asked what can VLA do better in the Client Satisfaction Survey 2019.

‘The advisor was very helpful and understanding and took the time to really ask questions about my situation and listen without making judgement but pointed me in the right direction.’ – client quote from the Client Satisfaction Survey 2019.

Our clients’ journey Statistics measuring the entire customer service experience for clients of VLA are presented following in a sequence, starting with how clients first heard about and then accessed VLA services, moving forward through assessment for eligibility, through to the outcome; with the legal issue either resolved or ongoing.

The four services measured in the Client Satisfaction Survey include: legal help, legal advice, duty lawyer and casework.

How did clients hear about VLA?

Legal help clients heard about VLA services mostly from the internet (25 per cent), friends or family (24 per cent), word of mouth (15 per cent) or police (8 per cent).

Legal advice clients heard about VLA services mostly from friends or family (20 per cent), word of mouth (15 per cent), the internet (14 per cent) or court (12 per cent).

Duty lawyer clients heard about VLA services mostly from court (34 per cent), word of mouth (13 per cent), friends or family (11 per cent), or court (10 per cent).

Case work clients heard about VLA services mostly from court (35 per cent), friends or family (12 per cent), word of mouth (8 per cent), or duty lawyer at court (8 per cent).

How do clients access VLA?


Legal help clients accessed VLA mostly by phone (87 per cent), Legal Help chat (4 per cent), or phone and chat (4 per cent). 67 per cent of VLA legal help clients used the VLA website for information.

Legal advice clients accessed VLA mostly by phone (59 per cent), in person (26 per cent), or in court (18 per cent).

75 per cent of duty lawyer clients found it easy to locate a duty lawyer.

Of case work clients, 81 per cent found it easy to make an application for legal aid, 84 per cent felt VLA responded promptly to their application and 80 per cent understood the information VLA provided about their application.

How are clients assessed?

For legal help clients, 82 per cent are assessed over the phone, 9 per cent at a court or tribunal and 5 per cent are assessed at a VLA office.

For legal advice clients, 64 per cent are assessed over the phone, 22 per cent at a VLA office and 12 per cent are assessed at a court or tribunal.

For duty lawyer clients, 52 per cent are assessed at a court or tribunal, 26 per cent over the phone and 26 per cent are assessed at a VLA office.

For case work clients, 43 per cent are assessed at a court or tribunal, 28 per cent over the phone and 28 per cent are assessed at a VLA office.

Eligibility

Eligibility for Victoria Legal Aid services varies depending on the service provided. As the service intensity increases, eligibility tightens. Depending on the legal matter and circumstance we may be able to give legal advice over the phone or refer someone to see a lawyer. However, anyone can get free legal information from our website, publications and our law library.

Service satisfaction

Clients eligible for VLA services were surveyed on their satisfaction with the service they received.

70 per cent of legal help clients said they were satisfied with VLA’s service, 19 per cent were dissatisfied.

71 per cent of legal advice clients said they were satisfied with VLA’s service, 13 per cent were dissatisfied.

71 per cent of duty lawyer clients said they were satisfied with VLA’s service; of these 63 per cent received information and advice and 75 per cent received information only. 17 per cent of duty lawyer clients said they were dissatisfied.

75 per cent of case work clients said they were satisfied with VLA’s service; of these 81 per cent had an inhouse lawyer and 71 per cent had an external lawyer. 15 per cent of case work clients said they were dissatisfied.

Snapshot of our clientsTable: Client Count by Local Government Area indicates the number of unique clients we helped in each local government area during 2018–19.


Client locations are based on the primary address they nominate. This may include prisons, hospitals, remand centres and temporary accommodation facilities.

Clients assisted by a private practitioner duty lawyer are not included in the following maps.

Table: Client Count by Local Government AreaLGA Unique Clients

Alpine (S) 56

Ararat (Rc) 306

Ballarat (C) 2,147

Banyule (C) 1,291

Bass Coast (S) 527

Baw Baw (S) 793

Bayside (C) 631

Benalla (Rc) 220

Boroondara (C) 842

Brimbank (C) 3,869

Buloke (S) 79

Campaspe (S) 711

Cardinia (S) 1,616

Casey (C) 5,057

Central Goldfields (S) 300

Colac-Otway (S) 264

Corangamite (S) 230

Darebin (C) 1,974

East Gippsland (S) 1,215

Frankston (C) 2,956

Gannawarra (S) 162

Glen Eira (C) 942

Glenelg (S) 392

Golden Plains (S) 311

Greater Bendigo (C) 1,950

Greater Dandenong (C) 3,345

Greater Geelong (C) 3,893

Greater Shepparton (C) 1,599


LGA Unique Clients

Hepburn (S) 242

Hindmarsh (S) 86

Hobsons Bay (C) 1,254

Horsham (Rc) 477

Hume (C) 3,897

Indigo (S) 86

Kingston (C) (Vic.) 1,430

Knox (C) 1,813

Latrobe (C) (Vic.) 2,475

Loddon (S) 119

Macedon Ranges (S) 433

Manningham (C) 837

Mansfield (S) 57

Maribyrnong (C) 1,338

Maroondah (C) 1,279

Melbourne (C) 5,010

Melton (C) 2,588

Mildura (Rc) 862

Mitchell (S) 829

Moira (S) 421

Monash (C) 1,509

Moonee Valley (C) 949

Moorabool (S) 510

Moreland (C) 2,100

Mornington Peninsula (S) 2,178

Mount Alexander (S) 270

Moyne (S) 248

Murrindindi (S) 176

Nillumbik (S) 643

Northern Grampians (S) 205

Port Phillip (C) 1,118

Pyrenees (S) 124


LGA Unique Clients

Queenscliffe (B) 12

South Gippsland (S) 316

Southern Grampians (S) 309

Stonnington (C) 711

Strathbogie (S) 143

Surf Coast (S) 190

Swan Hill (Rc) 455

Towong (S) 39

Unincorporated Vic 2

Unknown 552

Wangaratta (Rc) 303

Warrnambool (C) 773

Wellington (S) 733

West Wimmera (S) 59

Whitehorse (C) 1,238

Whittlesea (C) 3,046

Wodonga (C) 433

Wyndham (C) 3,921

Yarra (C) 1,340

Yarra Ranges (S) 1,909

Yarriambiack (S) 138

Building stronger community relationships

Our Mildura office has worked with stakeholders to build stronger links with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander clients.

Since 2017, we’ve been providing civil and child protection legal services to the Mallee region, in a partnership with Sunraysia Community Health Services (SCHS).

Data from the Mildura office shows 28 per cent of their clients identify as Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander.

‘It’s a sign that through sustained and respectful engagement with communities, we can bring legal assistance to the people who really need it’, said Associate Director of Aboriginal Services Alan Dewis.


‘Mildura is home to the second highest Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander population in Victoria, at four per cent of the overall community, so it’s always been really important to VLA to try and target people in community, who we also know face larger barriers to accessing services,’ said Alan.


Our Services Eligibility for Victoria Legal Aid services varies depending on the service provided. As the service intensity increases, eligibility tightens. Depending on the legal matter and circumstance, we may be able to give legal advice over the phone or refer someone to see a lawyer. However, anyone can get free legal information from our website, publications and our law library.


Preventative and early intervention servicesWe provide preventative services to Victorians to help them understand their legal options at the earliest opportunity and who to contact if they need further assistance.

An informed and capable person can act on their legal rights and can help prevent a legal problem from escalating, avoiding costly litigation at court.

Our preventative and early intervention services include:

our Legal Help telephone service, the main entry point to legal aid services, which provides legal information, advice and referrals

our face-to-face information and referral service, available at all Victoria Legal Aid offices

online and printed information through our website and publications

targeted community legal education to increase people’s knowledge of their legal rights and responsibilities and mitigate the escalation of legal disputes

legal advice sessions over the phone or face-to-face at our offices or via outreach services

minor assistance and advice (which includes advocacy services) when there is a need for some ongoing assistance and there is a tangible benefit for the client.

Legal Help telephone and webchat servicesThis year, our free Legal Help service extended its opening hours by 90 minutes a day (from 8.45 am–5.15 pm to 8 am–6 pm) and opened an online live chat service, Legal Help Chat. Legal Help Chat provides general legal information and referrals and makes it possible for us to assist many people faster, than is possible on our phoneline. It gives clients more choice about how to get help from us—for example, some clients cannot use the phone, but can communicate with us on Legal Help Chat.

Legal Help received 192,322 requests for help by phone, chat and in person. Of these, 179,352 requests were via our telephone line, down nine per cent as a result of active demand management. Like many other helplines, when the queue reaches a pre-set size or length, we temporarily suspend intake for people with non-priority legal issues. This keeps queues manageable for clients and our staff. We are upgrading Legal Help’s software to enable us to more accurately capture community demand for the service and anticipate this will be complete in 2019–20.

We answered 84 per cent of chat requests and 72 per cent of calls, as part of a total 140,224 requests for help we provided by phone, chat and in person (128,708 phone, 3,759 in person and 7,758 chat services). Legal Help also provided 18,720 legal advice services, an increase of 45 per cent, helping more people with complex, high priority problems than in previous years—receiving legal advice early is critical as it can avoid issues from escalating.

The large rise in advice (which typically takes 30 to 40 per cent longer to deliver than the other services Legal Help provides) increased the average length of calls. That, together with staffing changes in response to our financial circumstances and a stronger focus on staff wellbeing, reduced our capacity to meet demand.

The average wait time for the phone line increased from 8 minutes and 49 seconds to 10 minutes and 21 seconds. The combined wait time for our Legal Help telephone service and Legal Help Chat was 9 minutes and 44 seconds.



2017–18actual

2018–19 target

2018–19 actual


target

Average call wait time to the Legal Help phone line

N/A** <10 minutes 10 minutes 21

seconds***

3.5


** This is a new performance measure for 2018–19 to reflect the recommendations of the Access to Justice review.

*** The 2018–19 performance measure was limited to wait time for telephone calls. In future this will measure combined average wait times for different Legal Help channels.

Demographics

Legal Help telephone

The top five matters dealt with by our Legal Help telephone service were:

Time spent with children (family law)

Family violence (applicant)

Family law property settlement

Family violence (respondent)

Infringements

During 2018–19, callers to Legal Help were reported as:

53 per cent female

46 per cent male

one per cent unspecified.

During 2018–19, of the callers provided with legal information by Legal Help:

16 per cent disclosed having a disability (including mental health related issues)

17 per cent identified being from a culturally or linguistically diverse background.

Legal Help Chat

The top five matters dealt with by our Legal Help Chat service were:

General family law

Infringements

Landlord and tenant – resident

Property settlement (family law)

Dissolution of marriage (divorce)

During 2018–19, users to Legal Help Chat were reported as:

60 per cent female


39 per cent male

one per cent unspecified.

Triage of clients for telephone services onlyWe triage people seeking assistance at Legal Help and our regional offices to ensure we reach the people who most need assistance and link them up with the most appropriate help.

Client triage pathway Legal Help number of matters

Suburban and regional offices

number of matters

Number of matters (total)

Legal information* 46,117 73 46,190

Legal advice** 25,524 1,548 27,072

Referral only 32,711 14,709 47,420

Total 104,352 16,330 120,682

* This is a subset of information services counted in ‘Community legal education and information services’.** This is a subset of advice services counted in ‘Legal advice and minor assistance services’.*** Our suburban and regional offices refer requests for advice to our Legal Help service (counted in ‘Referral to another

Victoria Legal Aid service’) or make a follow-up advice appointment (counted in ‘Legal advice and minor services’).

Referrals* Legal Help Suburban and regional offices

Total

Referral to another Victoria Legal Aid service

65,841 15,531 81,372

Referral to an external service

92,553 9,873 102,426

Total 158,394 25,404 183,798

* Some calls may result in more than one matter or referral, depending upon the client’s circumstances and needs.

Legal Help case study: Robo-debt

Madeleine contacted our Legal Help telephone service after receiving a ‘robo-debt’ – a debt calculated by Centrelink using averaging of data obtained from the Australian Tax Office – for an alleged overpayment of $4,000 in Youth Allowance from 2012.

Madeleine says: 'At the time I was given no information about how my debt was calculated.’

Robo-debt notices began being issued by Centrelink in mid-2016. Apart from the significant increase in advices we were giving, VLA became concerned about the lawfulness of the robo-debt process and began to consider ways to test this. As the main entry point for the Victorian community into the legal sector, and given our expertise in legal triage, Legal Help was identified as an appropriate gateway to assist with finding a test case. Specialised training enabled a pool of Legal Help lawyers to provide advice to robo-debt recipients and to assist with assessing appropriate clients.

Madeleine’s case was triaged through the priority robo-debt line, and then referred on to the Economic and Social Rights team for further assistance, and eventually representation in her Federal Court case.

Madeleine, who works as a nurse in a Melbourne hospital, said she hoped the case would help other people.


'I feel a social responsibility to push forward, especially if that means that people who are less equipped or less able do not have to deal with this as well,' she said.

Client access and referralsWe make appropriate referrals to other services, both legal and other types of organisations providing housing or health services and complaints handlers, that may be relevant to a client’s needs. We also refer clients to external agencies when we are unable to help, for example, if we have a conflict of interest or we cannot help because of the nature of the matter.

We referred 102,426 matters to appropriate external agencies. The top five referrals were to:

Generalist community legal centres

Law Institute of Victoria referral service

Private practitioners

Specialist community legal centres

Courts

Website and social mediaOur website is a major source of legal information for Victorians through our ‘Find legal answers’ pages. In 2018–19, we also incorporated content from the Victoria Law Foundation’s ‘Everyday-Law’ website into our website as part of the recommendations from the Access to Justice review, strengthening our legal information offering and positioning us as the central point of coordination of legal information in Victoria.

We had 2,583,255 sessions on our website in 2018–19, up 14 per cent. This steady growth can be attributed to our increase social media presence, referrals from ‘Everyday-Law’ and population growth. A session is a group of interactions that take place on a website within a given time frame. A session can include multiple page views.

The top five ‘Find legal answers’ topics measured by unique page views were:

Personal safety intervention orders 46,469 (up 28 per cent)

Separation, divorce and marriage annulment 30,501 (up 18.5 per cent)

Family violence intervention orders 27,783 (up three per cent)

Parenting arrangements and child contact 25,410 (up 33 per cent)

Criminal offences 24,121 (up 23.5 per cent)

Our website also facilitated 218,036 online referrals, up one per cent. The top five online referrals to other agencies were to:

Federal Circuit Court of Australia—How do I apply for a divorce (up 20 per cent)

The Law Handbook (down seven per cent)

Magistrates’ Court of Victoria—Application of personal safety intervention order (up 25 per cent).

Federal Circuit Court of Australia—Forms and Fees (up eight per cent)

Federation of Community Legal Centres—Find a CLC (down 33 per cent)


We have seen growth across our social media channels, which are used to direct people to legal information, promote the important work we do, undertake strategic advocacy and provide updates about the justice system. We maintain Twitter and LinkedIn accounts to engage and influence our stakeholders, including those in the legal sector, government and the media. We increased our followers on both Twitter and LinkedIn by 17 per cent and 36 per cent respectively, and posts promoting the diversity and achievements of our staff and services performed particularly well.

We also manage a Facebook page to inform and engage with our clients and the general community. As at 30 June 2019, we had 7,237 likes on Facebook, an increase of 18 per cent. The most engaging post on Facebook was a video of our Legal Help staff promoting our language lines. This video post reached a total of 14,929 users and had a total of 3,518 engagements (including 468 reactions, 17 comments and 103 shares). There were also 2,950 clicks on the post, including 439 clicks to play the video.

The post with the highest reach was a feature piece on one of our Youth Crime lawyers Daniel Ajak. This post reached 17,908 users, received 3,044 engagements, and 2,291 post clicks – including 206 clicks directly through to the story on our website. As examples of our strongest performing content, they clearly demonstrate the important role our social channels play in achieving our objective to raise awareness of the range of services we provide.

Legal Aid Brief

Legal Aid Brief is Victoria Legal Aid’s fortnightly eNewsletter for stakeholders including those working in courts and tribunals, community legal centres, community organisations and government departments, lawyers, journalists and panel practitioners undertaking legal aid work. In addition to driving traffic to our website, it is also a key communication channel to inform our stakeholders about changes to legal aid processes and updates about our work and services. It also contains briefings on policy and law reform initiatives to improve access to justice, and a dedicated section for people undertaking legal work on behalf of Victoria Legal Aid. The newsletter is distributed to 2,575 general subscribers, 1,025 panel practitioners and 268 barrister’s list subscribers. We published 23 editions for the period 1 July 2018 to 30 June 2019.Average open rates were:

27 per cent for public subscribers

25 per cent for panel practitioners

46 per cent for the barrister’s list.

An open rate represents how many people successfully opened the email. Our rates are well above the legal industry average of 19 per cent.

Average click through rates were:

eight per cent for public subscribers

five per cent panel practitioners

six per cent for the barrister’s list.

A click through rate represents how many people interacted with at least one link from the email. Our rates are above the legal industry average of two per cent.


Community Legal Education and publications Our Community Legal Education (CLE) program creates high quality legal information materials and education programs to prevent legal problems from arising or escalating, or to help people already in the legal system. Collaboration drives all our CLE work, enabling us to extend our reach and better target our program while learning from others.

As part of our role in coordinating legal information across Victoria, we’ve worked with other agencies in the justice sector to expand the availability of legal information, while also improving our systems for managing information. We’ve focused on looking at different ways of producing legal information and how we might do this better.

Our CLE program has over 100 different types of legal information products for order or download, including fact sheets, booklets and educators’ kits. We distributed 434,050 publications, up by 19 per cent. This year, we developed a Legal Help card for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Victorians which will be released in July 2019. We now also distribute six former Victoria Law Foundation publications, including the popular Law help guide.

Our preventative programs prioritise young people. This year, our focus was young people at risk of disengaging from mainstream education. We piloted Stay or go, a program that addresses group offending, while also continuing our work to support the rollout of the Respectful Relationships curriculum. We worked with our Child Protection program to develop a CLE strategy to guide future education in this area. We also initiated a new CLE program in Dame Phyllis Frost Centre women’s prison to help women on remand better understand bail laws and find out what they want to know about lawyers, courts and sentences.

Together with Peninsula, Springvale Monash and St Kilda community legal centres, staff at our Dandenong and Frankston offices inaugurated the South East CLE Network—an initiative of the South East Region Legal Assistance Network, working in partnership to train teachers at Chisholm TAFE to use What’s the law? Australian law for new arrivals with their students.

We delivered 556 community legal education sessions, up 55 per cent from 2016-17, to 17,071 Victorians, up by 10 per cent. Staff in our regional offices are increasingly engaging with their local communities to understand and respond to legal need. This year over 70 per cent of our sessions were delivered by staff in our regional offices.

We have increased our work with academics with an interest in applied research to develop our knowledge and influence our education and information practice. This year, we published the results of a study, Does Community Legal Education Work? Educating English Language Students about Consumer Contracts, in the Journal of Law and Social Policy. The study investigated the impact of a CLE program for improving English language students’ knowledge and attitudes of the legal issues associated with buying a car. The findings demonstrate how CLE can change participants’ attitudes and knowledge of the law.



2017–18 actual

2018–19 target

2018–19 actual


target

Community legal education and information services (excluding family violence related services)**

110,012 123,500–128,500

97,705 -21

Legal advice and minor assistance for clients (excluding family violence related services)

37,003 34,800 39,838 14


** This does not include publications and website sessions.

The published 2018–19 target for community legal education and information services (excluding family violence related services) included some family violence related services. As a result, the 2018–19 actual is significantly below (21 per cent) the published target. Based on the revised 2018–19 target of 110,000, the year-end total of 97,705 is 11 per cent below expected service levels. Thedecline can be attributed to an increase in legal advice sessions, which take longer and are more complex.

Legal advice and minor assistance includes sessions over the phone or face-to-face at our offices or via outreach services as well as drafting letters, reading and explaining documents and helping clients to represent themselves in court. The 14 per cent increase on our target reflects a higher than anticipated growth in activity from legal advice sessions. The increase in sessions is largely due to an increase in the number of advice sessions relating to family law and criminal law matters being conducted by our Legal Help team.

Early intervention servicesEarly intervention services include legal advice sessions conducted over the phone or in person, as well as minor assistance and advice provided when someone needs ongoing help and there is a tangible benefit for the client.

Legal advice, minor assistance and advocacy by sub-program

Number % change on 2017–18

Civil Justice 14,732 -1

Criminal Law 13,882 15

Family, Youth and Children’s Law 18,824 25.5

The 25.5 per cent increase in Family, Youth and Children’s Law can be attributed to the growth in child protection workers and ongoing response family violence in the community. See Family, Youth and Children’s Law Program for more information.

Educating families provides wrap-around support to young people

As the session stretched into its second hour, lawyer Miriana Smoljko realised how powerful legal information could be for people who need it. There were 20 parents from diverse communities and


youth support workers who sat in a classroom in Melton Secondary College in Melbourne’s north west, thoroughly engrossed in Miriana’s session.

‘It was supposed to go for 45 minutes but people kept asking questions about how to access legal aid, about what client confidentiality really meant and about how they could support their children in a police interview,’ said Miriana.

A passionate youth crime advocate working between the Melbourne, Sunshine and Werribee Children’s Court, Miriana believes sessions like these help her provide an inclusive and responsive legal service.

‘Young people are so hopeful and there’s so much potential to use the law for positive change. But when there are information gaps, particularly intergenerational information gaps, or where people don’t understand how the legal system works, it’s critical to engage with the community so they can support young people when they come to court’.

But gaps in knowledge about a young person’s rights can negatively affect their legal cases. This is especially apparent in newly arrived communities.

Miriana and our Community Legal Education team worked closely with community engagement officers from Youth Justice to identify the best ways to fill these knowledge gaps. They reached out to regional cultural liaison officers employed by the Department of Education, who are intermediaries between young people, their parents and schools. ‘These workers are a lifeline – they help parents sort out issues at school, they also support young people and their families if they get in trouble with the law’ she said.

The resulting education session has been delivered in a handful of schools, in consultation with other organisations like the Centre for Multicultural Youth and the Spectrum Migrant Resource Centre, which are also working to reduce the over-representation of culturally and linguistically diverse communities in the criminal justice system.

‘These legal education sessions in the west are a great example of different Victoria Legal Aid teams identifying reoccurring legal issues in this community and developing content that assists in hopefully resolving or reducing this legal need,’ said Managing Lawyer of Victoria Legal Aid's Sunshine office, Tamsin Mildenhall.

Family Dispute Resolution ServiceOur child-inclusive, legally assisted service helps parents and other adults involved in family separation to resolve their family disputes, including:

parenting arrangements

division of property including superannuation and debt (where parents are in dispute about children’s issues)

partner maintenance

adult child maintenance

international parental child abduction.

Our Family Dispute Resolution Service (FDRS) involves a case manager speaking with parents or other carers and assessing whether family dispute resolution is appropriate in each case, given factors such as power imbalance and any history of family violence. This assessment considers, for example, practical safety issues and a person’s capacity to negotiate. In appropriate cases a child


consultant may meet with children, through our Kids Talk program. Kids Talk gives children and young people an opportunity to have a say about decisions that affect them. It enables their parents or other adult decision-makers (for instance grandparents, or other carers) to focus on children’s experiences, needs and wishes.

A conference may be set up with people together, in separate rooms, or by teleconference or video conference, if it is appropriate. An experienced family dispute resolution practitioner (a chairperson) conducts a conference to help family members discuss their dispute and make decisions that are in the best interests of the children.

In most cases, each person has a lawyer to help them make decisions and to provide legal advice. Clients may have to pay for their own lawyer’s fees if they do not have a grant of legal assistance. In some cases a client can be referred to a lawyer from the Family Law Legal Service, which is a legal service external to VLA. Most conferences occur at an early stage in family law matters, avoiding the need to go to court. However, in appropriate matters, conferences occur during court proceedings to help settle the dispute before a final hearing.

Family dispute resolution services over three years

Year Number of conferences Settlement rate

2018–19 1,010 81%

2017–18 1,010 80%

2016–17 1,044 83%

We provided 1,010 family dispute resolution conferences with a settlement rate of 81 per cent. The settlement rate is based on settlement of some or all issues in a dispute on an interim or ongoing basis.

In the last two years, FDRS has had a higher percentage of cases referred from court – 38 per cent of total conferences in each of the last two years, compared with 30 per cent in 2016–17. Settlement rates for conferences conducted during litigation (when disputes tend to become more entrenched) tend to be slightly lower than early intervention cases (where there are no family court proceedings on foot). For instance, in 2018–19, the litigation intervention settlement rate was 78 per cent; whereas the early intervention conference settlement rate was 83 per cent. This shows, however, that for most families and care-givers there is still a benefit to attempting to resolve their dispute at the FDRS even after court proceedings have started.

Children and their families can benefit when adults in dispute are able to make child-focused decisions themselves. While some cases require a decision from a judge, in most cases the FDRS provides a suitable process to resolve family law disputes without the ongoing stress, time and cost of court.

Working with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families

In December 2018, FDRS published its Framework for providing culturally secure and safe family dispute resolution to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander clients. The framework was developed in consultation with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander clients of FDRS and with providers of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander legal and non-legal services.


Part of our consultation included seeking feedback from clients who had identified as having an Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander background. Several commented on the benefit of having an Aboriginal chairperson, and feeling their culture acknowledged and respected.

‘[The Aboriginal chairperson] was fantastic. She explained what was going to happen. I didn’t know what was what, beforehand. Everything was alright. I like her. It helped having an Aboriginal chairperson’.

Throughout the past six months, many actions identified within the framework have been implemented as part of our regular practice. The framework confirms FDRS’s commitment to improving the experiences of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander clients who use the service, and to building cultural competency among all FDRS staff, as part of our desire to be responsive to the needs of all clients.

Independent Mental Health AdvocacyThe Independent Mental Health Advocacy (IMHA) service promotes and supports the rights of people experiencing or at risk of compulsory mental health treatment. The service is funded by the Department of Health and Human Services and delivered by Victoria Legal Aid. It is free to use and is independent of mental health services.

IMHA is staffed by a team of non-legal advocates, a senior consumer consultant and a manager. The service works with consumers, support people, mental health services, legal services, oversight and safeguard bodies and the mental health system to embed supported decision making and recovery-orientated service delivery.

Advocates engage in representational (or instructed) advocacy by taking their instructions from consumers of mental health services. By doing this, IMHA advocates ensure that people are supported to exercise their rights, speak for themselves and have someone ‘on their side’ who can represent their views, preferences and concerns to service providers and other relevant stakeholders. Ultimately, IMHA always aims to support people towards self-determination with self-advocacy skills so that they can advocate for themselves in the future. Advocates also provide people with information about their rights and the mental health system and make referrals to legal, health and social welfare services. IMHA works alongside the VLA Mental Health and Disability Legal team to provide comprehensive and holistic support to people who are being detained because of their mental illness.

IMHA services are informed by an advisory group of people who have lived experience of mental health issues. The group, Speaking From Experience (SFE), has contributed to IMHA's policies and procedures, co-produced self-advocacy tools, sat on interview panels for new IMHA staff, and provided input into Strategy 22 and our submission to the Royal Commission into Victoria’s Mental Health System and the Productivity Commission’s Inquiry into the Economic Impact of Mental Ill-Health

In April, we released an evaluation of IMHA’s first three years of operation which was conducted by RMIT’s Social and Global Studies Centre. The evaluation involved over 460 people including people who had used IMHA’s services and clinicians in mental health services. The evaluation concluded that IMHA had been very successful in an extremely challenging environment. However, while IMHA is exceeding its key targets, it isn’t currently able to help everyone who needs it. The evaluation found that to reach all Victorians who need the service, anyone who is placed on a compulsory treatment order should be referred to IMHA.


Independent Mental Health Advocacy* 2018–19 2017–18 % change


7,424 8,301 -11

Low intensity occasions of service (information and referral)

17,070 17,223 1

* Data presented is occasions of service provided, not client figures.

IMHA recently changed the database used to record consumer activities. During the transition, there were some anomalies between the two datasets. As a result, there are some variances comparing this year’s data with last year’s data.

IMHA determines the level of intensity of services using eligibility criteria and priority groups. People who are eligible for services and fit within priority groups will receive higher intensity services.

Betty: ‘It felt so good to stand up for myself’

Betty is a 62-year-old woman currently living alone in a regional area. Her adult children live interstate, she is a retired professional, and she is accessing the National Disability Insurance Scheme. Betty self-referred to IMHA after learning about the service during a recent compulsory admission to the Adult Inpatient Psychiatric Unit in her regional area. She was then discharged on a 52-week community treatment order.

Betty approached IMHA with a range of advocacy support needs. Some of these needs included revoking her treatment order, improving her confidence and skills in advocating for herself, changing


her medication from injections to oral tablets (as she experienced severe side effects), changing her case manager, a female nurse to administer her injections and making a complaint.

Betty had to travel over 300 kilometres each month to receive her treatment and wished to access another clinic closer to home. Betty did not feel she was being treated ‘as a whole person’ and wanted her treatment team to acknowledge her individual needs, history of trauma, and treatment preferences.

The IMHA advocate attended monthly treating team meetings with Betty, her case manager and consultant psychiatrist. The advocate provided support for her to express her concerns directly and contributed by representing her concerns utilising principles underpinning the Mental Health Act.

Due to the extensive support provided by the advocate, including self-advocacy coaching and appropriate referrals, Betty’s medication dose was reduced to alleviate side effects and a plan to transition to oral medication was agreed upon, her treatment order was revoked and a female case manager and new consultant psychiatrist were appointed, which improved her relationship with the service provider.

The treating team then supported her preference to engage in treatment closer to her home by supporting her to have a female doctor in her local area. Betty felt her new psychiatrist listened to her and was better able to understand her with knowledge of her experience of trauma.

Betty said: ‘It felt so good to stand up for myself. Thank you for giving me the confidence to stand up for my rights. Thank you for believing me and believing in me.’

Independent Family Advocacy and Support Independent Family Advocacy and Support (IFAS) is a three-year pilot service, providing non-legal advocacy to families engaged with the child protection system, focusing on matters before they go to court.

Advocates work with clients to identify their own goals and to identify their needs. Advocates can:

provide information about the child protection system and the rights and responsibilities of children and young people, parents and carers

support referrals to legal and other appropriate support as determined by the client

develop self-advocacy skills through coaching and identifying tools to support clients to speak up

engage in direct advocacy with professionals where appropriate.

This is a small pilot project. It commenced in October 2018, focusing particularly on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families and parents who have an intellectual disability. The IFAS team, comprising three advocates, a lived experience consultant and a manager, deliver services to people who live or work in the pilot sites of Darebin, Moreland and Bendigo.

The development of IFAS is part of the 36 actions arising from our Child Protection Legal Aid Services Review (a report released in September 2017). The review noted that around one third of child protection cases that go to court do not require the immediate removal of a child and that providing earlier help and support could keep more families together, more children connected to their culture and more matters out of court.


Independent Family Advocacy and Support*+

2018–19 2017–18 % change


483 N/A N/A

Low intensity occasions of service (information and referral)

567 N/A N/A

* The Independent Family Advocacy and Support pilot service was established in October 2018.


IFAS determines the level of intensity of services using eligibility criteria and priority groups. People who are eligible for services and fit within priority groups will receive higher intensity services.

Sarah: Advocacy and support helps mother navigate the child protection system

Sarah is a single mother in her 40s with several children, some of whom are still dependents. Sarah had been the victim of family violence perpetrated by her partner and had developed a safety plan with her family violence worker. She also experienced recurring mental health issues. When hospitalisation was required, she had an arrangement that her adult children and sister provided support and care for the younger children.

Last year, while Sarah was an inpatient at a hospital due to her mental health, Department of Health and Human Services Child Protection opened an investigation. A child protection worker spoke with Sarah and requested meetings with her support people and her children. After these meetings, the child protection worker requested that Sarah apply for a Family Violence Intervention Order against her partner. Sarah did not want to do this as she was concerned that it would escalate the violence.


Sarah was frustrated with Child Protection, and it wasn’t clear to her what steps she needed to take in order to have the investigation closed.

A few months later Sarah was referred to an advocate from VLA’s IFAS service. The IFAS advocate was able to assist with communication between Sarah and her allocated child protection worker. This included clarifying the support that Sarah had to manage the care of the children when she was in hospital and explaining Sarah’s concerns about the intervention order to Child Protection. The advocate was also able to explain to Sarah the outstanding requirements of the investigation, so Sarah could comply with these, including arranging for the family violence safety plan to be provided to child protection services.

Through this advocacy and communication, Child Protection was satisfied, and the investigation was closed.

Family violence legal servicesThe Victorian Budget includes annual performance measures to reflect the government and community’s priority to improve responses to family violence. Our continued focus on family violence has seen an increase of 76 per cent in advice sessions provided by our Legal Help telephone service and a 21 per cent increase in duty lawyer services across Victoria Legal Aid this financial year.

We continue to work collaboratively with our Family Advocacy and Support Services (FASS) providers at the Commonwealth Family Law Courts to help vulnerable people navigate the family law system. FASS is an integrated service where duty lawyers and family violence support workers provide holistic support to families affected by family violence at the Family Law C0ourt registries in Melbourne and Dandenong. After a successful evaluation, FASS was extended to run until 30 June 2022.

Our work also continues with Family Safety Victoria and Community Legal Centres around the provision of early legal advice through The Orange Door (Support and Safety Hubs) and family violence support services.


2017–18 actual

2018–19 target

2018–19 actual % change on 2018–19 target

Family violence legal services

39,086 36,300 45,448 25.2

Community legal education and information services (family violence related services)

25,595 11,700 25,056 114


The figures for family violence legal services include duty lawyer services, grants of legal assistance and legal advice and minor assistance for clients in cases where family violence has been identified as a contributing factor. The higher than predicted number of services provided during the 2018–19


year is due to the ongoing increased focus on delivering legal services to people affected by family violence, including earlier legal advice.

The published 2018–19 target for family violence related community legal education and information services excluded some family violence related services, resulting in a year-end figure that is significantly above the published target. Based on a revised figure of 27,000, we ended seven per cent below our target on 25,056.

Duty lawyer servicesOur lawyers are on ‘duty’ at many courts and tribunals across Victoria to help people who are at court for a hearing, but do not have their own lawyer.

Our duty lawyers provide free legal information, advice and representation to clients. Duty lawyers do not represent everyone. We prioritise serious cases, including people who are in custody or at risk of going into custody, people facing court for a family violence intervention order matter or a child protection matter for the first time and people who need intensive support.

We provide duty lawyer services through our legal programs:

Criminal Law program —Magistrates’ Court summary crime and indictable crime duty lawyer services and Children’s Court crime duty lawyer services

Family, Youth and Children’s Law program —Children’s Court (Family Division), Magistrates’ Court (for family violence, and in some cases personal safety intervention order matters) and Commonwealth Family Law Courts

Civil Justice program —Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (Human Rights and Residential Tenancies Divisions), Mental Health Tribunal, Administrative Appeals Tribunal, Magistrates’ Court (Special Circumstances List) and Federal Circuit Court (migration directions).


2017–18 actual 2018–19 target 2018–19 actual % change on 2018–19 target

Duty lawyer services (excluding family violence related services)

70,939 60,800–62,900 72,518 15


The published 2018–19 target for duty lawyer services (excluding family violence related services) was revised to 71,000, which we exceeded by two per cent. The continuing increase in demand for duty lawyer services can be attributed to changes to bail legislation and sentencing reforms, along with an increase in the number of clients being held in custody on remand.


Grants of legal assistanceWe provide grants of legal assistance to people who:

cannot afford a lawyer

meet our eligibility criteria

are experiencing a legal problem we can help with.

A grant of legal assistance funds a lawyer to give legal advice, help to resolve matters in dispute, prepare legal documents and represent a client in court.

We can help with problems in certain types of criminal, family, children’s and civil law matters. We determine whether a person is eligible for a grant of aid based on:

their financial situation

the type of legal problem

how successful they are likely to be in their case.

Clients with a grant of legal assistance can be helped by a lawyer employed by VLA, a lawyer on one of VLA’s practitioner panels or, in some instances, community legal centres.

Deciding applications for grants of legal assistanceWe use an online grants management system (called ATLAS) to process applications for grants of legal assistance efficiently. Lawyers submit applications via ATLAS on behalf of their clients. Applications submitted under the simplified grants process can be automatically approved or rejected by ATLAS; or can be assessed by a VLA officer. Applications submitted under the standard grants process must be considered by a VLA officer.

In 2018–19, 49 per cent of applications were automatically processed and approved or refused through ATLAS without manual intervention by a VLA officer. The remaining matters were assessed by VLA staff.


2017–18actual

2018–19 target

2018–19 actual


target

Grants of legal assistance(excluding family violence related services)

30,996 32,900 32,610 -1


Grants of legal assistance are our most intensive form of legal assistance. The number of grants of legal assistance provided grew by five per cent in 2018–19 to 45,180. There was an increase in demand for grants of legal assistance within the Criminal Law program, which can be attributed to changes to bail legislation. An increase in child protection matters has caused an increase in the number of Family, Youth and Children’s Law grants, up by 2.5 per cent to 16,352. A decrease in the number of infringement related matters saw a slight decrease in the number of civil law related grants of legal assistance.


Sub-program performance report

Civil Justice ProgramOur work in civil law aims to contribute to a more inclusive and rights-respecting community. We help people with social security, mental health, guardianship and administration, infringements, immigration, tenancy, debt, discrimination, sexual harassment and victims of crime issues.

The decline in service delivery across Civil Justice during 2018–19 is primarily attributable to a reduction of work in our infringements practice as Fines Victoria introduces a new system for processing infringements, which has temporarily resulted in a significant drop in matters being enforced.

Client numbers and service outcomes

Civil Justice Program Number % change on 2017–18

Unique clients 11,175 -9.5

Independent Mental Health Advocacy, high intensity occasions of service (advocacy and self-advocacy)+

7,424 -11

Independent Mental Health Advocacy, low intensity occasions of service (information and referral) +

17,070 1

Independent Family Advocacy and Support, high intensity occasions of service (advocacy and self-advocacy) +

483 N/A*

Independent Family Advocacy and Support, low intensity occasions of service (information and referral) +

567 N/A*

Clients from Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander backgrounds 356 -2.5

Clients from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds 4,030 0

Referrals to external agencies 36,332 -6

Legal advice, minor assistance and advocacy services 14,732 -1

In-house duty lawyer services 2,455 -50

Grants of legal assistance 737 -28

* The Independent Family Advocacy and Support pilot service was established in October 2018.


Grants of legal assistance across the mixed service delivery model


Victoria Legal Aid lawyers 626 -22

Private practitioners 93 -43

Community legal centres 18 -68


Program operating expenditure

Expenditure ($m) % of expenditure

Commonwealth 10.7 17.9

State 13.9 9.4

Total 24.6 11.9

About our sub-programs—Civil Justice

A significant amount of work in the Civil Justice program is done by our in-house staff through work on site at courts and tribunals, and through phone advice and direct casework. We assist people to advocate for themselves, seek reviews of government decisions and resolve disputes with employers and service providers through provision of one-off legal advice and minor work files. We also undertake intensive casework through grants of assistance.

Economic and Social Rights—we contribute to the alleviation of poverty and social exclusion by providing advocacy to help resolve problems that would otherwise lead to entrenched disadvantage. These include problems relating to social security, tenancy, significant fines debt and the National Disability Insurance Scheme. We also engage in targeted litigation and advocacy to influence systems to be efficient, fair and respectful to people.

Equality—we promote and protect substantive equality by addressing individual and systemic discrimination through advice, casework, legal education and strategic advocacy. We work to enable people to obtain and retain employment, to remain engaged with key service and education providers, to receive fair compensation and to use the law to help stop discrimination, sexual harassment, and other unlawful conduct occurring again in the future.

Mental Health and Disability Law—we provide advice and representation in relation to laws that impact the liberty, dignity and autonomy of people with a mental health diagnosis or cognitive disability. We work to minimise restrictions on these rights as well as help to ensure the justice and health systems operate fairly.

Independent Mental Health Advocacy—we support people who are receiving compulsory psychiatric treatment to have as much say as possible about their assessment, treatment and recovery. Our advocates are ‘on the side’ of people receiving compulsory treatment and are independent from hospitals and mental health services.

Independent Family Advocacy and Support—we provide non-legal advocacy and support to parents and primary carers who are involved in the child protection system at the early stages. Our dedicated advocates work with people to identify what they need, how to get there, and how to understand their rights and responsibilities.

Migration—we provide advice and representation to asylum seekers and other vulnerable non-citizens primarily in relation to judicial review of administrative decisions. We also engage in strategic advocacy to ensure that legal processes are fair and transparent and assist new migrants by providing community legal education to help understand the law.


Economic and Social Rights

Service 2018–19 % change on 2017–18

Grants of legal assistance 377 -47

Legal advice 6,808 7

VCAT duty lawyer services 230 -19

Equality Law


Unique clients 1075 2

Legal advice 1515 -17

Mental Health and Disability Advocacy


Number of consumers represented before the Mental Health Tribunal

858 -3

Legal advice 3909 -5

Migration


Grants of legal assistance 141 41

Legal advice 1386 29

Sub-program operating expenditure

Operating expenditure ($m)

% of total expenditure

Economic and Social Rights 11.1 5.3

Migration 4.0 1.9

Mental Health and Disability Advocacy 6.9 3.3

Equality 2.6 1.2

Total 24.6 11.9

IMHA expenditure not included as it is funded through DHHS.


Top five matters*

Matter type Number of matters

Landlord and tenant—resident 2,512

Inpatient treatment order 2,445

Centrelink (other) 1,777

Infringements 1,169

Judicial review of immigration assessment authority decision

850

* This includes matters for grants, advice, duty lawyer services and our phone service.

** The law in general includes issues around commercial law, wills and trusts—we do not fund representation for these matters but receive requests for information and advice about them.

Criminal Law ProgramWe assist people charged with criminal offences and endeavour to positively influence the criminal justice system to:

provide timely justice, the fair hearing of charges and appropriate outcomes

ensure people charged with offences are treated fairly and are well-informed about their options

improve understanding of criminal justice and how to best address the causes of criminal offending and keep the community safe.

We continue to see increases in demand for our criminal law services due to additional police and changes to the law. This includes major changes to the bail laws that have increased the number of clients in custody, reforms to youth justice and serious offender legislation. We have also increased access to our criminal law services by delivering duty lawyer services at the Bail and Remand Court at the Melbourne Magistrates’ Court during the day and evening sessions, 365 days per year.


Criminal Law Program Number % change on 2017–18

Unique clients 54,520 5

Clients from Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander backgrounds 3,348 9

Clients from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds 11,770 6

Legal advice, minor assistance and advocacy services 13,882 15

In-house duty lawyer services 62,773 6

Grants of legal assistance 28,091 7.5



Victoria Legal Aid lawyers 7,422 3



Private practitioners 20,431 9.5

Community legal centre grants 238 -6


Expenditure ($m) % expenditure


State 97.5 66.0

Total 108.6 52.3

About our sub-programs—Criminal Law

Our criminal law work has four main focus areas. Services offered within these areas are delivered either by our in-house lawyers or private practitioners working in partnership with Victoria Legal Aid.

Youth Crime—we ensure that children charged with crimes are treated fairly and that outcomes have a therapeutic focus by providing expert legal advice and representation in a way that reflects the unique status and vulnerability of children.

Summary Crime—we help people charged with less serious offences to positively participate in the summary crime system, ensure they receive fair outcomes and support them to address the underlying causes of offending. We work with our partners to build a fairer summary crime system.

Indictable Crime—we provide high quality legal advice and representation to people facing serious State and Commonwealth criminal charges including homicide, sexual offences, terrorism and drug importation. We provide specialist duty lawyer services at the Melbourne Magistrates’ Court and expert assistance to people who are responding to applications pursuant to the Serious Sex Offender (Detention and Supervision) Act 2009 (Vic). We also apply our specialist knowledge and experience to law reform and policy development, to promote fair and just outcomes for all accused people.

Appellate Crime (Higher Court and County Court)—we strive to maintain client and public confidence in the criminal justice system through a small number of higher court appeals, addressing miscarriages of justice and contributing to the development of the law. We also help people who have been found guilty or sentenced to imprisonment in the Magistrates’ or Children’s Court to exercise their right of appeal to the County Court where there are reasonable prospects of success.


Grants of legal assistance by sub-program


Appellate Crime 1,311 2

Higher Court appeals 141 11

County Court appeals 1170 1

Indictable Crime 2,909 3

Summary Crime 19,476 10

Youth Crime 4,395 4



% of total expenditure

Appellate Summary Crime 2.7 1.3

Appellate Indictable Crime 1.1 0.5

Youth Indictable Crime 1.9 0.9

Youth Summary Crime 10.4 5.0

Adult Indictable Crime 37.2 17.9

Adult Summary Crime 55.3 26.6

Total 108.6 52.3

Top five matters*


Breach of Family Violence Protection Act 8,803

Assault other 7,365

Theft (state) 6,080

Contravention of CCO 5,054

Other miscellaneous criminal offences 4,512



Family, Youth and Children’s Law ProgramWe assist people to resolve their family disputes to achieve safe, workable and child-focused parenting and care arrangements. We also assist parents to build their capacity to resolve future disputes without legal assistance. We contribute to the safety of adults and children affected by family violence and assist in reducing the incidence of family violence by providing legal information, advice and representation.

In 2018–19, we provided a higher number of family and children’s legal services to a greater number of unique clients. This was driven primarily by an increase in earlier family violence and family law legal advice and the ongoing increase in demand for child protection legal help, due to the ongoing response to family violence in the community and growth in child protection workers.

Child Protection duty lawyer services increased by 30 per cent. In 2018–19 we provided 2,557 duty lawyer services compared to 1,965 in 2016–17. Family Violence in-house duty lawyer services increased by nine per cent. In 2018–19 we provided 16,922 duty lawyer services compared to 15,462 in 2016–17.


Family, Youth and Children’s Law Program Number % change on 2017–18

Unique clients 42,178 12

Clients from Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander backgrounds

2,316 14

Clients from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds

8,743 19

Family Dispute Resolution Conferences 1,010 0

Legal advice, minor assistance and advocacy services 18,824 25

In-house duty lawyer services 21,044 11

Grants of legal assistance 16,352 2.5



Victoria Legal Aid lawyers 1,983 -6

Private practitioners 13,954 4

Community legal centre grants 415 -11




State 36.3 24.6



Total 74.4 35.8

About our sub-programs—Family, Youth and Children’s Law

Child Protection—we promote the best interests of children by ensuring that people affected by decisions or actions of the child protection system, particularly children, young people and parents, are informed, are supported to participate or have a voice in decisions that affect them, have their rights protected and upheld, and are treated fairly and according to law.

Family Dispute Resolution—we provide timely, legally assisted family dispute resolution services to vulnerable people. We assist separated families to meet the best interests of their children by providing case management, assessment, preparation and referral (including to our child-inclusive Kids Talk program where appropriate), and by holding conferences facilitated by experienced chairpersons.

Child Support—we work to ensure that children of separated parents are financially supported in accordance with the law. In cases where a separated person is unable to adequately support themselves, and their former partner has capacity to pay, we work towards a solution of financial support and the fair distribution of assets and liabilities. We also ensure that liable parents have access to independent legal advice and representation where appropriate.

Family Violence—we contribute to the safety of adults and children impacted by family violence and assist in reducing the incidence of family violence by providing legal information, advice and representation to affected adults and children. This includes acting for clients at the Family Law Courts, the Children’s Court and the Magistrates’ Court of Victoria. We also contribute to public debate about policies and practices of Australian courts and governments in relation to family violence.

Independent Children’s Lawyers—we provide assistance in Family Law Court proceedings to children at risk of harm due to the conduct of one or both parents. We aim to ensure that judicial officers make good decisions based on the best available evidence and that arrangements ordered by the court are in the children’s best interests.

Parenting Disputes—we provide information, advice and representation to separating or separated couples who are in dispute about their children’s living and care arrangements. For high-conflict families who have been unable to resolve children’s issues through family dispute resolution services, we may assist with access to the Family Law Courts. Our aim is to achieve safe, workable and child-focused parenting and care arrangements.

Grants of legal assistance by sub-program


Child Protection 9,626 8

Child Support 246 -31

Family Violence 1,970 -6

Independent Children’s Lawyers 1,299 -9



Parenting Disputes* 3,211 1

* Parenting Disputes now includes Family Dispute Resolution (previously reported separately).



% of total operating expenditure

Child Protection 26.4 12.7

Child Support 2.1 1.0

Family Violence 11.7 5.6

Independent Children’s Lawyers 13.1 6.3

Parenting Disputes* 21.2 10.2

Total 74.4 35.8

* Parenting Disputes now includes Family Dispute Resolution (previously reported separately).

Top five matters*


Family violence—respondent 16,155

Protection application – by emergency care 6,444

Family violence—applicant 5,548

Spending time with children 4,779

Live with children 2,551


Victoria Legal Aid ChambersVictoria Legal Aid maintains an in-house advocacy practice to ensure it has thorough and practical knowledge of the needs and challenges of jurisdictions in which legal aid services are provided. The primary function of Victoria Legal Aid Chambers (Chambers) is to provide high quality advocacy for legally aided clients in civil, criminal and family, youth and children’s law matters and to conduct strategic litigation to remedy a legal problem or change a policy or process to benefit an individual client and the broader community. In addition, Chambers also offers collegiate support to staff to develop their advocacy skills, increasing the skills and capacity of the staff practice. Chambers works closely with the staff practice to mentor solicitors and provide advocacy training to offices and programs. Chambers has formal partner relationships with all regional VLA offices and delivers a rostered advice service as well as regular visits to their partner offices. Solicitors can contact the advocates by telephone or in person to discuss case strategy, settlement options or other advice.

The close working relationship between Chambers and the staff practice delivers results for legally aided clients. Chambers and the staff practice continue to explore different ways of working together


to ensure that matters resolve more quickly, on a more favourable basis and with better outcomes for clients.

Chambers also partners with external organisations to ensure better outcomes for legally aided clients. The successful Trial Counsel Development Program targets talented junior counsel for development and training opportunities, pairing them with experienced leaders in criminal trials. In the past two years Chambers has worked closely with the Victorian Institute of Forensic Medicine and the Victorian Institute of Forensic Mental Health to assist in training registrars and preparing them for presenting evidence in court.

Chambers represents another facet of the mixed model of legal service delivery. This year, our advocates appeared in approximately 69 per cent of all in-house criminal trials. The Victorian Bar continues to provide the majority of advocacy services for legally aided clients across the sector.

This year, we also commenced a review of our Chambers to contribute to best practice and performance.

Facts and figures

Our advocates appeared in court on more than 1,903 occasions (70 per cent criminal, 19 per cent family, 11 per cent civil) including 143 County Court pleas, 27 County Court criminal trials (10 in Circuit Courts located in regional centres) and nine Supreme Court criminal trials.

21 per cent of all hearings were conducted in regional locations.

Of the criminal matters: 24 per cent were conducted in regional locations. Chambers advocates appeared in all 11 regional County Court circuit locations.

Of the family matters: 17 per cent were conducted in regional locations. Chambers advocates appeared in Ballarat, Bendigo, Geelong, Morwell, Mildura and Shepparton.

Of the civil matters: seven per cent were conducted in regional locations.

Our Trial Counsel Development Program funded seven criminal trials. Six out of seven of our junior counsel for our 2019 Trial Counsel Development program are female members of the Victoria Bar.

When a Chambers advocate is not available, we assist the assigned staff solicitor to brief an appropriate barrister from the private Bar. Our recommendations take into account diversity, equality and the development of promising advocates.

Equitable briefing

35 per cent of significant* cases were briefed to female barristers at the private Bar. This compares favourably with the target of 30 per cent by the year 2020 set by the National Model Gender Equitable Briefing Policy.

Over $10 million was paid to female barristers at the private Bar, up from $9.6 million in 2017–18.

Over $10.9 million was paid to female barristers in-house and at the private Bar, up from $10.6 million in 2017–18.

62 per cent of advocates employed in Victoria Legal Aid Chambers are female.


* Significant cases include County and Supreme Court trials, County and Supreme Court pleas, contested committals and

serious sex offender supervision contests.

Trial Counsel Development Program

The Trial Counsel Development Program delivers unique training opportunities to selected Junior Counsel, who are members of the Victorian Bar, by partnering them with senior trial advocates in criminal trials each year.

This year, there are seven junior counsel participants, each of whom can expect to undertake two trials under the direct tutelage of lead counsel.

At an event in March welcoming the 2019 participants, Victoria Legal Aid Chief Counsel, Tim Marsh noted the significant number of women who have participated in the program over the years including the 2019 group.

'This will be the fifth time we have run the program, which has seen a total of 47 participants, 34 of whom are women,' Mr Marsh said.

'While there has never been any deliberate bias towards women as participants, in focusing on talented advocates who were on the cusp of running trials in their own right, we saw that women formed the bulk of that group.

'We remain committed to equitable briefing and reducing some of the barriers that women face in the profession, this program being just a small part,' Mr Marsh said.

Over the eight years of the program, VLA has funded junior counsel in 177 trials, including ten in regional locations, that would not have otherwise merited two counsel. This would not be possible without the 45 leaders in the program who embody excellence in their craft, are willing to share their knowledge and who can mentor their juniors and give appropriate coaching and feedback.


Our offices We have 15 offices in metropolitan and regional Victoria. People living in regional and remote communities can feel isolated and find it difficult to access legal assistance. Our regional offices play a vital role in servicing the community, providing professional and timely advice to those living in rural and remote parts of Victoria.

Melbourne570 Bourke Street (head office) Melbourne VIC 3000

SuburbanBroadmeadows—North western office

Dandenong—Westernport office

Frankston—Peninsula office

Ringwood—Outer eastern office

Sunshine—Western suburbs office

RegionalBairnsdale—Gippsland regional office

Ballarat—Central highlands regional office

Bendigo—Loddon-Campaspe regional office

Geelong—Barwon regional office

Horsham—Wimmera regional office

Morwell—Gippsland regional office

Mildura—Mallee regional office

Shepparton—Goulburn regional office

Warrnambool—South Coast regional office


Our Performance

Snapshot of financial performanceThe Victorian Government considers the net result from transactions to be the appropriate measure of financial management that can be directly attributed to government policy.

In 2018–19, Victoria Legal Aid achieved a net result of $3 million. This is primarily due to the accounting treatment of the Digital Legal Aid project asset funding, which will be capitalised on VLA’s balance sheet as well as a series of internal savings measures which were implemented in the second half of the year. Excluding the asset funding, the underlying result was a deficit of $0.4 million.

Both total income and expenses increased during the year, primarily associated with additional one-off project funding received from the State Budget and the Public Purpose Fund.

Our financial future is challenging. The Department of Justice and Community Safety has provided some one-off budget relief in 2019–20 while the government undertakes its review of base funding of departments and government funded agencies. We are also developing savings measures in the absence of additional funding to our base, which will be implemented in 2019–20 or the following financial year.

Financial summary 2018–19 $’000

2017–18 $’000

2016–17 $’000

2015–16 $’000

2014–15 $’000

Total income from transactions 230,670 201,786 181,352 173,877 166,749

Total expenses from transactions

(226,895) (207,959) (191,297) (172,337) (155,774)

Net result from transactions 3,775 (6,173) (9,945) 1,540 10,975

Net result for the period 3,017 (5,251) (10,917) 2,744 11,006

Net cash from (used in) operating activities

8,402 (8,309) (2,129) 9,676 13,411

Total assets 83,881 85,341 84,016 86,798 78,961

Total liabilities 51,534 56,010 50,633 42,498 37,405

Total equity 32,347 29,331 33,383 44,300 41,556

Financial Performance Review

Income

Over 95 per cent of our operating income is provided by the Victorian and Commonwealth governments and the Legal Services Board administered Public Purpose Fund. The total income of $230.7 million in 2018–19 is higher by $28.9 million from the previous financial year.

The Commonwealth Government, through the Council of Australian Governments’ National Partnership Agreement on Legal Assistance Services provided $49.9 million in funding, an increase of $0.6 million compared to the previous financial year. In addition, the Commonwealth contributed


supplementary funding of $8.7 million ($4.4 million in 2017–18) for expensive criminal cases and direct project funds.

Operating grants from the Commonwealth for community legal centres are passed directly to the centres by Victoria Legal Aid and accordingly are not recognised as income in our financial statements.

The State Government provided $74.4 million in base funding. Specific-purpose funds were received for community legal centres totalling $17.7 million ($16.7 million 2017–18) and for the operation of the Bail and Remand Court, child protection, mental health, youth justice and family violence related activities totalling $36.7 million ($25.2 million 2017–18).

Funding from the Public Purpose Fund was $35.5 million ($30 million in 2017–18), including a one-off payment of $4.0m for the Digital Legal Aid project.

The remaining operating income was $6.8 million ($4.5 million in 2017–18) of which the majority is from client contribution and interest income.

Expenses

Total expenditure was $226.9 million, an increase of $18.9 million from last year’s expenditure of $208.0 million.

Case-related payments totalled $105.2 million, an increase of $12.1 million compared to the previous financial year. These funds are paid to private practitioners, barristers, medical experts, and interpreters as well as to third parties for services rendered on in-house cases.

The other major expense was staffing-related costs of $77.6 million, an increase of $5.9 million compared to the previous financial year. The increase in these costs include annual increments paid to staff as well as salaries for additional staff, including:

duty lawyers across Victoria to meet specialist family violence lists

criminal duty lawyers across Victoria to support the increase in demand

Legal Help staff to respond to the increase in telephone calls

Other expenditure decreased $1.2 million to $21.7 million.

Financial position – balance sheet

Total assets decreased by $1.5 million compared to the previous financial year.

This is predominantly due to the depreciation and amortisation of the capital fit-out incentive applied to the occupancy at 570 Bourke Street and other assets, slightly offset by additional asset investment relating to the fit-out of Level 13 at 570 Bourke Street and other office fit-outs at 14 Mason Street Dandenong and 23 Ringwood Street Ringwood.

Total liabilities decreased by $4.5 million compared to the previous financial year primarily relating to the timing of trade and case related payments slightly offset by increases in employee related provisions.

See ‘Our Finances’ for the financial year in review and financial statements, including the Auditor-General’s Report.


National Partnership AgreementMost of the funding provided by the Australian Government to support the delivery of legal assistance services to disadvantaged Australians is provided through the National Partnership Agreement on Legal Assistance Services (NPALAS). The current NPALAS commenced on 1 July 2015 and is due to expire on 30 June 2020. The 2015–20 NPALAS provides policy guidance and includes state-wide performance indicators for legal aid commissions and community legal centres, as well as a requirement for sector planning.

Under the NPALAS legal aid commissions and community legal centres must ensure that 95 per cent of representation services are delivered to people experiencing financial disadvantage. Since the commencement of 2015–20 NPALAS, we have consistently met this target, as our services are means tested.

Planning for negotiations for the next NPALAS starting in 2020 has begun with consultations and submissions on the review of the NPALAS late last year. We have established an internal working group to identify our priorities for the next agreement. We will work closely with the Department of Justice and Community Safety, and other partners across the Victorian legal assistance sector, including the Federation of Community Legal Centres and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander legal services, to identify joint Victorian priorities to support upcoming negotiations. We will also work closely with National Legal Aid and other national partners on general legal assistance sector priorities.

Reporting against our priorities in the 2018–19 Corporate Plan In 2018–19 as part of our yearly corporate plan, we committed to implementing 13 priority activities to help guide our work, improve our services for clients, and support our staff. These priority activities represent our responsibility to deliver on our statutory objectives and our longer-term goals. The priorities are in addition to our core role in providing access to justice for Victorians.

Clients – we listen to our clients and make meeting their diverse needs our priorityWe will make Victoria Legal Aid a more client-centred organisation that routinely seeks and uses client feedback in the design of policies, services and projects. We will also use our leadership role within the justice system to advocate for improvements to the broader system to make it more accessible for clients.

We will continue to focus our resources on priority clients that face disadvantage within the legal system, including children and young people, people experiencing mental illness or living with a disability, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander clients, and clients who encounter violence, trauma and abuse.

Priority: Improve our Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander services and culturally sensitive practices to clients by developing a new Reconciliation Action Plan

Our vision for reconciliation in Australia is that we have a fair and just society where everyone is equal. Our second Innovate Reconciliation Action Plan (RAP) was launched during NAIDOC Week 2019 and was developed by the RAP Working Group in consultation with our First Nations Staff Network, Djirra, the Victorian Aboriginal Legal Service (VALS) and Reconciliation Australia.


The RAP outlines how we will work together with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and communities to ensure the services we provide are culturally safe, accessible and responsive. It formalises our ongoing commitment to driving change across the Victorian justice system, addressing disadvantage and improving justice outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in Victoria.

The action outcomes are centred around Relationships, Respect and Opportunities. It details many significant undertakings over the next two years, including increasing our number of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander staff and providing pathways and career development opportunities for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.

Priority: Develop a Client Services Strategy, including an updated Priority Client Framework

In 2018, we reviewed our Priority Client Framework, which is considered in determining eligibility for legal aid services. As a result of feedback and a review of legal needs research, we developed a new policy – the Client Priority and Capability Policy. The policy helps to guide the way we design and deliver our services and ensures we are helping those who need it most. The policy outlines our approach to prioritising services by considering the priority characteristics relevant to the individual, their capability to understand and address the legal problem, and the nature and context of the legal problem itself. We are using the policy to inform decisions about service delivery and to influence major reform projects as they occur.

Further work will be undertaken to finalise an overarching Client Services Strategy, which will provide more opportunities for clients to be involved in designing our services and to embed client perspectives in our systems and processes. The Client Priority and Capability Policy will form part of this strategy.

Priority: Review our Conflict of Interest Policy to enhance client access to legal services, reduce confusion for staff and meet our legal and professional obligations

We are committed to maximising access to justice and supporting our lawyers to provide high quality services. A review completed in 2018 indicated that our current Conflict of Interest Policy, and the way it is applied, should be revised to better reflect these aims. We worked with consultants to develop a new policy which will enable us to serve more clients, while better supporting staff to uphold their professional obligations. Through a range of forums and meetings, staff provided input on the draft policy and how conflicts can best be managed in all aspects of VLA's work. We also benefited from the experiences and insights of the Legal Services Board and Commissioner as well as other legal aid commissions.

In April 2019, the Board endorsed the policy. In June, the Steering Committee considered options for implementation. It was decided that the policy should be rolled out across VLA, alongside Digital Legal Aid's new Client Management System. This approach represents the most efficient use of public funds by avoiding the need to alter legacy IT systems. In the meantime, we will be training staff and developing supporting materials to prepare for the new policy.


Priority: Produce resources, deliver training to VLA staff and develop a legal response strategy to ensure VLA provides a holistic service to clients with a disability and responds to legal issues arising from the state-wide roll out of the NDIS

This year, we commenced an organisational wide project to design and implement a response that ensures we provide a holistic service to people with a disability – in the context of the state-wide rollout of the NDIS. We focused on:

Training and skill-building. We created training and resources for staff, including NDIS Essentials –an online module for all staff, aimed at improving the understanding of, and responses to, NDIS issues. We also worked with Villamanta Disability Legal Service, Mental Health Legal Centre, Consumer Action Law Centre and AMIDA Disability Advocacy to design and deliver a session at the Federation of Community Legal Centres’ annual CPD Day in March 2019. This module reached approximately 200 community legal centre lawyers. In addition, our non-legal advocacy service, Independent Mental Health Advocacy (IMHA), co-produced a ‘train the trainer’ package and self-advocacy modules, and trained peer facilitators to deliver workshops to consumers navigating the NDIS.

Practice responses. We have designed and mapped internal and external escalation and referral pathways for clients with NDIS issues. This includes working closely with the Department of Health and Human Services Intensive Support Team to resolve issues for clients in crisis.

Advocacy and reform. We continued to undertake advocacy, informed by our practice, to improve the operation of the NDIS for the people we work with. This has included submissions to the Federal Parliament’s Joint Standing Committee on the NDIS, the Productivity Commission and, in partnership with the Office of the Public Advocate and the Australian Federation of Disability Organisations, the NDIS Senior Officers Working Group justice sub-committee. It has also included participation in working and advisory groups and working closely with stakeholders and partners in the legal and disability sectors.

Impact – we design services using evidence and feedback when deciding how and where they are delivered It is critical that Victoria Legal Aid is able to monitor and anticipate evolving needs through more effective use of service data and demographic information. Our use of public funds makes it important for us to monitor and evaluate the efficiency and effectiveness of our services across Victoria.

Priority: Continue to implement the recommendations of the Child Protection Legal Aid Services review to ensure children, young people, parents and carers can benefit from services that are more effective, high quality and as widely available as possible

In March 2019, we realised a major commitment of our Child Protection Legal Aid Services Review by introducing new Duty Lawyer Guidelines to promote consistency, certainty and transparency for child protection clients and practitioners across the state. The guidelines set out eligibility criteria and the different types of services to be delivered by duty lawyer services. These guidelines are supported by further changes including the introduction of a consistent referral process state-wide, meaning we manage the referrals of legal aid clients to lawyers where a protection application has been made, and new referral arrangements with VALS and Djirra to give Aboriginal clients the first choice of being assisted by an Aboriginal legal service.


Priority: Commence implementation of Digital Legal Aid to improve access to services by implementing an online booking and information tool and improve data-driven planning and decision making by implementing a new sector planning model

Our Sector Planning project was initiated in 2017 with the aim to develop a credible and accessible way to measure legal need and identify service gaps to support targeted, collaborative planning of Victorian legal assistance services. It concluded at the end of 2018, having developed a robust model for legal needs analysis, a state-wide data set and a collaborative planning process for the legal assistance sector.

We have now entered an implementation phase, informed by the above Sector Planning project outputs. Our key priorities are improving how we plan, design and deliver legal services so that decisions are based on robust evidence of legal need and are responsive to the lived experience of clients. This work includes a focus on supporting collaborative planning, with the broader legal assistance sector and providing technical assistance to community legal centres when reviewing or designing legal assistance services.

We are continuing to deliver placed-based collaborative planning while expanding to provide specialist collaborative planning, with a focus this year on Mildura and family law. Service planning and delivery, more generally, is being improved through targeted service design initiatives focused on improving existing service delivery, increasing service efficiency, designing new services and enhancing client and staff outcomes.

In parallel, we are developing an interactive data tool, based on the legal needs model developed in 2018, with a user-friendly interface to generate responsive legal needs data and to help answer service design questions.

We also commenced work on new online triage and referral tools. We are designing a tool targeted at community sector workers that will allow them to identify legal needs in the areas of family law, family violence and child protection and provide appropriate legal information and referrals. Our child protection referral tool will make it easier to do a conflict check and refer matters to an appropriate lawyer.

Priority: Improve coordination of legal information across the legal assistance sector by transitioning functions and the website from Victoria Law Foundation

We have improved the coordination of legal information in Victoria by incorporating the Victoria Law Foundation’s legal information, including six print titles and content of the Everyday-Law website, into our own. Implementing this recommendation from the Victorian Government’s 2016 Access to Justice Review gives Victorians easier access to more legal information in a centralized location. Visits to our website that included the Find Legal Answers section were up 16 per cent this year. We anticipate ongoing growth in traffic to our website as we continue to take up and promote our expanded role coordinating the provision of legal information.

Priority: Undertake targeted pilots in child protection, youth crime and mental health services that aim to prevent legal problems escalating through greater use of non-legal services

A model for a proposed Youth Engagement Service, which would see social work trained staff working in conjunction with our duty lawyers at the Children’s Court, was developed throughout 2018. The service was intended to enhance our capacity to identify risk and protective factors for children and young people and support referrals to specialist services and programs in the busy


court environment. This trial has been deferred as we work to balance our budget and address our forecast deficits. Subject to securing funding to support the trial, work will recommence in 2020–21.

The Independent Family Advocacy and Support (IFAS) service pilot is now well-established, providing non-legal advocacy to families with child protection involvement in the pre-court stage with the aim of supporting a better experience for clients and a reduction in the need for legal proceedings. IFAS is working closely with health, social service and Aboriginal organisations in the pilot sites (Bendigo and in the Darebin and Moreland regions) to identify potential clients who may benefit from the service.

IFAS is supported by a lived experience consultant and a group comprising of people with experience of the child protection system, to ensure that the client voice and experience is prioritised in the design and operation of the service.

Together – we lead and act in ways that build trust and deepen relationships with colleagues, partners and the communityIt is critical that our clients and the community trust us, and value the services we deliver and fund. It is equally important that our legal and community sector partners understand what we do and why we do it. To foster trust, we will increase transparency internally and externally and play our leadership role in a collaborative and inclusive manner with our practice partners.

Priority: Respond to significant changes in the criminal law system and continue to work with our partners, including government, police and courts, to manage demand and reform the summary crime system

The summary crime system is where people have the most contact with the criminal justice system in Victoria and our summary crime program is our largest area of service delivery. There is general agreement that the current system is overburdened and underfunded. Reforming the summary crime system requires coordinated and collaborative work by all system partners, including police, courts and government. Throughout 2018–19, we worked with these key system partners to agree on a vision for system and priority reform activities to manage demand for services and improve outcomes for people and the community. Work on these priority activities in conjunction with our partners will continue throughout 2019–20. We also consulted widely with staff, practice partners and stakeholders to articulate a common vision, outcomes and key actions for our summary crime program.

Priority: Develop a VLA Education Strategy for partners and staff that promotes service quality

Victoria Legal Aid plays a critical role in delivering training and learning products to our staff as well as to community legal centres and private practitioners. In 2017, a need was identified for the organisation to better understand the education and training needs of staff and practice partners, the ways in which the current approach meets those needs, and where gaps exist.

As a first step in addressing this, we have developed a draft Education Strategy. The Strategy will guide the organisation to more effectively deliver quality education products and services, and to direct our education and learning resources where they are most needed. It will support the theme of ‘together’ in our Strategy 22 by contributing towards our goal of ensuring that staff and practice partners are equally supported with practice resources and learning.


In developing the Strategy, we consulted extensively with staff and practice partners through a series of workshops, webinars, and an online survey. The insights learned from these engagements have informed the draft Strategy, which will be finalised in July 2019 and presented to the Board in September. Once the Strategy has been endorsed, we will consider options for implementing it with available resources.

Priority: Establish the Collaborative Planning Committee as part of the ongoing implementation of Access to Justice Review recommendations

The Collaborative Planning Committee convened for the first time on 1 May 2019, shortly after the introduction of the Access to Justice reforms. The committee membership includes representatives from the Department of Justice and Community Safety, Federation of Community Legal Centres, Law Institute of Victoria, Victoria Law Foundation, Victoria Legal Aid, the Victorian Bar, the Victorian Aboriginal Legal Service, Djirra and another member on the recommendation of the committee to the VLA Board.

The committee considered draft terms of reference for its work informed by the committee’s enabling legislation. The purpose of the committee is to provide evidence-based advice and recommendations to the VLA Board in relation to:

the legal and related needs of the community

the provision of legal aid

VLA’s functions relating to the coordination, and undertaking of strategic planning for, the provision of legal and legal assistance information.

This may include, for example, advice and recommendations on legal assistance sector reform and innovation, sector planning – including the enhanced use of data to inform planning decisions, client-centred design and responsiveness to consumer feedback, specific collaborative service delivery models, funding allocations, and the impact of law reform proposals and emerging legal issues on demand for legal assistance.

Priority: Continue to work collaboratively with our partners to deliver family violence legal services and support the rollout of Support and Safety Hubs and specialist family violence courts in Victoria

We continued to work closely with our partners across the family violence and justice sectors during the year to ensure more people across Victoria can get access to quality family violence legal services, and as seen in our service reporting we delivered an increased level of services to the community.

We have been working with the Magistrates’ Court of Victoria on the design and implementation of the new Specialist Family Violence Courts, which will be launched in five locations across Victoria over the next financial year. The first of these courts is scheduled to open in Shepparton in late September 2019. Our overriding aim is to ensure that the legal service model in the Specialist Family Violence Courts meets the diverse needs of people who have experienced family violence, including a focus on earlier intervention.

We also continue to work collaboratively with Family Safety Victoria, family violence services and the community legal sector to increase access to early legal assistance through The Orange Door (Family Violence Support and Safety Hubs) and through family violence services. The Orange Door has now opened in five locations (Geelong, Frankston, Morwell, Mildura and Heidelberg) and we


deliver legal outreach at two Orange Door sites. We have also begun work on a technology-based legal issues identification and referral tool that we will trial with community sector workers in the coming year to help identify clients’ legal needs more effectively, with a particular focus on family violence, family law and child protection legal issues.

Priority: Continue to implement our Personal Safety Project – expand our new court induction process to courts and tribunals beyond the Magistrates’ Court, complete our client safety training, introduce a new safe driving policy and settle a model for the provision of psychological wellbeing services

We have completed an assessment of 90 per cent of key off-site locations. Of these locations, 80 per cent have implemented induction processes. An induction intranet site will be launched in September 2019, making it easier to access information.

Our people’s personal safety and building a safety-first culture is a priority for the organisation. Our Safe Client Interaction training has been delivered to 64 per cent of all client facing staff (386 out of approximately 600 client facing staff). We continue to offer a number of opt-in sessions for anyone who may have missed the relevant team-based session. We will roll out the remainder of this training in 2019–20, to reach the target of 90 per cent of client facing staff. We target a 90 per cent completion rate for this type of training due to the mode of delivery, frequency of workshops and expected turnover.

In addition, two pilots for managing difficult phone calls have been held, which is a version of Safe Client Interaction training for phone-based work, with positive feedback arising from the sessions. A separate safety scale for phone-based staff was developed to support the training, along with tips sheets to assist callers dealing with clients at risk of self-harm.

In April 2019, we presented the Workplace Wellbeing Health Safety Committee (WWHSC), a subcommittee of our Board, a report and draft driving policy – both of which were drafted after various consultation. It was agreed that regional driving risks be addressed as a priority. An interim safe driving action plan has been developed and is due for completion in October 2019. Work has also commenced on developing an implementation plan to address the recommendations of the driving report as well as the Health Safety Wellbeing (HSW) systems audit undertaken in February–March 2019.

Work and consultation are also underway on the Psychological Wellbeing Plan which includes various risk mitigation strategies aimed at minimising the psychological impacts of our workload that can result in stress, burnout, cognitive fatigue depression and anxiety. The nature of our work can be vicariously traumatising, and the plan attempts to address the psychological impacts our staff may face. We will continue to promote the services of our Employee Assistance Program and provide transitional access to debriefing and other support services until the plan is finalised.

Making a difference through casework, advocacy and law reformWe work on ways to improve the justice system. The Legal Aid Act 1978 requires us to seek innovative means of providing legal assistance that will reduce the need for individual legal services, and to provide the community with improved access to justice and legal remedies.

An effective way to achieve these objectives is to pursue improvements in law and policy, rather than simply addressing legal problems in isolation and on an individual basis. We do this in several ways, including:


running high-impact test cases to clarify points of law or challenge the way laws are applied in practice

making submissions to inquiries and reviews

advocating directly to government, the courts and private sectors to improve legislation, policies and processes

collaborating with other organisations on advocacy campaigns and law reform initiatives.

This work is an efficient and effective way of providing the community with a better and more accessible justice system, and is informed by our broad practice in family, youth, criminal, civil and administrative law. The breadth of our work means we are well placed to identify opportunities for reform within the justice system.

Significant cases

Rewind ‘robo-debt’

In 2019, we commenced two test cases in the Federal Court challenging the lawfulness of the large-scale social security debt calculation and recovery process known as ‘robo-debt’. These cases aim to test whether it is legal for Centrelink to raise these alleged debts across the community.

Over 500,000 robo-debts have now been raised against current and past Australian social security recipients using a controversial data-matching and income averaging process. This process is used by Centrelink to calculate alleged ‘overpayments’ of social security and, in the absence of a person disproving the overpayment, a debt is raised against the person. After the debt is raised, debt recovery action is taken which can include the use of debt-collectors, seizure of a person’s tax return and compulsory deductions from any current social security payments a person is receiving.

Since December 2016, we have seen the harsh effects of robo-debt on hundreds of our clients and its frequent inaccuracy. From the start, we have witnessed repeated examples of the robo-debt process regularly calculating alleged debts that our clients have not actually owed, and we have publicly questioned how the robo-debt process is permitted under the Social Security Act 1991 (Cth).

We have worked with academics, community legal centres and social services organisations to manage the demand for quality legal assistance for the high number of people affected by robo-debt. We have also worked with these partners to advocate for government to rewind robo-debt, including by making submissions to government inquiries, and communicating through social media and mainstream media about why a fairer, smarter, and lawful scheme is necessary.

The first test case was brought in February on behalf of a Victorian nurse, Madeleine Masterton. Soon after Madeleine’s case was filed, the Commonwealth government recalculated her debt manually and informed her that she no longer owed a debt. As a result, the Commonwealth is now arguing that no dispute exists for the Court to determine in this case. In June, we brought a second case to the Federal Court on behalf of a young woman, Deanna Amato. Like Madeleine and so many other Australians, Deanna has been subject to the robo-debt process. She has also had her tax returned garnished to repay the debt, which she argues she doesn’t owe. We anticipate that both matters will be heard by the Court in late 2019. We look forward to the Court’s determination of this important question for the hundreds of thousands of people affected by robo-debt.


As our client, Deanna, said: ‘It seems to have affected the mental health of a lot of people who were told they have these robo-debts. It’s been going on a really long time now and it just hasn’t changed, and it should.’

Ensuring the Bail Act is fair

Since the commencement of recent reforms to the Bail Act 1977 (Vic) in May and July 2018, our lawyers working at the front line have seen people more likely to spend time in custody due to being shifted into the ‘compelling reasons’ or ‘exceptional circumstances’ categories for bail. In many cases, our clients are being remanded for minor offending, even though they are unlikely to receive a custodial sentence for that offending. More often we are seeing children, women, people experiencing homelessness, and people with mental health issues remanded in custody.

In December 2018, we took an application for bail to the Supreme Court to clarify the question of what constitutes a ‘compelling reason’ for the purposes of granting bail under the Bail Act. Our client, who had no prior convictions, had been charged with comparatively minor offending that had arisen in the context of a disagreement with another resident in their unit complex about the practice of wedging a communal security door open.

The Supreme Court held that where a person was charged with offences that would, even if ultimately proven, be unlikely to result in a sentence of imprisonment, or more imprisonment than the person had served at the time of the bail application, that this would ordinarily constitute a ‘compelling reason’ to grant bail in and of itself.

Our client was granted bail after almost four months in custody. Ultimately when his charges were heard, he was found not guilty of all but one charge, for which he was discharged without penalty.

This decision is important for people who find themselves having to establish a compelling reason justifying the grant of bail, but who are unlikely to be sentenced to imprisonment even if ultimately found guilty of the alleged offending. This affects many of our vulnerable clients who may reoffend while on bail for relatively minor offences such as public drunkenness, shop theft, begging, and use of illicit substances.

Major submissions

Advocating for a better mental health system

Throughout 2019, our legal and non-legal staff across our civil justice, criminal law, family, youth and children’s law programs and strategic communications have worked together to advocate for a better mental health system for Victorians. We have communicated the serious challenges for clients and consumers under the current system and have suggested how the system can be redesigned to meet the needs of Victorians. Our advocacy is based on the experiences of our clients, mental health consumers, lawyers and non-legal advocates, as well as input from our consumer expert advisory group, Speaking From Experience.

‘Roads to Recovery’, our submission on the proposed terms of reference for the Royal Commission into Victoria’s Mental Health System, identified 10 themes that must be considered by the Royal Commission. This included the critical importance of consumer leadership, realising rights for consumers subject to compulsory mental health treatment, reducing the negative impact of the justice system on people experiencing mental health issues, and culturally safe and accessible community mental health services state-wide.


Our submission suggested that we should be moving toward a social model of health, designed with people with lived experience of mental health issues. Since this submission, our lawyers and advocates across the state have attended community consultations, describing the sometimes limited rights which people subject to compulsory treatment have ‘on the ground’, as well as the need to intervene earlier in people’s lives to support their health in the community and avoid the blunt tool of the justice system being applied to try to deal with mental health issues.

We also presented these evidence-based messages to the Productivity Commission as part of its inquiry into the role of improving mental health to support economic participation and enhance productivity and economic growth. Our submission featured the stories of eight people whose mental health has affected, or been affected by, their housing, employment, family and care of their children, ability to access appropriate treatment and support including under the National Disability Insurance Scheme, and imprisonment. These stories of our clients and consumers highlight the ways in which laws, services and systems can reduce people’s life opportunities and carry heavy personal, social and economic costs.

We continue case work and advocacy to maximise the existing positive reforms to the mental health system, and work to make people’s everyday experiences match the human rights-based intentions of Victoria’s Mental Health Act 2014 (Vic). This year, at its three-year mark, our Independent Mental Health Advocacy service (IMHA) was independently evaluated with positive results. The evaluation concluded that IMHA’s model of supporting people who are receiving mental health treatment to make decisions and speak up to have as much say as possible about their assessment, treatment and recovery is working, and should be expanded.

Alongside this work, our Mental Health and Disability Law program successfully ran an internationally recognised test case, PBU & NJE v Mental Health Tribunal, in the Victorian Supreme Court to protect the human rights of people subject to applications for compulsory electroconvulsive therapy (ECT), especially a person’s capacity to refuse ECT. The judgment re-emphasises people’s rights to participate in decision making about their treatment. Since the judgment, our staff have provided advice and education across the sector about the implications of the PBU decision, collaborating with decision-makers to realise the rights of Victorians who may be subject to compulsory mental health treatment. Since the decision, the Mental Health Tribunal has amended their own ECT application guidelines to better protect people’s rights to make decisions about their own treatment, and the rates of urgent ECT applications have decreased.

As the Royal Commission into Victoria’s Mental Health System continues, we will work with our clients and consumers, and our partners in the legal, health and community sectors, to help build a system that supports people's choices and their recovery in ways that enable them to live the best lives they can, as determined by them.

A safe, accessible and inclusive family law system that recognises family violence as core business

Australia’s family law system should be accessible, inclusive and equitable, safe for all children and parents, and focused on supporting families to resolve their disputes early when it is safe to do so.

We contributed to the Australian Law Reform Commission’s review of Australia’s family law system, the first comprehensive review of the family law system since its commencement in 1975.

We made two submissions to the inquiry, and our Chief Executive Officer, Louise Glanville, and our Executive Director, Family Youth and Children’s Law, Nicole Rich, both sat on the inquiry’s Advisory Committee.


The Australian Law Reform Commission’s resulting report was tabled in Parliament in April 2019 and made 60 recommendations for reform. We now look forward to continuing to work with the government to see a reconceptualised family law system that:

recognises that a significant portion of family law matters involve family violence (National Legal Aid data shows that 79 per cent of legally aided matters in the family law system involve family violence) and treats this as core business of the family law system, including by family law courts making earlier findings of fact about family violence

supports families to resolve property and financial disputes fairly and in a timely way expands legal aid to support those who are most disadvantaged to resolve complex

disputes, including by the expansion of legally aided family dispute resolution, including in situations of family violence.

OPCAT inspection of Port Phillip Prison, Malmsbury Youth Justice Precinct and Secure Welfare Services

In December 2018, the Victorian Ombudsman announced an investigation into the use of solitary confinement for young people, to be carried out in line with the United Nations Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture (OPCAT). The Ombudsman is expected to table a report on the investigation in the Victorian Parliament before the end of 2019.

Our submission to the Ombudsman looked at the experience of young people in prisons, child protection settings, mental health units, immigration detention and police cells. Our Youth Crime Program provides legal assistance to young people at each of the inspection sites and attends Victoria’s two Youth Justice Centres at Parkville and Malmsbury on a weekly basis. Our lawyers have experienced many of the recent challenges in the staffing and management of the custodial youth justice system, but we remain concerned that lock-ins and solitary confinement are being used as a tool to manage the mental health conditions and disabilities of our clients, to deal with staff shortages, and for purposes other than a last-resort.

Putting a child in isolation, away from sunlight and unable to access school or other activities, has severe consequences. It can cause particular harm for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, who are also overrepresented in the criminal justice system. We have concerns that the reliance on this practice over extended periods of time will damage young people and impact their transition back to the community.


Our partnershipsWe are committed to building strong, effective partnerships with other organisations for the benefit of our clients.

National Legal AidAs a member of National Legal Aid, we work with the other state and territory legal aid commissions to ensure that legal aid is delivered in the most effective and efficient way possible across Australia, to present a unified legal aid voice on matters of public policy and law reform, and to share information and expertise across jurisdictions.

More information: www.nationallegalaid.org

Legal Assistance Forums

Australian Legal Assistance Forum

The Australian Legal Assistance Forum brings together National Legal Aid, the Law Council of Australia, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander legal services, the National Association of Community Legal Centres and the National Family Violence Prevention Legal Services Forum.

The forum allows these organisations to address legal assistance issues in Australia in a co-operative and co-ordinated way.

More information: www.nationallegalaid.org/alaf/

A vibrant legal assistance sector

Mixed model of service deliveryVictoria Legal Aid delivers legal services through a mixed model of service delivery. The mixed model has its foundations in sections 6, 7 and 8 of the Legal Aid Act 1978 (Vic).

The mixed model comprises:

solicitors working as sole practitioners or in law firms and incorporated legal practices (referred to in the Act as ‘private practitioners’)

barristers

Victoria Legal Aid’s staff practice

community legal centres

Aboriginal legal services, including the Victorian Aboriginal Legal Service and Djirra, are not part of the mixed model as expressed in the Act, but remain important partners in the legal assistance sector.

Delivering legal services using the mixed model provides the following benefits:

supporting a client’s entitlement to select a legal practitioner of their choice

providing legal services across Victoria

addressing service gaps in certain locations or within certain areas of law

flexibility to respond to changes in demand for legal aid services


http://www.nationallegalaid.org/alaf/

managing conflicts of interest between clients receiving legal aid

promoting specialisation of skills, experience and knowledge.

Clients can choose their lawyer or are referred to a lawyer by the Legal Help telephone line, or the duty lawyer service. The lawyer is then responsible for running the legal matter, including making decisions about whether to brief a barrister and which barrister to brief.

The mixed model is also used to provide duty lawyer services, either on an ongoing or interim basis.

Supporting the mixed model

We recognise that supporting lawyers and legal practices in the mixed model is critical to ensuring our clients receive effective and efficient legal services. We also recognise that delivering publicly funded services through a distributed network of providers requires mechanisms to assure the delivery of those services.

Education and practice resources

In 2018–19, we continued to build our capacity to support all lawyers and legal practices in the mixed model through:

information, advice and training on our guidelines for grants of legal aid

developing and distributing practice resources, especially to practice partners who have recently joined a section 29A panel and/or established a new legal practice

delivering legal education through a mixture of in person, on demand and online learning opportunities.

In order to understand the effectiveness of this support, we conducted a survey of private practitioners and community legal centres, to understand their experience of legal education provided by VLA. We convened two workshops to inform the development and delivery of legal education.

Specialist accreditation

We support lawyers to develop and demonstrate specialist knowledge and skills by undertaking the Law Institute of Victoria’s Accredited Specialisation program. This program provides one of the pathways to entry to our section 29A panels.

The Accredited Specialisation program runs each calendar year with assessments taking place in July and August. In 2018, we supported 38 candidates undertaking the Children’s Law and Criminal Law accredited specialisations, which reflects the alignment between legally aided work and specialisation. In 2019, we are supporting a further 10 candidates undertaking Family Law and Administrative Law accredited specialisations.

Number of lawyers supported through the specialist accreditation program in 2018–19

Area of law Practitioners supported in 2018–19

Family Law (2019) seven (three staff practitioners; four CLC and private practitioners)

Administrative Law (2019) three (two staff practitioners; one private practitioner)

Children’s Law (2018) 10 (four staff practitioners; six CLC and private practitioners)


Criminal Law (2018) 28 (six staff practitioners; 22 CLC and private practitioners)

Quality assurance

For most legally aided matters, private practitioners must be members of one or more of our specialist panels established under section 29A of the Legal Aid Act. Applicants for membership of the panel must demonstrate experience and quality legal service in the relevant area of law, including client care, practitioner’s understanding of relevant issues and the quality of work. Members of the panel commit to conducting legally aided files in accordance with our Practice Standards.

In 2017–18, a review of the panels process was undertaken to identify efficiencies and improvements to ensure that the process was sustainable for Victoria Legal Aid and panel practitioners into the future. The review was conducted in consultation with key representatives involved in the panels process. In 2018–19, we began implementing a suite of recommendations aimed at supporting and strengthening our panels process to ensure a proportionate, sustainable and transparent approach.

Our quality assurance framework is supported by a collaborative approach designed to strengthen our partnerships with private practitioners.

Applications for panel membership received 2018–19

Applications for panel membership received 2018–19

Received Approved Withdrawn Refused Pending

Applications by firms 60 20 27 0 13

Applications by practitioners for panel certifier status

75 41 5 1 28

Key to our quality assurance framework is the Quality Audit function (QA) which provides assurance that legally aided services are delivered in accordance with our Practice Standards.

In 2018–19, audits were conducted with practitioners on the Family Violence and Independent Children’s Lawyers (ICL) panels. This concludes our first full cycle of audits across our six section 29A panels. In 2019–20, QA will consider recalibrating its approach.

We continued to apply a risk-based quality audit methodology to select practitioners for audit, based on their file load, experience and past performance. On average, we audit 11.6 per cent of members of each panel. We therefore anticipate that the rate of adherence to the VLA Practice Standards of audited practitioners will be lower than the rate of adherence amongst panel practitioners generally.

Audits are conducted by reviewing a practitioner’s files against our Practice Standards and rating whether each individual standard is ‘met’ or ‘not met’. During an audit, our quality auditors engage with practitioners to explain the audit outcomes and provide feedback about specific practices, including by meeting with practitioners at their offices. Outcomes of audits may include recommendations for improvements to practice, further training and education, and, where appropriate, a Quality Improvement Plan. In the most serious cases, we may consider whether to remove the practitioner as a panel member.


We use aggregated findings from quality audits to inform our priorities in developing legal education and practice resources to support all practitioners in the mixed model. This year, we completed 39 audits of practitioners. In 44 files (two per cent) we identified non-adherences with our Practice Standards.

Three Quality Improvement Plans were issued to practitioners, who will undergo follow-up audits next year.

The audits highlighted the following common issues:

Practitioners not being mindful of an actual or potential conflict that may arise during the course of a matter, and not informing VLA of the details of any conflict as soon as it arises.

Instances where files are not organised in a logical order and key documents cannot be easily identified.

The majority of non-adherences were addressed through recommendations for improved practice, including the use of VLA resources such as checklists and legal education. Of note was the generally high standard of quality exhibited by practitioners undergoing audits on the Independent Children’s Lawyer panel.

Who are our partners? We work with over 290 private law firms, 1,894 barristers and the community legal centre sector to deliver legally aided services throughout Victoria. We refer to our partners as ‘practice partners’ and could not fulfil our statutory obligations without them.

Community legal centresCommunity legal centres (CLCs) are a vital part of the mixed model and – along with the Victorian Aboriginal Legal Service and Djirra – the legal assistance sector.

Lawyers working at CLCs must be on one of our specialist panels to conduct matters pursuant to a grant of legal aid under our Act or if they seek funding for disbursements. We work closely with CLCs to support their lawyers with meeting our panel requirements. See Community legal centres for more information on how we work with CLCs.

Private practitionersWe are committed to building close working relationships with lawyers on our specialist panels. Panel practitioners provide valuable contributions to our strategic initiatives and projects, including through membership of committees and working groups, such as the Collaborative Planning Committee. Our partnership with private practitioners continues to evolve through increased collaboration and engagement.

Of the 286 private lawyer firms on our specialist panels, many firms are on multiple panels and are located across Victoria.

Area of law Number of firms on panels in 2018–19

Criminal law 150(including 86 indictable crime firms)

Family law 132

Child protection 92


Area of law Number of firms on panels in 2018–19

Family violence 171

Independent Children’s Lawyers 47

Location of firms*

Location Number of firms

Regional (total 139)

Loddon 24

Hume 29

Gippsland 30

Grampians 23

Barwon 33

Metropolitan (total 157)

Southern 44

Northern 87

Eastern 26

* Some firms service more than one geographical region.

Private practice law firms vary greatly in size and areas of practice and this impacts the volume and type of legal aid work they can undertake. The duration and complexity of individual cases also influences the number of legally aided cases that each firm can undertake.

Practitioners who do legal aid work are not a homogenous group. Panel firms vary in size, location, specialisation and the proportion of legally aided matters the firm undertakes compared to privately funded matters. For some practitioners, legally aided work is a core part of their practice. For others, legally aided work is an important part of their professional commitments as a legal practitioner, even though it may not be a significant contributor to the firm’s revenue. This variation makes comparisons of fees paid to firms of limited utility without a proper understanding of the differences in how those firms operate.

Through consultation and using data, we are continuing to develop a better understanding of why practitioners do legal aid work and how much they are prepared to do. This is important if we are to understand the true extent of supply available to legal aid clients, particularly in areas of growing demand or decreasing supply. This in turn will inform decisions about how we support and contract with panel practitioners.

Private practitioners receiving grants of legal assistance

In 2018–19, 78 per cent of grants of legal assistance were assigned to private lawyers on our panels or lawyers in community legal centres (76.5 per cent last year).


This included:

73 per cent of criminal law grants (72 per cent last year)

88 per cent of family and children’s law grants (87 per cent last year)

15 per cent of civil law grants (21.5 per cent last year)

The following graph demonstrates that the majority of legally aided work undertaken by private practitioners is undertaken by 20 firms. This reflects the degree of specialisation amongst these firms, their predominantly metropolitan locations and the ongoing process of firm mergers and acquisitions within the legal services market. The amount of work undertaken by those 20 firms means that they have an intimate understanding of legal aid work and the legal aid sector, including the challenges that limit successful outcomes for our clients and community, and opportunities for improvement and innovation. In addition to providing legal services to clients, the 20 firms assigned most cases are generous in their contributions to our reviews, section 29A panel selection committees, steering committees and the development of the profession through training and support.

This year we have been reviewing our processes for prioritising and assessing applications for grants of legal assistance to better ensure they deliver effective and efficient outcomes for applicants and legally aided clients, with a suite of recommendations to be implemented in 2019–20.

Private practitioner firms doing legal aid work

The expenditure information in this graph includes any fees and disbursements to third parties where the payment is made via private practitioners. Disbursements may include court fees, interpreters’ fees, service fees, barristers’ fees, fees for investigations and professional/expert reports, transcripts of evidence, plans and photographs (some of which require prior written approval from Victoria Legal Aid). Expenditure may include cases commenced in previous years.


20 private law firms receiving the highest aggregate payments for legal aid cases in 2018–19

Proportion of payments to the 20 private practitioners receiving the highest aggregate payments, compared to overall private practitioner spend: 34 per cent.

Proportion of new grants matters allocated to the 20 private practitioners receiving the highest aggregate payments, compared to the overall new grants matters assigned: 36 per cent.

2018–19 Rank

Private practitioner firm Region Area of Law

1 Stary Norton Halphen Pty Ltd Metro Criminal

2 Claudia Grimberg Metro Criminal, Family/Children

3 Dowling McGregor Pty Ltd Metro Criminal, Family/Children

4 Emma Turnbull Lawyers Pty Ltd Metro Criminal

5 James Dowsley & Associates - Frankston Metro Criminal, Family/Children

6 Richard Revill Lawyers Metro Criminal, Family/Children

7 Cathleen Corridon Family Lawyers Metro Family/Children

8 Leanne Warren & Associates Metro Criminal, Family/Children

9 Gorman & Hannan Metro Criminal, Family/Children

10 Greg Thomas Metro Criminal

11 Papa Hughes Lawyers Pty Ltd Metro Criminal

12 Tyler Tipping & Woods - Traralgon Latrobe Criminal, Family/Children,

13 Stephen Peterson Lawyers Pty Ltd Latrobe Criminal, Family/Children

14 Ann Valos Criminal Law Metro Criminal, Family/Children

15 Martin Irwin & Richards Mildura Criminal

16 Nicole Amad Metro Family/Children

17 Slater & King Lawyers Greater Shepparton

Criminal, Family/Children

18 Bayside Solicitors Vic Metro Criminal, Family/Children

19 Kurnai Legal Practice Latrobe Criminal

20 TP Legal & Associates Metro Criminal, Family/Children


20 private family law and child protection law firms receiving the highest aggregate payments for legal aid cases in 2018–19

Proportion of payments to the 20 family law private practitioners receiving the highest aggregate payments, compared to overall spend for family law matters: 39 per cent.

Proportion of new grants matters allocated to the 20 family law private practitioners receiving the highest aggregate payments, compared to the overall new family law grants matters assigned: 40 per cent.

2018–19 Rank

Private practitioner firm Region

1 Dowling McGregor Pty Ltd Metro

2 Cathleen Corridon Family Lawyers Metro

3 Claudia Grimberg Metro

4 Gorman & Hannan Metro

5 Nicole Amad Metro

6 TP Legal & Associates Metro

7 Comito & Associates – Melbourne Metro

8 Clark Family Lawyers Metro

9 Pentana Stanton Lawyers Metro

10 Peter Lynch Metro

11 Hartley Lawyers – Sunshine Metro

12 Tyler Tipping & Woods Latrobe

13 Porter O’Grady Lawyers Pty Ltd Metro

14 Deanne Jackel Metro

15 Jennifer Digby Greater Bendigo

16 Taft Lawyers – Dandenong Metro

17 MacGregor Metro

18 Heinz & Partners Ballarat

19 Orenstein Lawyers Pty Ltd Greater Geelong

20 Isabelle Harrison Pty Ltd Metro


20 private criminal law firms receiving the highest aggregate payments for legal aid cases in 2018–19

Proportion of payments to the 20 criminal law private practitioners receiving the highest aggregate payments, compared to overall spend for criminal law matters: 52 per cent.

Proportion of new grants matters allocated to the 20 criminal law private practitioners receiving the highest aggregate payments, compared to overall new criminal law grants matters assigned: 50 per cent.

2018–19 Rank

Private practitioner firm Region

1 Stary Norton Halphen Pty Ltd - Melbourne Metro

2 Emma Turnbull Lawyers Pty Ltd Metro

3 James Dowsley & Associates - Frankston Metro

4 Richard Revill Lawyers Metro

5 Leanne Warren & Associates Metro

6 Greg Thomas Metro

7 Papa Hughes Lawyers Pty Ltd Metro

8 Ann Valos Criminal Law Metro

9 Kurnai Legal Practice Latrobe

10 James Dowsley & Associates - Melbourne Metro

11 Doogue & O’Brien George – Melbourne Metro

12 Martin Irwin & Richards Mildura

13 Valos Black & Associates Metro

14 Stephen Peterson Lawyers Pty Ltd Latrobe

15 Chester Metcalfe & Co Metro

16 Slater & King Lawyers Greater Shepparton

17 Dribbin & Brown Criminal Law - Frankston Metro

18 Balmer & Associates Pty Ltd Metro

19 Criminal Lawyers Geelong Greater Geelong

20 C Marshall & Associates – Sunshine Metro


BarristersBarristers appear in matters pursuant to a grant of aid and in some duty lawyer services. Barristers are generally chosen by the instructing solicitor, who exercises their professional judgment and experience to choose whom to brief. This year, we funded 827 Criminal Law trials.

This table includes all costs paid including circuit fees, travelling cost and other expenses.

2018–19 Briefed by private practitioner ($)

Briefed by Victoria Legal Aid ($)

Total ($)

Total all barrister payments 26.0 million 4.8 million 30.8 million



Total ($)

Total all barrister payments

19.5 million 5.2 million 24.7 million



Total ($)

Total all barrister payments

15.9 million 4.6 million 20.5 million

We support equitable briefing. Of the amounts paid to barristers this year, 34.5 per cent or $10.6 million was paid to female or non-gender specific barristers.

Criminal Trial Preferred Barrister List

Instructing solicitors for criminal trials are required to brief barristers who are on our Criminal Trial Preferred Barrister List. Members of this list must meet the entry requirements and demonstrate competency in conducting legally aided trials in an effective, economic and efficient manner consistent with our criminal trial advocacy competencies. Exceptions to briefing a barrister from this list may only be sought for standard criminal trials that are 15 days or less.

In 2018–19, there were 237 members on the Criminal Trial Preferred Barrister List. Of those members:

220 were members of the Victorian Bar

15 were Senior Counsel of the Victorian Bar

17 were employed by VLA Chambers

This year, some barristers elected to be removed from the list and others accepted judicial appointments.

2018–19 data Received Approved Refused Pending

Applications for membership 24 10 1 13

Applications for exceptions to brief a non-preferred barrister

26 11 6 7


Community legal centresCommunity legal centres (CLCs) are independent, self-managed entities providing free legal services to communities. CLCs provide legal information, advice and casework to clients. Most CLCs also do some strategic casework, community legal education and policy and law reform. They are a vital part of the mixed model of legal assistance in Victoria, providing legal services to the most disadvantaged Victorians.

Generalist CLCs provide legal services to people in their local geographical area while Specialist CLCs focus on specific groups of people or areas of the law. Centres generally determine their own focus, client eligibility, casework and service guidelines, and organisational structure.

For more information on Community Legal Centres in Victoria: www.communitylaw.org.au

Through the Community Legal Centres Funding and Development Program, we administered funding to 35 community legal centres, Djirra, the Victorian Aboriginal Legal Service and the Federation of Community Legal Centres in 2018–19. We monitor their performance against service agreement obligations and service targets to ensure accountability for the use of those funds. We are increasingly focusing on working with the sector to understand and respond to legal need collaboratively through joint legal needs assessment projects.

Community Legal Services Program Reform

The Community Legal Services Program Reform Project has continued over the past year and is currently focused on the implementation of the reform actions agreed to with the community legal assistance sector. The aim of reform is to enhance access to justice, further improve the quality of services for clients and better work environments for staff. Through the project, more effective relationships and tools for maximising CLCs’ contributions to the legal assistance sector will be developed, while supporting new ways of working in and with CLCs in the provision of high-quality services and support. Some of the key work delivered through this reform project in 2018–19 includes:

variations to the funding agreement between VLA and CLCs (to bring a stronger focus on quality and risk management)

new templates for planning and reporting that will be trialled by a number of CLCs in 2019–20

improved access to shared data for the purposes of effective program management, service design and planning.

Together – a CLC case study

In 2015, Inner Melbourne Community Legal (IMCL) established a Health Justice Partnership with the Royal Melbourne Hospital to provide free, accessible legal assistance at the hospital. The clinics provide advice to patients for unaddressed legal problems that were creating a barrier to discharge or would aid patients alongside the medical and other non-medical issues in order to facilitate a safe hospital discharge, and to reduce the possibility of re-admission.

Findings of an evaluation in 2018, confirmed that the collaboration between IMCL and the hospital assisted patients to recognise that their problem was a legal issue and helped them connect with a lawyer.

One client, Sashi, reflected: ‘If it wasn’t for the referral [to the legal service] from the social worker, I would not have known that this service existed. I would have just gotten into more debt.’


The evaluation also found that access to legal assistance in the hospital is of benefit to patients for both legal and medical reasons. 60 per cent of patients surveyed felt their legal issue had an impact on their health and wellbeing. Three-quarters of patients felt they were able to cope better with their legal issues after receiving advice. Almost half of patients surveyed were of the view that the legal advice they had received would have a positive impact on their health and wellbeing.

The legal team has become an integral part of the care coordination process, with lawyers in the team providing both patients and the hospital staff direct access to legal expertise. The delivery of secondary consultations by the legal team to hospital staff supports earlier identification of legal matters and facilitates patient referrals for legal assistance.

CLASS – CLSP common data collection system

The Community Legal Assistance Services System (CLASS) system is now the primary database for common data for CLCs and Family Violence Prevention Legal Services, replacing the Community Legal Service Information System (CLSIS). During the first year of CLASS, there were some technical issues and changes to data definitions, which meant the National Association of Community Legal Centres (the owner of CLASS) advised data from 2017–18:

may not be an accurate count of actual services delivered by each individual organisation

cannot be usefully compared to reports for previous years.

It is expected that CLASS data and reports from 2018–19 be considered the ‘baseline’ year for monitoring service trends, however the draft National Data Consistency Guide – which will help standardise data across CLCs – was only released in March. As such, data reports on CLC activity in this annual report may vary based on individual centre data entry. See http://www.naclc.org.au/cb_pages/class.php for more information.

We are working closely with the sector and individual CLCs to ensure better data. The CLASS system is designed to bring greater visibility to the important work performed by the CLC sector.

Community legal centre performance outputs

The following data is obtained from the Community Legal Assistance Service System (CLASS) database. Not all community legal centres use this system. In Victoria, five CLCs funded by Victoria Legal Aid use other systems designed to meet their individual centre data requirements. Reports are provided to Victoria Legal Aid every six months.

This data is not presented in comparison to data from the previous financial year because CLASS data from 2017–18 cannot usefully be compared to following years due to issues associated with the rollout of the CLASS system.

The accuracy of individual centre data varies based on user understanding and interpretation of the system and the data categories and the timeliness of submission of the data.

Activity 2018–19

Information 9,509

Referral 31,021

Advice 43,208

Legal task 4,266


http://www.naclc.org.au/cb_pages/class.php

Activity 2018–19

Duty lawyer services 15,697

Court / Tribunal 2,256*

Other representation 7,275*

Community legal education activities 916

Law reform submissions 289

Top 10 matters

Matter type 2018–19

Family or domestic violence order 18,086

Child contacts or contact orders 5,738

Family or domestic violence 4,156

Govt/admin issues relating to fines 3,755

Road traffic and motor vehicle regulatory offences 3,272

Property in marriage 3,030

Divorce 2,839

Parenting plan 2,201

Motor vehicle accident 1,895

Other civil violence/restraining orders 1,809

* indicates the number of cases opened during the reporting period.

Explanatory notes for performance outputsFigures only include data extracted from CLASS, and do not include client service and community and law reform activities undertaken by the following funded centres: Consumer Action Law Centre, Federation of Community Legal Centres, Homeless Law (Justice Connect), Job Watch, Refugee and Immigration Legal Clinic and Tenants’ Union of Victoria. These community legal centres do not use the CLASS database.

Funding through the Community Legal Centres Funding and Development Program 2018–19

We administered funding to 35 community legal centres, Djirra, VALS and the Federation of Community Legal Centres in 2018–19. Funding was provided by the Commonwealth Attorney-General’s Department and by Victoria Legal Aid out of its state funding allocation. The combined funding we administered to CLCs was almost $3 million more than in the previous financial year.

Community Legal Centre Commonwe-alth funding*

($)

State core funding ($)

Other one-off projects

($)

Total payments

Djirra (formerly the Aboriginal Family Violence Prevention and Legal Service Victoria)**

0 364,284 275,000 639,284



($)



($)

Total payments

Barwon Community Legal Service 613,616 583,872 0 1,197,488

Brimbank Melton Community Legal Centre, Comm Unity Plus

282,452 728,272 0 1,010,724

Casey Cardinia Legal Service 208,979 176,213 0 385,192

Central Highlands Community Legal Centre

340,520 405,364 0 745,884

Consumer Action Law Centre** 342,292 1,178,248 0 1,520,540

Darebin Community Legal Centre 161,643 441,112 0 602,755

Disability Discrimination Legal Service**

264,952 54,264 0 319,216

Eastern Community Legal Centre 503,224 988,972 0 1,492,196

Emma House Domestic Violence Service

0 173,700 0 173,700

Environmental Justice Australia (Victoria)**

0 214,976 0 214,976

Federation of Community Legal Centres (Vic)**

0 928,944 0 928,944

Fitzroy Legal Service 300,597 683,921 0 984,518

Flemington and Kensington Community Legal Centre

130,300 290,416 0 420,716

Gippsland Community Legal Service, Anglicare Victoria

439,640 361,228 0 800,868

Homeless Law, Justice Connect** 193,416 578,112 0 771,528

Hume Riverina Community Legal Service, Upper Murray Family Care

594,060 348,184 0 942,244

Inner Melbourne Community Legal Inc.

259,464 269,044 0 528,508

JobWatch** 0 355,528 436,667 792,195

Loddon Campaspe Community Legal Centre, Advocacy and Rights Centre (including Goulburn Valley Community Legal Centre)

260,400 1,219,388 290,845 1,770,633

Monash Law Clinics 251,292 24,824 0 276,116

Moonee Valley Legal Service 117,448 302,148 0 419,596

Murray Mallee Community Legal Service, Mallee Family Care

593,756 201,144 0 794,900

Northern Community Legal Centre 452,304 733,028 0 1,185,332

Peninsula Community Legal Centre 973,033 1,263,095 250,000 2,486,128

Refugee Legal 0 194,732 0 194,732



($)



($)

Total payments

Seniors Rights Victoria, Council on the Ageing**

101,220 672,120 0 773,340

Social Security Rights Victoria 275,296 45,840 0 321,136

South East Community Links** 103,888 2,456 0 106,344

Springvale Monash Legal Service 657,962 478,654 75,000 1,211,616

St Kilda Legal Service 138,852 430,428 0 569,280

Tenants Victoria** 154,204 727,060 0 881,264

Victorian Aboriginal Legal Service 0 0 275,000 275,000

West Heidelberg Community Legal Service

130,248 223,532 0 353,780

Western Community Legal Centre 538,781 1,176,471 81,250 1,796,502

Whittlesea Community Legal Service, Whittlesea Community Connections

290,680 539,692 0 830,372

Women’s Legal Service Victoria 1,343,252 455,712 288,360 2,087,324

Youthlaw, Young People’s Legal Rights Centre**

174,284 196,664 0 370,948

Total 11,192,056 18,011,642 1,972,122 31,175,819* This funding includes Commonwealth funding to the Community Legal Sector Program. It does not include other

Commonwealth funding allocated directly to centres.

** Specialist community legal centre.

Explanatory notes for funding tableThese funding amounts include core grants and contributions from the Commonwealth and Victorian governments to assist funded community legal centres to meet increased staff salaries under the Social and Community Services Award Equal Remuneration Order. The table also includes one-off grants; specifically grants to deliver employment law services to international students (to JobWatch, Springvale Monash Legal Service and WEstjustice), employment law project, assisting temporary workers (to JobWatch), expenditure review subcommittee (ERSC) funding for CLC civil law projects (to Justice Connect, Homeless Law and Goulburn Valley CLC), grants for continuity of family law services (to Peninsula Community Legal Centre) and grants for child protection services (to Djirra, Loddon Campaspe Community Legal Centre, Victorian Aboriginal Legal Service and Women’s Legal Service Victoria).


Managing our organisation

Corporate governance

Organisational structure

Governing legislation

Victoria Legal Aid is a statutory authority established under the Legal Aid Act 1978 (Vic). We receive funding from the Commonwealth and Victorian governments and through the Victorian Public Purpose Fund.

Our responsibilities are set out in the Act, which gives us authority to provide legal aid in accordance with the legislation and to control and administer the Legal Aid Fund.

We are also required to perform functions according to any specific written direction given by the Victorian Attorney-General. No ministerial directions were given during 2018–19.

Organisational processes have been put in place to ensure transparency and accountability to the Victorian public in accordance with our legislative obligations set out in the Justice Legislation Amendment (Access to Justice) Act 2018 (Vic), which amended the Legal Aid Act 1978 (Vic). These changes came into effect in this 2018–19 reporting period including external and internal auditing and reporting, regular reporting to stakeholders, and the tabling of audited financial statements as part of this report.


The BoardOur Board of Directors is responsible for ensuring Victoria Legal Aid meets its statutory objectives and carries out its functions and duties in accordance with the Legal Aid Act 1978. The Board met seven times in 2018–19. Four sub-committees – the Audit, Risk and Compliance Committee met four times, the Workplace Wellbeing Health and Safety Committee met three times, the Program Governance Board met once, and the Performance Committee met once.

Board members

The Victoria Legal Aid Board has a Chairperson and six directors nominated by the Victorian Attorney-General and appointed by the Governor-in-Council. At least one member must have experience in financial management; at least one must have experience in public management; at least one must have experience with criminal proceedings (either as a legal practitioner or a judicial officer) and at least one must have experience in other areas of legal practice engaged in by Victoria Legal Aid or its officers. When the position of Managing Director at VLA was changed to Chief Executive Officer in November 2018, there was a vacancy on the Board. This position has since been filled by Andrew Saunders. The Chief Executive Officer cannot be appointed to the Board.

Bill Jaboor, Non-executive Director and Chairperson

Bill was appointed as Chairperson of the Victoria Legal Aid Board on 1 October 2017. Bill has a distinguished public sector career as CEO of several local governments and has helped drive education, employment and development projects across the state for more than four decades. Bill holds a Masters in Business Administration from Deakin University and has also completed a course in the John F. Kennedy School of Government’s State and Local Government Program at Harvard University.

Robbie Campo, Non-executive Director

Robbie Campo has extensive experience in governance, policy, public affairs and management. She has held senior management roles in the superannuation industry, including Deputy Chief Executive of Industry Super Australia, and has undertaken extensive work in legal and regulatory policy, financial oversight and government and public affairs. Robbie holds a Graduate Diploma in Applied Finance and Investment and a Bachelor of Laws (Hons). Robbie was appointed in October 2016.

Betty King, Non-executive Director

Betty King was the first female Crown Prosecutor for the State of Victoria and the first Prosecutor for the Commonwealth of Australia. She was appointed as Queen’s Counsel for the State of Victoria in 1992, a Judge of the County Court in 2000 and a Justice of the Supreme Court in 2005 (retired 2015). Betty was appointed in October 2016.

Joh Kirby, Non-executive Director

Joh Kirby has extensive legal sector and executive management experience, having previously served on various boards and committees, including the Monash University Law Faculty and the Victorian Legal Assistance Forum. A former Victoria Law Foundation executive director, Joh has led state-wide education and grants programs, designed to help Victorians better understand the law and the legal system. Joh holds a Bachelor of Laws from Monash University, a Bachelor of Applied


Science from the University of Canberra and is a graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors. Joh was appointed in November 2017.

John O’Donoghue, Non-executive Director

John O’Donoghue has extensive experience in the finance sector, having been a partner at PricewaterhouseCoopers since 2005. He has significant experience working with and auditing large Australian and international listed and private companies. John is a member of Chartered Accountants Australia New Zealand; an ASIC Registered Company Auditor and holds a Bachelor of Commerce from the University of Melbourne. John was appointed in May 2018.

George Habib, Non-executive Director

George Habib is a clinical psychologist and employed as the Deputy Director of Psychology at Monash Health. He is part of the Psychology and Specialist Services’ Design team that has won innovation awards for developing new programs. George has previously worked in sexual assault and mental health services and held clinical leadership roles within government and non-government organisations. He is a member of the State Government’s Therapeutic Treatment Board and maintains a private practice working with adolescents and adults. George was appointed in July 2018.

Audit, Risk and Compliance CommitteeThe Audit, Risk and Compliance Committee assists the Board to fulfil its governance responsibilities. It provides oversight of financial performance including:

the annual financial statements

assurance on the operation and implementation of the risk management framework

overview of the scope, quality and outcome of internal and external audits

monitoring our compliance with legal and regulatory requirements and compliance policies

maintaining effective communication with external auditors and consider recommendations from internal and external auditors.

The Charter for the Audit Risk and Compliance Committee, approved by the Board, specifies the committee’s purpose and objectives, authority, membership, attendance at meetings, and roles and responsibilities.

Members

Current members

John O’DonoghueChairperson of the Audit, Risk and Compliance Committee

Bill JaboorNon-executive member of the Audit, Risk and Compliance Committee

Robbie CampoNon-executive member of the Audit, Risk and Compliance Committee

Joh Kirby Non-executive member of the Audit, Risk and Compliance Committee


A standing invitation to attend the Audit Risk and Compliance Committee meetings is issued to the:

Chief Executive Officer, Chief Financial Officer, Executive Director Corporate Affairs, General Counsel, Risk Manager

other Board members

external auditor—the Victorian Auditor-General’s Office

internal auditor—Protiviti.

These representatives receive a copy of the meeting papers and minutes. The Audit, Risk and Compliance Committee met four times in 2018–19.

Internal audit

From 1 January 2019, Protiviti has provided our internal audit services. KPMG provided these services before that date. Our internal auditing procedures assist the Audit, Risk and Compliance Committee through examining our control and risk management practices and determining whether they are effective, efficient and economical in assisting us to achieve our objectives. Where necessary, improvements in procedures and systems are recommended.

The Audit, Risk and Compliance Committee was regularly presented with reports on audit activities undertaken, advisory services provided, and audit support carried out. Reports and advice during the year included:

Performance Management and Reporting

Fraud Prevention

Interagency Risks

Liquidity Framework Benchmarking

Health Safety and Wellbeing Management System (undertaken by Deloitte)

Business Continuity and Legal Help follow up

Digital strategy follow up.

Workplace Wellbeing Health and Safety CommitteeThe Workplace Wellbeing Health and Safety Committee assist the Board to fulfil its oversight responsibilities relating to Health, Safety and Wellbeing governance and compliance with legal, regulatory and policy requirements, including: reviewing, assessing and recommending to the Board, at least annually, the Health Safety

and Wellbeing strategy and plan

monitoring the implementation of Health, Safety and Wellbeing initiatives

monitoring and oversight of our Health, Safety and Wellbeing risk profile and mitigations

considering the major findings of the internal audit reports relating to Health, Safety and Wellbeing risks and reviewing management’s response.

Members

Betty King Chairperson of the Workplace Wellbeing Health and Safety Committee


George HabibNon-executive member of the Workplace Wellbeing Health and Safety Committee

Bill Jaboor Ex officio member of the Workplace Wellbeing Health and Safety Committee

The Workplace Wellbeing Health and Safety Committee met three times in 2018–19.

Performance CommitteeThe Performance Committee was established in June 2019 to assist the Board to manage and evaluate the performance and remuneration of the Chief Executive Officer. It consists of the Chairperson of the Board and the Chairs of the ARCC and the WWHSC.

The Performance Committee meets twice a year or as required to:

approve, discuss and review the key performance indicators for the Chief Executive Officer and his or her performance against them

discuss any other issues associated with remuneration and performance of the Chief Executive Officer and other Executive Directors of VLA as required.

Members

Bill Jaboor Chairperson of the Performance Committee

John O’DonoghueNon-executive member of the Performance Committee

Betty KingNon-executive member of the Performance Committee

The Performance Committee met once in 2018–19.

Program Governance Board The Program Governance Board (PGB) was established in 2018–19 to support our three- year Digital Legal Aid program. The PGB provides support to the VLA Board by providing oversight and a more regularly accessible forum for consultation, advice and steerage. It will provide advice and oversight on project progress and direction on matters such as:

governance

leadership

change management risk

budget management.

It will not assume any of the VLA Board’s responsibilities with one exception that it will have the authority to approve the release of contingency funds in accordance with the program budget.

Members

Robbie CampoNon-executive member of the Program Governance Board


Joh KirbyNon-executive member of the Program Governance Board

A standing invitation to attend the Program Governance Board Committee meetings is issued to the:

Chief Executive Officer, the Chief Information Officer, the Executive Director, Corporate Affairs and the Associate Director, Data Services.

The representatives receive a copy of the meeting papers and minutes. The Program Governance Board Committee met once in 2018–19.

The Program Governance Board will meet every two months.


Our executive teamThe senior executive team meets regularly to plan, discuss and review operational performance.

Louise Glanville, Chief Executive Officer

Louise commenced as Chief Executive Officer of Victoria Legal Aid in October 2018. She has extensive experience across the justice, social services and government sectors. Louise is also the Chair of the Victorian Assisted Reproductive Treatment Authority. Prior to her appointment at Victoria Legal Aid, Louise was the Chief Executive Officer of the Victorian Responsible Gambling Foundation. Before this, she spent three years as Deputy CEO at the National Disability Insurance Agency implementing the NDIS. Louise was the inaugural Director of Victoria’s Neighbourhood Justice Centre Project which saw the Centre opening in Collingwood in 2007. She has worked for the Victorian Public Advocate, the then Victorian Department of Justice and the Commonwealth Attorney-General’s Department in Deputy Secretary roles, as well as in local government, academia, the private sector, and ministerial offices. Louise holds qualifications in law, social work and social policy, and is keenly interested in the intersections between legal policy and public policy generally.

Bevan Warner, Managing Director

Bevan was appointed Managing Director of Victoria Legal Aid in August 2008 until 1 August 2018 when he was appointed as Chief Executive Officer, Launch Housing. Bevan was fondly farewelled after ten years of leading significant, positive change at Victoria Legal Aid. Bevan was formerly the General Manager of Legal Aid Western Australia.

Dan Nicholson, Executive Director Criminal Law Executive Director for the Western Suburbs

Dan commenced as Executive Director, Criminal Law in January 2018. He joined Victoria Legal Aid in 2012 and was appointed as Executive Director Civil Justice, Access and Equity in November 2015. Prior to joining Victoria Legal Aid, he managed the Human Rights Unit at the Victorian Department of Justice, was Associate to Justice Maxwell, President of the Court of Appeal, and worked at Fitzroy Legal Service. He has also worked on a range of human rights issues in Cambodia and Timor-Leste. He was appointed to the Victorian Law Reform Commission in September 2018.

Nicole Rich, Executive Director Family, Youth and Children’s Law Executive Director for Gippsland region

Nicole commenced as Executive Director Family, Youth and Children’s Law in August 2013 and was formerly our Director Research and Communications. She is experienced in developing legal research and policy, including as the former Director, Policy and Campaigns at the Consumer Action Law Centre, and has practised in the private profession and community legal centres. Nicole also has strong governance experience having served on government and not for profit boards.

Cameron Hume, Executive Director Corporate Affairs Executive Director for Wimmera region

Cameron was appointed Executive Director, Corporate Affairs in November 2014, following his appointment as Director Research and Communications in October 2013. He previously worked at the Department of Justice and Regulation in project, policy and operations management roles


relating to law reform and administration of the justice system. He also spent several years as a management consultant working across a variety of public sector management areas, including research and evaluation, strategic planning, corporate governance, business case development, organisational and operational reviews. This work spanned a range of social policy and operational portfolios including justice, human services and the community sector. Cameron holds a Masters of Public Policy and Management and is an independent member of the joint Finance and Audit Committee for the Sentencing Advisory Council and Judicial College of Victoria.

Rowan McRae, Executive Director, Civil Justice, Access and EquityExecutive Director for the Goulburn region

Rowan McRae and Melanie Schleiger jointly acted in this role from December 2017 to 13 July 2018. Rowan was permanently appointed to the role and commenced on 16 July 2018.

Rowan joined the Equality Law Program at Victoria Legal Aid in 2016. Prior to joining Victoria Legal Aid she worked at the Victorian Equal Opportunity and Human Rights Commission, in the Offices of International Law and Constitutional Law at the Commonwealth Attorney-General’s Department, and as Associate to Justice Hayne of the High Court. She has also practised in the private profession and on legal development projects in Indonesia and Timor-Leste. She holds a Masters of Law.

Melanie Schleiger, A/Executive Director, Civil Justice, Access and EquityExecutive Director for the Goulburn region

Melanie and Rowan McRae jointly acted in this role from 22 January 2018 to 13 July 2018 when Rowan was appointed to the substantive position. Melanie joined Victoria Legal Aid in 2010 and has led the Equality Law Program since 2012, a role she job-shared with Rowan McRae since 2017. Prior to working at Victoria Legal Aid, Melanie practised law both commercially and in the community legal sector. Melanie holds a Masters of Law and has published a number of articles about discrimination and human rights law. She currently serves on the board of the Human Rights Law Centre.

Elizabeth Jennings, Chief Financial Officer

Elizabeth joined Victoria Legal Aid as Chief Financial Officer in November 2011 until December 2018 when Stephen Kendall took over the role. She was previously Head of Strategic Finance at World Vision Australia. She has held senior financial roles in government and not-for-profit sectors. Her commitment to social justice is also reflected in a prior board role at the Leprosy Mission Australia and a current board role at donkey wheel house. Elizabeth’s qualifications include a Master of Business and a Master of Assessment and Evaluation.

Stephen Kendall, Acting Chief Financial Officer

Stephen joined Victoria Legal Aid as Acting Chief Financial Officer in December 2018. He was previously the manager of Budget Development and Strategy for the Department of Justice and Community Safety in Victoria and has held senior financial roles in government and not-for-profit sectors. He has worked broadly within the department and has been involved in major reform projects, particularly within the Emergency Management sector. Stephen holds a degree in Business (Accounting) and is a Certified Practicing Accountant (CPA). Stephen left Victoria Legal Aid in August 2019.


Matthew Dale, Chief Financial Officer

Matthew joined Victoria Legal Aid as Chief Financial Officer (CFO) in July 2019. Before joining Victoria Legal Aid, he worked at the Environment Protection Authority as the CFO where he was accountable for the financial, procurement, risk management, compliance and infrastructure operations, including financial reporting and strategic advice to the Executive and Board. Matthew has extensive experience in financial management and leadership in a number of previous roles within the government sector at both State and Federal level. Matthew has been a Certified Practising Accountant since 2006.

Peter Noble, Executive Director, Services and Innovation

Peter was appointed Executive Director, Services and Innovation in August 2016 and is based in Bendigo. Peter established Bendigo’s Loddon Campaspe Community Legal Centre and Shepparton’s Goulburn Valley Community Legal Centre, before becoming Executive Officer of its parent organisation ARC Justice in 2013. Since joining Victoria Legal Aid, Peter’s work has focused on data-driven planning, innovative service design and meeting the justice needs of rural and regional communities. He also manages Victoria’s $31 million Community Legal Services Program and line manages our Ballarat, Bendigo, Broadmeadows, Dandenong, Frankston, Mildura, Ringwood and Warrnambool offices. He was appointed to the Board of the Victoria Law Foundation in 2018.

Peter was Acting Managing Director during the transition between Bevan Warner’s departure and Louise Glanville’s arrival from 2 August until 5 October 2018.

Katie Miller, Executive Director, Legal PracticeExecutive Director for the Barwon region

Katie joined Victoria Legal Aid in August 2016 with more than a decade of experience in supporting the public sector. At the Victorian Government Solicitor’s Office and the Australian Government Solicitor, Katie assisted clients in administrative law, public sector governance and integrity. Katie is also a Law Institute of Victoria Accredited Specialist in Administrative Law and a graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors. In her roles as a past president of the Law Institute of Victoria and Chair of the Accredited Specialisation Board, she developed invaluable insights into the legal assistance sector and the legal profession. Katie left Victoria Legal Aid in August 2018, when she was appointed as a Deputy Commissioner of IBAC (Victoria’s Independent Broad-based Anti-corruption Commission).

Gayathri Paramasivam, Acting Executive Director, Legal PracticeActing Executive Director for the Barwon region

Gayathri Paramasivam commenced as Acting Executive Director Legal Practice and Acting Executive Director for the Barwon region in September 2018 and was in the role until June 2019 when Dianna Gleeson was appointed to the substantive role. Gayathri has been practising law since 2003 and her substantive role is Associate Director of Family Law at Victoria Legal Aid. She has worked in several senior and leadership roles at Victoria Legal Aid including in Melbourne as well as regional offices. Before working at Victoria Legal Aid, Gayathri worked in the community legal sector including as Principal Solicitor at Darebin Community Legal Centre and family lawyer at Women's Legal Service Victoria. She is also an Accredited Specialist in Family Law.


Dianna Gleeson, Executive Director, Legal PracticeExecutive Director for the Barwon region

Dianna Gleeson commenced as Executive Director, Legal Practice in June 2019. Dianna has extensive experience in government legal practice and people management. Between 2002–2019, she has worked in a variety of roles within the Victorian Government Solicitor’s Office (VGSO), and immediately prior to joining Victoria Legal Aid was the Managing Principal Solicitor of the Constitution and Advice Team in the Public Law and Planning Branch of VGSO. Before this, Dianna co-established a specialist State Care and Personal Injuries Team to conduct and manage tort litigation and claims arising from institutional abuse for multiple State Departments and agencies.

Dianna started her career at Allens Arthur Robinson, where she worked in commercial litigation and information technology, before moving into the CLC sector doing workplace relations advocacy at the Community Legal Centre in Launceston.

Tim Marsh, Chief CounselTim joined Victoria Legal Aid as a Senior Public Defender in 2011, after eight years at the Criminal Bar and commenced as Chief Counsel, Victoria Legal Aid Chambers in August 2013. Tim was formerly a solicitor at the Office of Public Prosecutions. Tim appears regularly in Supreme Court and County Court trials and appeals and has developed an extensive practice in mental impairment and unfitness matters and homicide work. Tim was a member of the Victorian Law Reform Steering Committee for the VLRC reference into mental impairment and is a past legal member of the Mental Health Review Board. Tim has appeared as counsel in a number of significant Court of Appeal matters clarifying the law and procedure relating to mental impairment and unfitness to be tried matters and was lead counsel in the decision that overturned the controversial ‘baseline sentencing’ provisions. Tim has a keen interest in workplace health, safety and wellbeing and is the Chairperson of VLA’s HSW Committee.

Georgie Dwyer, Head of People and Culture

Georgie Dwyer was appointed Head of People and Culture in April 2017, having been the Associate Director, People and Culture since February 2016. Georgie has nearly 20 years’ experience in senior Human Resources roles across the legal sector in Australia and Asia, despite beginning her career as a lawyer. Since joining Victoria Legal Aid, Georgie has focussed on building an organisational culture that supports staff to make a positive contribution and take pride in their unique roles. Georgie leads a team responsible for employee relations, learning and organisational development, health safety and wellbeing, recruitment, workforce planning, remuneration and payroll services.

Alan Dewis, Associate Director, Aboriginal Services

Alan commenced as Associate Director, Aboriginal Service in November 2019. He is a proud A Malu Ki ai and Samsep man from the Torres Strait who is a lawyer with over 20 years' experience in the justice system, in a variety of roles including policy design and delivery, community engagement, legal advocacy and policing. Prior to his appointment at Victoria Legal Aid, Alan was the Manager of Aboriginal Policy and Engagement at Family Safety Victoria where he led the development of the Dhelk Dja: Aboriginal 10 Year Family Violence Agreement, an Aboriginal-led strategy built on the foundation of Aboriginal self-determination that is designed to ensure Aboriginal families and communities are strong, safe, thriving and living free from family violence.


Independent reviewIndependent reviewers can reconsider or review a decision made by one of our officers or another independent reviewer, where it relates to a grant of legal assistance.

They can also hear and determine matters relating to the removal or exclusion of a lawyer from our general referral panels.

When reviewing a matter, the independent reviewer must have regard to the Legal Aid Act 1978 (Vic) and any guidelines determined by the Board. They can confirm, vary or change our decision.

Independent review of decisions

Review of decisions relating to a grant of legal assistance

Nature of review 2018–19 2017–18*

Independent reviewer agreed with our decision 101 25

Independent reviewer changed our decision 7 3

Total 108 28

Review relating to proposed removal or exclusion of a lawyer from one of our practitioner panels

Nature of review 2018–19 2017–18

Independent reviewer agreed with our decision 0 0

Independent reviewer changed our decision 0 0

Total 0 0

* Independent reviewers are appointed by the Attorney-General. There was no Chairperson from December 2017 until Gavin Silbert QC’s appointment on 26 June 2018. This contributed to the lower number of reviews in 2017–18.

The current independent reviewers are:

Gavin Silbert QC (chairperson, appointed June 2018)

Brook Hely (reappointed November 2016)

Carmel Morfuni (reappointed November 2016).

Collaborative Planning Committee Legislative amendments (the introduction of section 12LA) to the Legal Aid Act 1978 (Vic) arising from the Victorian Government’s implementation of the Access to Justice Review, required us to convene a Collaborative Planning Committee.

The committee has been established to provide evidence-based advice and recommendations to the VLA Board about:

the legal and related needs of the community

the provision of legal aid


our functions relating to the coordination, and undertaking strategic planning of, the provision of legal aid and legal assistance information.

Advice and recommendations of the committee to the VLA Board are to be in the form of report and may include a request for a response. The Board must provide a response to the committee within three months of receiving a report. The response must set out the action (if any) that has been taken, or will be taken, in relation to the recommendations in the report.

Membership of the committee includes representatives of VLA, the Federation of Community Legal Centres, Victorian Bar, Victorian Law Foundation, Department of Justice and Community Safety, the Victorian Aboriginal Legal Service and Djirra and another member appointed by the VLA Board on the recommendation of the Committee.

The committee met for the first time on 1 May 2019. At this first meeting, the committee considered priority issues that they should provide advice and recommendations on. These included – legal assistance sector reform and innovation, sector planning including the enhanced use of data to inform planning decisions, client-centred design and responsiveness to consumer feedback, specific collaborative service delivery models such as Disaster Legal Help, funding allocations, and the impact of law reform proposals and emerging legal issues on demand for legal assistance. Given the significant role and function of the committee in the justice system and the gap in justice and legal outcomes of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander and non-Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians, the committee invited the Aboriginal legal services to nominate a representative to the committee.

The committee will meet four times a year.

Prior to the establishment of the Collaborative Planning Committee, VLA convened the Sector Innovation and Planning Committee (SIPC), a multidisciplinary advisory group formed under section 12K of the Legal Aid Act. The committee was first convened in 2016 to provide advice on legal assistance sector reform and innovation. The committee included private practitioners, members from community legal centres and members with experience in Indigenous organisations. VLA would like to thank committee members for their work over this time.


Supporting our peopleStrategy 22’s strategic direction ‘Together’ outlines our commitment to ensuring all people feel safe and supported at work because safety is prioritised, diversity and inclusion is embraced, and workloads are managed. Safeguarding the health and wellbeing of those working in the legal assistance sector is crucial for safe and sustainable service delivery.

Staff engagement In July 2018, we shared the results of our second Alignment and Engagement survey. The response rate of 89 per cent (747 people) is significantly above industry average.

Compared to the 2016 survey, the results showed:

a striking improvement in the engagement and alignment of employees across the organisation

improved consistency in the employee experience across the organisation, including our various geographic regions, staff demographics and front-line and corporate services roles.

The overall results indicate a significant increase in alignment (up 10 per cent) and engagement (up 13 per cent) since. When benchmarked with similar organisations, these scores are just below the top performing quartile. The strongest positive shifts were a 17 per cent increase in questions relating to senior leadership and a 14 per cent increase in the questions relating to our investment in people.

Diversity and InclusionWe continue to work towards creating a culture which celebrates diversity and inclusion. In December 2018, we conducted our first Gender, Diversity and Inclusion Survey which was completed by 70 per cent of all staff, a very high participation rate for a first-time diversity and inclusion survey.

We were encouraged to learn that 42 per cent of our staff come from a culturally or linguistically diverse background, 10 per cent of staff identify as LGBTIQ+ and at least 12 per cent of staff identify as a person with a disability (including a mental illness). Staff also acknowledged VLA’s recent efforts to become more diverse and inclusive.

When we communicated these results to staff, we also provided tailored briefings to key staff networks to identify potential gaps relating to our diversity and inclusion practices. In 2018, we established a Cultural Diversity Consultative Committee and are working with this group to identify key actions and priorities, alongside the Pride Network and the newly created First Nations Staff Network.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander employeesThis year, we launched our second Reconciliation Action Plan and plans are underway for our second Aboriginal Employment Strategy. At June 2019, our 16 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander employees made up 1.9 per cent of our workforce, and their experiences are being drawn upon to inform the next iteration of the strategy, which will include an overall three per cent target for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander employees. This year, a First Nations Staff Network was established with the following vision:


To have a strong and visible network of First Nations staff to support cultural safety, accountability and awareness across the organisation. To be a collective voice that is influential in designing and implementing all VLA specific Aboriginal Services, programs, policies and decisions affecting our communities. To be a part of a workplace where all are equal and respected, where our role is valued, understood, and acknowledged by our peers as vital and important.

We will continue to build on the success of our Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander clerkship and graduate programs that provide a career pathway for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander law students from study to post-admission practice. In August 2018, we saw our first alumni of the clerkship and graduate programs take up ongoing roles in the organisation as new lawyers. Although a solid foundation has been established, we have a lot more work to do in recruiting into non-legal and regional roles, as well as promoting career development opportunities and cultural safety through education.

Employment practicesWe work in an inclusive environment, supported by employment policy and procedures that reflect the values of our organisation and help us to develop and deliver services that meet the justice needs of our community. This year we have focused on enhancing those practices, by partnering with Pride in Diversity, to review our employment policies to ensure they are inclusive of our LGBTIQ+ community. In addition, we are improving support to staff experiencing family violence, by developing a new family violence leave policy and training key staff as Family Violence Contact Officers.

The amendments to the Terrorism (Community Protection) Act 2003 in October 2018 has meant we have reviewed our practices around shift work arrangements, to ensure the justice needs of detained youth are met. This required significant change management processes to consult and support our staff in delivering services outside traditional business hours. The requirement to have staff working at any time during the night, at any location across the state, prompted a very consultative process to understand how this service can be delivered by staff safely.

In late 2018, Legal Help expanded its hours of operation, improving access to legal help advice for our clients. The introduction of this change required consultation around the change to staff rostering practices. We partnered with staff and the Community and Public Sector Union to implement a change that would support staff wellbeing and ensure improved service delivery for staff.

Employment and conduct principlesOur staff are bound by the values and employment principles in the Code of Conduct for Victorian Public Sector Employees and the Public Administration Act 2004 (Vic).

We encourage staff to report behaviour that may breach the Code of Conduct or our Respectful Workplace Behaviours policy. In 2018–19, we increased the number of Workplace Contact Officers (WCO’s) and provided targeted training to support staff stepping into this role. WCO’s are staff members who have attended specific training so that they can assist and support their colleagues, if they believe they have been the subject of inappropriate behaviour including discrimination, sexual harassment and bullying.


Employee benefits

Our employees have access to a broad range of flexible working arrangements that support work/life balance. We continue to encourage family friendly employment practices and our parental leave provisions continue to support staff retention. This year, 36 per cent of our staff worked part time, 7.2 per cent of staff accessed paid parental leave entitlements as a primary caregiver, and seven staff accessed paid parental leave as a secondary caregiver.

Parental leave absence for primary caregivers often extends beyond 12 months and our staff can request part time work arrangements until each child reaches school age. We expect these leave absences to remain at a similar level due to our current staff profile, which is 79 per cent female. Additionally, 69 per cent of our female workforce are under 45 years of age.

Our 2016–20 Enterprise Agreement includes progressive provisions relating to family violence leave as well as alcohol, drug, or problem gambling addiction leave. We also strengthened workplace support for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander staff with additional ceremonial and cultural leave and compassionate leave in recognition of specific kinship and family obligations.

Workforce dataOur people resources are aligned with our strategic directions to enable us to deliver the most appropriate services at the right time, based on client needs.

Details of employment levels

All employees—Demographic data

Demographic June 2018 number

(headcount)

June 2019 number

(headcount)

June 2018 FTE June 2019 FTE

(Gender) Male 182 200 170.8 190.0

(Gender) Female 697 679 600 584.7

Self-described 1 0 0.9 0.0

(Age) 15–24 35 30 25.9 22.7

(Age) 25–34 317 315 294.6 292.5

(Age) 35–44 269 266 222.4 224.6

(Age) 45–54 147 152 131.1 133.7

(Age) 55–64 94 96 82.9 84.5

(Age) 65+ 18 20 14.9 16.7

All employees—Classification data

Demographic 2018 Number (headcount)

2019 Number (headcount)

2018 FTE 2019 FTE

(VLA grade) VLA1 0 0 0.0 0.0

(VLA grade) VLA2 192 189 161.7 158.4




2018 FTE 2019 FTE

(VLA grade) VLA3 366 346 316.6 304.4

(VLA grade) VLA4 213 224 194.2 202.1

(VLA grade) VLA5 77 85 69.0 77.2

(VLA grade) VLA6 24 26 22.3 24.1

(VLA grade) Total 872 870 763.8 766.2

(Senior employees) STS 0 0 0 0.0

(Senior employees) PS 0 0 0 0.0

(Senior employees) SMA 0 0 0 0.0

(Senior employees) SRA 0 0 0 0.0

(Senior employees) Executives 8 9 7.9 8.5

(Senior employees) Other 0 0 0 0.0

(Senior employees) Total 8 9 7.9 8.5Total employees 880 879 771.7 774.7

Ongoing—Demographic data

Demographic 2018 Full-time

(headcount)

2019 Full-time

(headcount)

2018 Part-time

(headcount)

2019 Part-time

(headcount)

2018 FTE

2019 FTE

(Gender) Male 128 141 20 27 142.7 160.0

(Gender) Female 352 340 226 252 505.1 512.4

Self-described 0 0 1 0 0.9 0.0

(Age) 15–24 10 7 4 11 12.3 13.7

(Age) 25–34 197 198 46 57 230.3 238.8

(Age) 35–44 121 125 113 112 195.6 200.5

(Age) 45–54 84 82 52 57 121.1 121.7

(Age) 55–64 57 59 27 32 75.4 81.0

(Age) 65+ 11 10 5 10 14.0 16.7

Ongoing—Classification data


(headcount)

2019 Full-time

(headcount)

2018 Part-time

(headcount)

2019 Part-time

(headcount)

2018 FTE 2019 FTE

(VLA grade) VLA1 0 0 0 0 0.0 0.0



(headcount)

2019 Full-time

(headcount)

2018 Part-time

(headcount)

2019 Part-time

(headcount)

2018 FTE 2019 FTE

(VLA grade) VLA2 95 84 69 76 142.7 136.0

(VLA grade) VLA3 184 190 92 102 245.4 258.4

(VLA grade) VLA4 132 134 55 66 169.4 179.4

(VLA grade) VLA5 43 48 26 27 61.9 67.5

(VLA grade) VLA6 19 19 4 5 21.5 22.5

(VLA grade) Total 473 475 246 276 640.8 663.9

(Senior employees) STS

0 0 0 0 0.0 0.0

(Senior employees) PS

0 0 0 0 0.0 0.0

(Senior employees) SMA

0 0 0 0 0.0 0.0

(Senior employees) SRA

0 0 0 0 0.0 0.0

(Senior employees) Executives

7 6 1 3 7.9 8.5

(Senior employees) Other

0 0 0 0 0.0 0.0

(Senior employees) Total 7 6 1 3 7.9 8.5

Total employees 480 481 247 279 648.7 672.4

Fixed term and casual—Demographic data



2018 FTE 2019 FTE

(Gender) Male 34 32 28.1 30.0

(Gender) Female 119 87 95.0 72.3

Self-described 0 0 0.0 0.0

(Age) 15–24 21 12 13.6 9.0

(Age) 25–34 74 60 64.3 53.8

(Age) 35–44 35 29 26.7 24.1

(Age) 45–54 11 13 10.0 12.0




2018 FTE 2019 FTE

(Age) 55–64 10 5 7.5 3.5

(Age) 65+ 2 0 0.9 0.0

Fixed term and casual—Classification data



2018 FTE 2019 FTE

(VLA grade) VLA1 0 0 0.0 0.0

(VLA grade) VLA2 28 29 19.1 22.3

(VLA grade) VLA3 90 54 71.2 46.0

(VLA grade) VLA4 26 24 24.8 22.7

(VLA grade) VLA5 8 10 7.2 9.7

(VLA grade) VLA6 1 2 0.8 1.6

(VLA grade) Total 153 119 123.0 102.3

(Senior employees) STS

0 0 0.0 0

(Senior employees) PS

0 0 0.0 0.0

(Senior employees) SMA

0 0 0.0 0.0

(Senior employees) SRA

0 0 0.0 0.0

(Senior employees) Executives

0 0 0.0 0.0

(Senior employees) Other

0 0 0.0 0.0

(Senior employees) Total 0 0 0.0 0.0

Total employees 153 119 123.0 102.3

Workforce distribution and active workforceThe table All employees—Active workforce, below, shows our comparative active workforce staffing levels as full-time equivalent (FTE) on our payroll.

In addition to our FTE staff on payroll, we had 10 agency or labour hire staff engaged to perform the work of vacant budgeted positions during the final pay period of the 2018–19.


All employees—Active workforce

Active workforce 2018 Number (headcount)


2018 FTE 2019 FTE

Active 869 850 762.6 748.3

Non-active 11 29 9.1 26.4

Total 880 879 771.7 774.7

Our comparative workforce distribution of staff across direct and indirect client service roles and corporate service roles is expressed in the table All employees—Workforce Distribution.

Our roles are categorised as:

direct client service delivery roles—involve direct client interaction

indirect client service delivery roles—do not involve direct interaction with clients but support direct client services

corporate service roles—deliver traditional corporate functions, such as finance, communications, human resources, business reporting and information and communication technology.

In line with our tied funding from the Legal Services Board to improve our data and digital capability, the number of fixed-term corporate services roles have increased.

All employees—Workforce distribution

Workforce distribution



2018 FTE 2019 FTE

Direct service delivery

667 663 575.9 576.6

Indirect service delivery

128 125 114.7 111.2

Corporate 85 91 81.0 86.9

Total employees 880 879 771.7 774.7

Executive officers at 30 June 2019We have one Chief Executive Officer and seven executive director positions leading our services and functions and one chief counsel of Chambers. The workforce data tables below include executive officers active in the final full pay period of the 2018–19 financial year.

Number of ongoing executive officers, by gender

Class All (No.) All (Var.) Male (No.) Male (Var.) Female (No.)

Female (Var.)

EO-1 1 1 0 0 1 1

EO-2 0 -1 0 -1 0 0


Class All (No.) All (Var.) Male (No.) Male (Var.) Female (No.)

Female (Var.)

EO-3 8 1 5 1 3 0

Total 9 1 5 0 4 1

CEO role regraded to EO-2 in October 2018.

Reconciliation of executive numbers

Role 2018 2019

Executives (Financial Statement note 9.5) 7 8

Accountable Officer (Chief Executive Officer) 1 1

(Less) separations 1 3

Total executive numbers at 30 June 8 9

The following table discloses the annualised total salary for senior employees of Victoria Legal Aid. The salary amount is reported as the full-time annualised salary.

Annualised total salary, by $20,000 bands, for executives and other senior non-executive staff

The salaries reported above are for the full financial year, at a 1-FTE rate, and excludes superannuation.

Income band (salary) Executives STS PS SMA SRA Other

< $160,000 - - - - - -

$160,000 - $179,999 - - - - - 2^

$180,000 - $199,999 3 - - - - 1^

$200,000 - $219,999 3 - - - - -

$220,000 - $239,999 2 - - - - -

$240,000 - $259,999 - - - - - -

$260,000 - $279,999 - - - - - -

$280,000 - $299,999 - - - - - -

$300,000 - $319,999 - - - - - -

$320,000 - $339,999 1 - - - - -

$340,000 - $359,999 - - - - - -

$360,000 - $379,999 - - - - - -

$380,000 - $399,999 - - - - - -

$400,000 - $419,999 - - - - - -

$420,000 - $439,999 - - - - - -

$440,000 - $459,999 - - - - - -


Income band (salary) Executives STS PS SMA SRA Other

$460,000 - $479,999 - - - - - -

$480,000 - $499,999 - - - - - -

Total 9 0 0 0 0 3

^ These are non-executive staff paid above the maximum of a VLA Grade 6 - $161,839 recognising senior technical speciality required in the role.

Health, safety and wellbeingA number of advancements have been made to enhance our Health, Safety and Wellbeing (HSW) framework and programs. We have developed an HSW Governance Framework that includes the establishment of a board sub-committee, the Workplace Wellbeing Health and Safety Committee. This Committee meets three times a year, following the meetings of our strategically focussed management and staff HSW Committee.

Both of these committees had oversight of the development and implementation of the following:

Our HSW Strategy and our annual Health Safety and Wellbeing Management Plan (HSWMP). This plan is designed to ensure we have programs and projects that enhance the health, safety and wellbeing of our staff, as well as manage and mitigate workplace hazards and risks. The HSWMP is underpinned by four pillars: leadership and capability, hazard and risk management, consultation and communication, and wellbeing and support.

An HSW Risk Profile that identified eight key workplace HSW risks with supporting treatment plans.

An external HSW systems audit that identified key areas of risk requiring improved risk control measures. A three-year implementation plan will be developed to ensure suitable controls are identified and implemented.

Design standards for court-based duty lawyer rooms and triage areas that address security and work environment risks associated with occupational violence. The standards are being used in the design of new courts and refurbishments to ensure improved HSW outcomes for our staff.

The off-site work locations induction processes being extended to a range of different court jurisdictions, hospitals and other outreach locations. This program of work is due to be fully implemented by 31 December 2019.

We designed and delivered Safe Client Interactions training for client facing staff, with an emphasis on de-escalation skills and boundary setting. Take up for the training has been encouraging with 64 per cent of our front-line staff having completed the program. In addition, we designed a program for phone-based work, which was piloted successfully and is now ready for an organisational wide roll out.

A new online incident reporting system has been developed and will replace our current paper-based form. We are anticipating an increase in incident reporting and enhanced reporting capability to track and report on HSW risks, trends and performance.


There were five standard and one minor WorkCover claims during the reporting period. We have embedded our approach to early intervention over the past 12 months to significantly improve injury and return to work outcomes for our staff.

There have been no serious incidents reported to the regulator WorkSafe during the reporting period. We received two Improvement Notices from Worksafe relating to safety concerns at the Broadmeadows Magistrates Court. The first notice related to duress alarm training and has been closed. The second notice related to providing emergency egress for our staff from our Duty Lawyer room remains open as an architectural solution is required. We are working closely with Court Services Victoria to resolve this notice by the end of the 2019 calendar year.

There were 145 incidents reported during the 12–month period, which is an increase from 115 incidents reported in the previous financial year. Of the 145 incidents reported, 139 were classified as insignificant or minor, five were classified as moderate and one as major.

Performance against occupational health and safety measures

Incidents

Performance indicator 2018–19 2017–18 2016–17

No. of incidents 145 115 125

Rate per 100 FTE 17.06 15.33 18.3

Claims


Total WorkCover claims 6 2 4

No. of standard claims 5 2 2

Rate per 100 FTE 0.838 0.265 0.293

No. of lost time claims 6 0 1

Rate per 100 FTE 0.838 0 0.147

No. of claims exceeding 13 weeks

3 0 0

Rate per 100 FTE 0.419 0 0.0

Other measures


Fatality claims 0 0 0

Average cost per standard claim*

$12,503 $5,123^ $165

Average incurred per standard claim

$87,489 $11,721^ $1,843^

Percentage of claims with return to work

75% 100% 100%



plan less than 30 days

Data was sourced from WorkSafe Victoria’s authorised agent.

^ Data different from figures reported in 2017–18 and 2016–17 Annual Reports due to reconciliation.

We experienced an increase in average costs per claim due to the nature of claims reported during the reporting period. Four of our six claims were for complex psychological injury resulting in higher claims cost.

Training, development and support

Professional development

We provide training, development and support for our lawyers and staff through:

targeted leadership and compliance-based training programs

ongoing professional legal education

specialist accreditation support, including study groups and materials.

We provide a suite of activities to support manager development, including a six-day leadership program and regular training modules aimed at specific skill sets. Two places on the 2019 leadership program were offered to the community legal centre network and we regularly invite CLCs to take part in core offerings. We also introduced a large library of online course material in 2019, edited and customised for our employees and applicable to a wide range of roles. Our induction program has been enhanced to include a mandatory eLearning module ‘Other Ways of Knowing: Aboriginal Culture’, which provides cultural awareness training.

Professional legal education includes training on priority topics for each practice area delivered face-to-face and online, as well as topics that span the compulsory fields of continuing professional development.

We also provide targeted internal and external training opportunities to our community legal centre lawyers and volunteers, and private legal practitioners on our panels.

This year we also continued to work with the Children’s Court of Victoria and the Department of Health and Human Services to deliver child protection multidisciplinary training and development events. This training assists child protection practitioners, lawyers and court staff to perform more effectively in areas including court practices, family violence and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultural competence.

New Lawyers Program

Our New Lawyers Program attracts and retains high quality first year lawyers and provides the knowledge and skills necessary to effectively represent our unique and diverse clients. Since the first intake in September 2010, 102 lawyers have participated in the New Lawyers Program, including 12 further New Lawyers in 2018–19.

Participants are selected through a rigorous and highly competitive process and after two years on the program are placed within the organisation, as legal vacancies emerge. This enables the


program to support agile and streamlined recruitment into lawyer roles, complementing our regular recruiting practices.

Twelve new lawyers commenced in August 2018 and participated in placements across our programs and offices, including our Morwell, Ballarat, Bendigo, Shepparton, Warrnambool, Frankston, Dandenong, Ringwood, Sunshine and Broadmeadows offices.

The program has continued to attract sufficient numbers of high calibre junior lawyers, to fill all available placements and provide Victoria Legal Aid with a skilled pool of talent ready to deliver legal services across Victoria.

Law student opportunities and training placements

We have continued to meet our statutory obligation to provide opportunities for law students to obtain experience in legal aid work. We have ongoing relationships with many educational institutions, including most major universities in Victoria. We provide opportunities for students to undertake placements within our organisation to gain practical experience. In 2018–19 we continued to host law students as part of our Criminal Law, Family Law and Civil Law Internship programs and students from Leo Cussen Centre for Law who completed their Practical Legal Training requirements. We also provided other volunteer opportunities for law students across our Ringwood, Frankston, Broadmeadows and Gippsland offices.

Specialist accreditationWe supported lawyers to develop and demonstrate specialist knowledge and skills by undertaking the Law Institute of Victoria’s Accredited Specialisation program. See Specialist accreditation for more details.


Legislative complianceThis report has been prepared in accordance with all relevant legislation. See Appendix 1 for the disclosure index that identifies our compliance with statutory disclosure requirements.

ComplaintsWe understand that complaints provide valuable information about our clients’ experience and suggest ways to improve our services. Complaints data also allows us to detect problems early and can tell us where we need to target our quality assurance processes.

This year we moved to a new platform for tracking and recording complaints, which has allowed us to integrate information about complaints with other service data. Joining up our data will improve our reporting capability and provide a better overall picture of our services.

Our focus is now on improving our existing practices for first instance resolution of complaints at the point of service. This feature of our complaints process recognises that supporting local resolution of certain types of complaints, with appropriate review procedures in place, can be better and more responsive to our complainants.

Our website explains how to make a complaint. Anyone can make a complaint about our staff, services or about private practitioners representing clients under a grant of legal assistance. We also invite and confidentially investigate complaints about people receiving legal aid services.

This year we received 831 complaints and enquiries, compared to 745 in 2017–18 (up by 12 per cent).

What people complained about

Nature of complaint 2018–19 2017–18 % change

Our services and staff 111 146 -37

Services provided by private practitioners 71 89 -20

Enquiries 649 510 27

Total 831 745 12

Our targets

Complaints resolved within 28 days 2018–19 2017–18

Our services and staff 91% 90%

Services provided by private practitioners 34% 40%

Overall 62% 85%

Complaints about our services and staff

We received 111 complaints about our services and staff (down by 24 per cent). The most common complaints were about:

legal services (35 per cent)

communication issues (17 per cent)


funding eligibility and service limitations (12 per cent)

policy and administrative processes (five per cent).

Complaints that proceeded to an investigation were most commonly resolved by:

providing information or an explanation to the complainant (28 per cent)

further action such as a change of practice, staff training or passing on feedback to a manager (13 per cent)

facilitating a call back to resolve a communication issue (nine per cent).

the complaint not being substantiated and no further action being required (21 per cent).

Complaints about services provided by private practitioners

We received 71 complaints about services provided by private practitioners (down by 20 per cent). Overall the number of complaints about private practitioners remains low at approximately one complaint per 480 grants of legal assistance approved to private practitioners.

Complaints about private practitioners are considered by referring to VLA’s Practice Standards and the Australian Solicitors’ Conduct Rules. The most common complaints were about:

Australian Solicitor Conduct Rule 4.1 – failing to appear at a court event (12 per cent)

Practice Standard 3.2(u) – lack of progress of legal case (15 per cent)

Australian Solicitor Conduct Rule 8.1 – failing to follow instructions (10 per cent)

Practice Standard 4.2.2 – requirements for Independent Children’s Lawyers (10 per cent).

Complaints that proceeded to an investigation were most commonly resolved by:

providing additional explanation or information (19 per cent)

the complaint not being substantiated and no further action being required (27 per cent)

disciplinary outcome, such as a caution, referral to the Legal Services Board or notice of potential panel non-inclusion (four per cent)

an apology (three per cent).

Private practitioners are required to have an internal complaint handling policy, and complaints resolved under those policies are not captured in our data.

Enquiries

We received 649 enquiries this year about a range of issues including queries about another person’s eligibility for a grant of legal assistance or seeking information about our services.

Government advertising expenditureThe disclosure threshold for government advertising expenditure (campaigns with a media spend) is $100,000 (exclusive of GST). Our total advertising expenditure during 2018–19 was not more than $100,000 (exclusive of GST).


Consultancy expenditure

Details of consultancies (valued at $10,000 or greater)

In 2018–19, we engaged 19 consultancies where the total fees payable to the consultants were greater than $10,000. The total expenditure incurred during 2018–19 in relation to these consultancies is $1,121,208 (excluding GST). Details of individual consultancies are outlined below.

Consultant Purpose of consultant

Total approved project fee ($)

(excl. GST)

Expenditure ($) (excl. GST)

Future expenditure

($) (excl. GST)

University of Technology Sydney

Evaluation report 11,250 11,250 0

SP Engage Pty Ltd

Health, Safety and Wellbeing Implementation plan

12,000 12,000 0

Change Architects

Cultural Diversity Strategic plan

14,800 14,800 0

Catherine Elvins Strategi Consulting

Evaluation of Family Violence to Family Law pilot

19,830 19,830 0

Clear Horizon Consulting Pty Ltd

Evaluation of Sunraysia health justice partnership and streamline fines

26,200 26,200 0

David Caple & Associates Pty Ltd

OH&S Risk assessment

27,300 27,300 0

KPMG Chartered Accountants

Health, Safety and Wellbeing risk profile

29,090 29,090 0

Cube Group Management Consulting (Aust)

Regional Development Model project

35,000 13,825 21,175

Data Strategy

Implementation of Data Strategy

37,219 37,219 0

RMIT University

IMHA evaluation 38,652 38,652 0


Consultant Purpose of consultant

Total approved project fee ($)

(excl. GST)

Expenditure ($) (excl. GST)

Future expenditure

($) (excl. GST)

Clayton Utz Development of decision-making policy/ framework compliment guidelines

43,360 43,360 0

Terry Atkinson & Associates Pty Ltd

Performance review 51,075 51,075 0

Deloitte Legal Pty Ltd

OH&S Project planning

63,207 63,207 0

K Murray Consulting

Safe Driving Policy project

63,750 63,750 0

Victorian Mental Illness Council Inc

Delivery of Lived Experience objectives

70,000 70,000 0

Colmar Brunton

Client Satisfaction Survey

79,654 79,654 0

Law and Justice Foundation of NSW

Research and evaluation alliance

100,000 100,000 0

The Incus Group

Program framework review

102,966 102,966 0

Nous Group Conflict of Interest Policy Review

201,054 201,054 0

Details of consultancies under $10,000

In 2018–19 we engaged 23 consultancies where the total fees payable to the individual consultancies were less than $10,000. The total expenditure occurred during 2018–19 in relation to these consultancies was $53,524 (excluding GST).

Information and communication technologyFor the 2018–19 reporting period, Victoria Legal Aid had a total ICT expenditure of $3.5 million with additional capital investment of $1.1 million relating to the Digital Legal Aid project.


Business as usual (BAU) ICT expenditure

Non-business as usual (non-BAU) ICT

expenditure

Total = Operational expenditure and

capital expenditure

Operational expenditure

Capital expenditure

3,476,969 1,154,541 - 1,154,541

ContractsThere were zero contracts entered into during the financial year that require specific disclosure as they were all less than $10 million in value.

Information and records management Victoria Legal Aid is a public office for the purpose of the Public Records Act 1973 and must comply with Public Record Office Victoria (PROV) standards and specifications, the Victorian Protective Data Security Framework as well as other legislative requirements. Staff must make sure they create and maintain full and accurate records (physical or digital) of the business conducted. These records must be managed for specified retention periods and then disposed of in an authorised manner, either by destruction or transferred to the PROV repository.

This year we improved information and records management by:

assessing compliance with the Victorian Protective Data Security Framework

continuing authorised destruction of old and obsolete files to decrease storage costs

consolidating Victoria Legal Aid’s file holdings transitioning to a more cost-effective alternative in 2019–20

providing ongoing training and advice to staff on recordkeeping responsibilities, requirements and procedures to ensure compliance

providing ongoing staff training on use of our Electronic and Documents Management System (EDRMS)

assisting and revising training to admin staff on archival practices, additional services offered to regional offices in preparation for relocation/refurbishment

reviewing and updating Victoria Legal Aid’s Records Disposal Authority, preliminary planning completed, with project details and scope submitted to PROV and approved

piloting the scanning of high value operational documents.

Local Jobs First The Local Jobs First Act 2003 introduced in August 2018 brings together the Victorian Industry Participation Policy (VIPP) and Major Project Skills Guarantee (MPSG) policy which were previously administered separately. Departments and public sector bodies are required to apply the Local Job First policy in all projects valued at $3 million or more in metropolitan Melbourne or for statewide projects, or $1 million or more for projects in regional Victoria.

Victoria Legal Aid had zero projects during the financial year that require specific disclosure.


Information privacyWe take our obligations under the Privacy and Data Protection Act 2014 (Vic) seriously and are committed to ensuring our clients understand how we collect and use the private information that they entrust to us.

We did not receive notification of any complaints lodged with the Office of the Victorian Information Commissioner for Privacy and Data Protection this year.

Information about how we handle personal information is available at www.legalaid.vic.gov.au.

Freedom of informationThe Freedom of Information Act 1982 (Vic) provides a public right of access to certain information that we hold and is an important way of promoting openness and accountability.

This year we received 21 applications (50 per cent fewer than last year). Of these:

seven resulted in partial release of documents

eight applications were withdrawn

one request resulted in Victoria Legal Aid confirming that we do not hold documents covered by the request

one request for personal information was refused in full

one request was transferred to another agency

one invalid request was refused

two are pending.

Members of the public can complain to Office of the Victorian Information Commissioner (OVIC) about the way we handle freedom of information requests or our decisions about freedom of information applications.

This year we were notified of one review request from OVIC.

Making a request

Access to documents may be obtained through written request, as detailed in section 17 of the Freedom of Information Act. In summary, the requirements for making a request are that it should:

be in writing

identify as clearly as possible which document is being requested

be accompanied by the appropriate application fee (or a request to have the fee waived).

Access charges may also apply once documents have been processed (for example, photocopying and search and retrieval charges). Information about how to make a freedom of information request is available at:

www.legalaid.vic.gov.au/get-legal-services-and-advice/your-rights-client/freedom-of-information

Freedom of information requests can be made online or by post to:Freedom of InformationVictoria Legal Aid


http://www.legalaid.vic.gov.au/get-legal-services-and-advice/your-rights-client/freedom-of-information

GPO Box 4380MELBOURNE VIC 3001.

Victoria Legal Aid’s Internal Legal Services team can also be contacted by phone on(03) 9280 3789 for any questions about freedom of information requests.

Victorian OmbudsmanThe Victorian Ombudsman can investigate complaints about administrative actions taken by Victoria Legal Aid, where the complaint cannot be resolved with us directly. We were notified of five complaints lodged with the Victorian Ombudsman this year, all of which were resolved informally by providing the Ombudsman with further information.

Compliance with the Protected Disclosure Act 2012 (Vic)We support the objectives of the Protected Disclosure Act and the protection of people who disclosure improper conduct. Information about how to make a protected disclosure and our commitment to protection from detrimental action in reprisal for protected disclosures is available at:

https://www.legalaid.vic.gov.au/get-legal-services-and-advice/your-rights-client/reporting-improper-conduct

Compliance with the Building Act 1993 (Vic)We are exempt from notifying our compliance with the building and maintenance provision of the Building Act as we do not own any buildings.

We continue to refurbish or relocate ageing fit-outs to ensure we provide a safe and professional environment that enables mobility for all staff. Our functional design processes allow for an adaptable built environment to enable flexible work practices.

In October 2018, the Dandenong office relocated from their ageing Pultney Street location to a new work environment at 14–16 Mason Street. In January 2019, the Ringwood office refurbishment was completed, expanding into the adjacent tenancy.

In March 2019, we finalised the CBD accommodation strategy, with the refurbishment of an additional floor within 570 Bourke Street.

Compliance with the Disability Act 2006Our community legal education program, the Independent Mental Health Advocacy (IMHA) program and the Independent Family Advocacy and Support (IFAS) service engaged in key activities in 2018–19 to help improve access, inclusion and engagement of people with a disability, or who experience a mental health issue. This year, we launched Legal Help Chat as an access channel that makes it easier for some clients to access our services (see Legal Help telephone and webchat services for more information) and produced ‘Roads to Recovery’, our submission to the Royal Commission into Victoria’s Mental Health System (see Advocating for a better mental health system for more details). The information on our website meets the Victorian Government required accessibility standards (WCAG2.1) to ensure people with disability have the same access to information and services as others in the community. We also continued to provide professional training to legal and other staff on working with people with a disability or experiencing a mental illness. These activities included:




Community Legal Education

delivered a series of community legal education sessions addressing Myki fines with self-advocates from the Victorian Advocacy League for Individuals with Disability (VALiD)

participated in the Having a Say conference in Geelong

reviewing a suite of Easy English fact sheets and improving accessibility of content in response to feedback from Disability Justice Advocacy

updated the alternative formats policy for community legal information we produce

established a community legal education working group with the Mental Health and Disability Advocacy and Independent Mental Health Advocacy services

began evaluation of the Going to a Mental Health Tribunal hearing booklet

contributed to a cross-organisational NDIS project and delivered training to workers in Broadmeadows on disability rights.

Independent Mental Health Advocacy (IMHA)

The Speaking from Experience (SFE) group and Senior Consumer Consultant at IMHA ensure people with lived experience inform our ongoing work. Some of the work completed this year included:

input into our submission to the Royal Commission into the Mental Health system Terms of Reference

Mental Health and Disability Advocacy service client survey

development of IMHA self-advocacy resources

IMHA Consumer Information working group

sitting on staff recruitment panels

IMHA has co-produced with consumers a suite of self-advocacy resources including fact sheets, videos and a web app. Videos were included to make the information more accessible.

IMHA was externally evaluated by RMIT and the evaluation was co-produced, having researchers on the team with lived experience of mental health issues and the system.

IMHA produced an accessible, plain English factsheet describing its services.

Independent Family Advocacy Service (IFAS) IFAS began delivering services in October and one of its priority groups is parents/primary

carers with an intellectual disability, who are now accessing the service.

IFAS’ lived experience advisory group—Shared Experience and Support—was established and includes several parents with an intellectual disability, who have a lived experience of the child protection system. The group has worked with an IFAS lived experience consultant and staff to create the name for the service; develop accessible service collateral and a client survey.


Professional Legal Education Professional legal education sessions for staff of Victoria Legal Aid, private practitioners

providing legal aid and community legal centre staff included sessions on:

Mental Health in August and November—revised to have a greater consumer focus

NDIS training for staff

Cognitive and neurological disabilities in February and June

sentencing decisions relating to mentally unwell clients

psychological considerations when acting for refugees in forensic settings

developed a cognitive and neurological disabilities eLearning module.

Competitive Neutrality Policy We comply with the requirements of the National Competition Policy, where relevant, to ensure competitive neutrality where any services compete, or potentially compete, with the private sector.

Compliance with the Carers Recognition Act 2012 (Vic) We are exempt from reporting on our compliance under the Act because Victoria Legal Aid is not a public service care agency or a funded care agency. As such, the Act does not apply.

Risk managementOur risk management framework is consistent with the Victorian Government Risk Management Framework, the Australian/New Zealand risk management standard AS/ NZS ISO31000:2018 and the standing directions issued under the Financial Management Act 1994 (Vic).

Our strategic risk profile is reviewed annually in line with our risk management policy and is undertaken in accordance with risk management procedures.

Our risk profile is developed by aggregating risks across the organisation and then identifying the top risks we face. Factors influencing the prioritisation of risks are our strategic priorities, external factors impacting on service delivery and financial commitments.

We developed and implemented mitigating strategies and actions to embed risk management activities around identified risks into current activities. Key risk indicators were developed to track and monitor the movement of risks, against their likelihood and consequence. The risk profile is approved by the Board. Quarterly reports against the risk profile are provided to our Audit, Risk and Compliance Committee.

Identified risks

Risks identified during the year included:

risk of insufficient funding and capacity to effectively deliver services and Victoria Legal Aid’s Strategy

failure to influence government policy consistent with our values

failure to provide staff with a safe and supportive workplace

failure to achieve the outcomes of Victoria Legal Aid’s Digital Legal Aid strategy

failure to deliver statewide services that best meet the needs of Victoria Legal Aid clients


failure of our staff to engage with the vision and direction of the organisation

failure to protect Victoria Legal Aid from ICT failure and/or cyber attack

failure to achieve a balanced budget.

Additional information on requestIn compliance with the requirements of the Standing Directions of the Minister for Finance, information relating to the 2018–19 reporting period to be made available to ministers, members of parliament and the public on request and subject to the provisions of the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (Vic) include:

a statement that declarations of pecuniary interests have been duly completed by all relevant officers of Victoria Legal Aid

details of shares held by senior officers as nominee or held beneficially in a statutory authority or subsidiary

details of publications produced by Victoria Legal Aid about our activities and where they can be obtained

details of changes in prices, fees, charges, rates and levies charged by Victoria Legal Aid for its services, including services that are administered

details of any major external reviews carried out in respect of the operation of Victoria Legal Aid

details of any other research and development activities undertaken by Victoria Legal Aid that are not otherwise covered either in the report of operations or in a document which contains the financial statement and report of operations

details of overseas visits undertaken including a summary of the objectives and outcomes of each visit

details of major promotional, public relations and marketing activities undertaken by Victoria Legal Aid to develop community awareness of the services provided by it

details of assessments and measures undertaken to improve the occupational health and safety of employees, not otherwise detailed in the report of operations

a general statement on industrial relations within Victoria Legal Aid and details of time lost through industrial accidents and disputes, which are not otherwise detailed in the report of operations

a list of major committees sponsored by Victoria Legal Aid, the purposes of each committee and the extent to which the purposes have been achieved

details of all consultancies and contractors.

Victoria Legal Aid Financial Management Compliance Attestation Statement I, Bill Jaboor, on behalf of the Victoria Legal Aid Board, certify that Victoria Legal Aid has complied with the applicable Standing Directions of the Minister for Finance under the Financial Management Act 1994 and Instructions.


Bill Jaboor

Chairperson

11 September 2019


Our Finances

Financial report—30 June 2019Victoria Legal Aid has presented its audited general purpose financial statements for the financial year ended 30 June 2019 in the following structure to provide users with the information about the agency’s stewardship of resources entrusted to it.

Financial statementsComprehensive operating statementBalance sheetStatement of changes in equity Cash flow statement

Notes to the financial statements

1. About this report

The basis on which the financial statements have been prepared in compliance with reporting regulations.

2. Funding the delivery of our services

Revenue recognised from grants, client contributions and other sources

2.1 Summary of income that funds the delivery of our services2.2 Government grants2.3 Public Purpose Fund grants2.4 Client contributions towards legal assistance2.5 Costs recovered and costs awarded from the Appeal Costs Fund2.6 Interest on investments2.7 Other income

3. The cost of delivering our services

Operating expenses of the agency

3.1 Expenses incurred in delivery of services3.2 Case-related professional payments3.3 Community legal centre payments - State Government grant funded3.4 Employee benefits3.5 Other expenditure

4. Administered (non- controlled) items

Items that are administered by the agency

4.1 Community legal centre payments - Commonwealth Government grant funded

5. Key assets available to support service delivery

Plant, equipment and intangible assets


5.1 Property, plant and equipment5.2 Intangible assets5.3 Other assets

6. Other assets and liabilities

Working capital balances, and other key assets and liabilities

6.1 Accrued income6.2 Receivables6.3 Payables6.4 Other provisions6.5 Other liabilities

7. How we financed our operations

Cash flow information, leases and other commitments

7.1 Cash flow information and balances7.2 Trust account balances7.3 Commitments for expenditure

8. Risks, contingencies and valuation judgements

Financial risk management, contingent liabilities and fair value determination

8.1 Financial instruments specific disclosures8.2 Contingent liabilities8.3 Fair value determination

9. Other disclosures9.1 Ex-gratia expenses 9.2 Other economic flows included in net result9.3 Change in accounting policies9.4 Responsible persons9.5 Remuneration of executives9.6 Related parties9.7 Remuneration of auditors9.8 Subsequent events9.9 Other accounting policies9.10 Australian Accounting Standards issued that are not yet effective9.11 Glossary of technical terms9.12 Style conventions


Comprehensive operating statementFor the financial year ended 30 June 2019

CONTINUING OPERATIONS Notes2019

$’0002018

$’000

Income from transactions

Grants from Government

Grants received from the Commonwealth Government 2.2 58,673 53,658

Grants received from the State Government 2.2 129,672 113,546

Grants received from the Public Purpose Fund 2.3 35,539 30,037

223,884 197,241

Other Income

Client contributions towards legal assistance 2.4 3,504 2,420

Costs recovered and costs awarded from the Appeal Costs Fund 2.5 1,973 1,094

Interest on investments 2.6 1,014 1,014

Other income 2.7 295 17

6,786 4,545 Total income from transactions 230,670 201,786

Expenses from transactions

Case-related professional payments 3.2 (105,164) (93,027)

Community legal centre payment – State Government grant funded 3.3 (19,984) (17,312)

Employee expenses(1) 3.4 (77,578) (71,735)

Depreciation and amortisation 5.1.2 (2,426) (2,986)

Other expenditure 3.5 (21,743) (22,899)

Total expenses from transactions (226,895) (207,959)Net result from transactions 3,775 (6,173)

Other economic flows included in the net result

Net gain/(loss) arising from other economic flows 9.2 (758) 922

Total other economic flows included in the net result (758) 922

Net result 3,017 (5,251)(1) Victoria Legal Aid has reclassified some costs associated with staffing such as training and en-gaging temporary staff

to ‘Other expenditure’ in 2019. The 2018 comparative has been adjusted to reflect this reclassification, although there is no change to the comprehensive result.


The above comprehensive operating statement should be read in conjunction with the accompanying notes.

Balance sheetAs at 30 June 2019

Notes2019

$’0002018

$’000Financial assetsCash and deposits 7.1 41,659 37,179

Accrued income 6.1 1,044 852

Receivables 6.2 20,492 25,488

Prepayments 1,737 1,530

Total financial assets 64,932 65,049

Non-financial assets

Property, plant and equipment 5.1 6,814 5,056

Intangible assets 5.2 2,020 2,773

Other assets 5.3 10,115 12,463

Total non-financial assets 18,949 20,292

Total assets 83,881 85,341

Liabilities

Payables 6.3 20,748 24,991

Employee related provisions 3.4.2 15,805 14,716

Other provisions 6.4 1,181 1,771

Other liabilities 6.5 13,800 14,532

Total liabilities 51,534 56,010Net assets 32,347 29,331

Equity

Contributed capital 43,394 43,394

Accumulated surplus/(deficit) (11,047) (14,063)

Net Worth 32,347 29,331

Contingent liabilities 8.2

Commitments for expenditure 7.3

The balance sheet should be read in conjunction with the accompanying notes.


Statement of changes in equityFor the financial year ended 30 June 2019

Accumulated surplus

$’000

Contributed Capital

$’000Total$’000

Balance at 1 July 2017 (8,811) 42,194 33,383

Net result for the year (5,251) - (5,251)

Contributed Capital - 1,200 1,200

Balance at 30 June 2018 (14,063) 43,394 29,331

Net result for the year 3,017 - 3,017

Balance as 30 June 2019 (11,047) 43,394 32,347

The statement of changes in equity should be read in conjunction with the accompanying notes.


Cash flow statementFor the financial year ended 30 June 2019

Notes2019

$’0002018

$’000

Cash flows from operating activities

Receipts from Government Grants

Receipts from Commonwealth Government 57,445 52,496

Receipts from State Government 130,614 114,432

Receipts from Public Purpose Fund 35,539 30,037

Total receipts from Government 223,598 196,965

Receipts of other income

Client contributions received 2,437 2,601

Costs recovered and costs awarded from the Appeal Costs Fund

1,808 1,042

Interest on investments 1,224 1,039

Goods and services tax recovered from the ATO 20,903 9,852

Other receipts 13 9

Total receipts of other income 26,385 14,543 Total receipts 249,983 211,508

Payments to suppliers and employees

Case-related professional payments (106,199) (100,536)

Payments to employees (80,246) (75,607)

Community legal centre payment - State Government Grant funded

(20,726) (19,133)

Other payments (34,410) (24,541)

(241,581) (219,817)Net cash from/(used in) operating activities 7.1 8,402 (8,309)

Cash flows from investing activities

Payments for non-financial assets (3,848) (783)

Proceeds from sale of non-financial assets 66 40

Net cash from/(used in) investing activities (3,782) (743)

Net increase/(decrease) in cash and cash equivalents 4,620 (9,052)

Cash and cash equivalents at the beginning of the financial year

35,567 44,619

Cash and cash equivalents at the end of the financial year(1) 7.1 40,187 35,567


Notes2019

$’0002018

$’000

(1) Excludes funds on deposit for IBAC matters. Refer note 7.1.

The above cash flow statement should be read in conjunction with the accompanying notes.

Responsible body’s declarationThe attached financial statements have been prepared in accordance with Direction 5.2 of the Standing Directions of the Assistant Treasurer under the Financial Management Act 1994, the Australian Charities and Not-for-profit Commission Act 2012, the Australian Charities and Not-for-profit Regulations 2013, applicable Financial Reporting Directions, Australian Accounting Standards including interpretations and other mandatory professional reporting requirements.

We further state that, in our opinion, the information set out in the comprehensive operating statement, balance sheet, statement of changes in equity, cash flow statement and accompanying notes, presents fairly the financial transactions during the year ended 30 June 2019 and financial position of Victoria Legal Aid as at 30 June 2019.

At the time of signing we are not aware of any circumstance which would render any particulars included in the financial statements to be misleading or inaccurate.

We authorise the attached financial statements for issue on 11 September 2019.

Bill JaboorChairperson11 September 2019

Louise GlanvilleChief Executive Officer11 September 2019

Matthew DaleChief Financial Officer11 September 2019


1 About this reportVictoria Legal Aid is a statutory authority of the state of Victoria. The authority was established under the Legal Aid Act 1978.

Its principal address is:

Victoria Legal Aid570 Bourke StreetMelbourne VIC 3000

A description of the nature of our operations and principal activities is included in the Report of Operations which does not form part of the financial statements.

Basis of preparation These financial statements are in Australian dollars and the historical cost convention is used unless a different measurement basis is specifically disclosed in the note associated with the item. Amounts in the financial statements and accompanying notes have been rounded to the nearest thousand dollars, unless otherwise stated.

The accrual basis of accounting has been applied in preparing these financial statements, whereby assets, liabilities, equity, income and expenses are recognised in the reporting period to which they relate, regardless of when cash is received or paid.

In the application of Australian Accounting Standards (AASs) management is required to make judgements, estimates and assumptions about carrying values of assets and liabilities that are not readily apparent from other sources. The estimates and associated assumptions are based on professional judgements derived from historical experience and various other factors that are believed to be reasonable under the circumstances, the results of which form the basis of making the judgements. Actual results may differ from these estimates.

The estimates and underlying assumptions are reviewed on an ongoing basis. Revisions to accounting estimates are recognised in the period in which the estimate is revised if the revision affects only that period or in the period of the revision and future periods if the revision affects both current and future periods.

Compliance informationThe financial report is a general purpose financial report that has been prepared on an accrual basis in accordance with the Financial Management Act 1994, the Australian Charities and Not-for-profit Commission Act 2012, the Australian Charities and Not-for-Profit Regulations 2013 and the applicable AASs, which includes Interpretations issued by the Australian Accounting Standards Board (AASB) and other mandatory professional requirements. In particular, they are presented in a manner consistent with the requirements of AASB 1049 Whole of Government and General Government Sector Financial Reporting (AASB 1049).

Where appropriate, those AASs paragraphs applicable to not-for-profit entities have been applied.

The financial report also complies with relevant Financial Reporting Directions (FRDs) issued by the Department of Treasury and Finance, and relevant Standing Directions (SDs) authorised by the Assistant Treasurer.


Accounting policies are selected and applied in a manner which ensures that the resulting financial information satisfies the concepts of relevance and reliability, thereby ensuring that the substance of the underlying transactions or other events is reported.

Going concernThe financial report has been prepared on a going-concern basis. Victoria Legal Aid is funded predominantly by regular grants from the Victorian Government and the Commonwealth Government. The Commonwealth funding is provided under the National Partnership Agreement on Legal Assistance Services and will expire on 30 June 2020. A new agreement is currently being negotiated with the Commonwealth Government. The Department of Justice and Community Safety Victoria provides continued support as indicated in the annual Victorian State Budget Papers.

These financial statements have been prepared in the reasonable expectation that such funding will continue from both the Victorian and Commonwealth Governments.

2 Funding the delivery of our servicesIntroductionThis section presents the sources and amounts of revenue raised by Victoria Legal Aid.

The objectives of Victoria Legal Aid as detailed in the Legal Aid Act 1978 are:

(i) to provide legal aid in the most effective, economic and efficient manner;

(ii) to manage its resources to make legal aid available at a reasonable cost to the community and on an equitable basis throughout the state;

(iii) to provide to the community improved access to justice and legal remedies; and

(iv) to pursue innovative means of providing legal aid directed at minimising the need for individual legal services in the community.

Revenue from transactions is recognised to the extent that it is probable that the economic benefits will flow to the entity and the revenue can be reliably measured at fair value.

Structure2.1 Summary of income that funds the delivery of our services2.2 Government Grants2.3 Public Purpose Fund Grants2.4 Client Contributions towards legal assistance2.5 Costs recovered and costs awarded from the Appeals Costs Fund2.6 Interest on investments2.7 Other income

OverviewVictoria Legal Aid is funded predominantly by grants from the Government (Commonwealth and State) and from the Public Purpose Fund.


Commonwealth Government Funding

The Commonwealth Government funding is provided through the National Partnership Agreement on Legal Assistance Services. The Commonwealth and the Victorian State Government entered into this agreement on 1 July 2015 and it is due to expire on 30 June 2020. The agreement specified arrangements for the delivery of Commonwealth-funded services by the state. Funding flows through the Victorian Government to Victoria Legal Aid and is reported as National Partnership Agreement based funding, 2019: $49.9 million (2018: $49.3 million). A new agreement is currently being negotiated with the Commonwealth Government.

In addition, Victoria Legal Aid continues to be reimbursed for Expensive Commonwealth Criminal Cases directly, 2019: $6.6 million (2018: $3.1 million). This revenue is included in the Grants from the Commonwealth Government disclosure.


The Commonwealth also provides funding to community legal centres on a quarterly basis which Victoria Legal Aid receives on their behalf and then distributes as per the funding schedule provided by the Commonwealth. Victoria Legal Aid does not control the allocation of grants received from the Commonwealth Government and consequently does not include these funds in its financial statements as income or expenditure. The total amount received from the Commonwealth for community legal centres to 30 June 2019 was $11.2 million (2018: $10.9 million) and is disclosed in note 4.1 Administered items.

State Government Funding

The State Government provided $129.7 million of grant funding in 2019 (2018: $113.5 million).

Each year Victoria Legal Aid allocates a portion of its State funding and provides certain administration assistance to community legal centres in Victoria. For the year ended 30 June 2019, Victoria Legal Aid allocated $17.7 million of direct funds (2018: $16.7 million) and $0.7 million of project funds (2018: $0.3 million). The organisation has disclosed these grants in its financial statements as the Board of Victoria Legal Aid has discretionary funding choices over the allocation of state grants.

Public Purpose Fund

Funds are also provided from the Public Purpose Fund. The amount of base funding distributed each year can vary depending on the performance of the fund and when calls on the fund are made. Victoria Legal Aid has also received additional funds approved by the Victorian Legal Services Board for specific sponsored projects. Refer to Note 2.3.

2.1 Summary of income that funds the delivery of our services

Notes2019

$’0002018

$’000Commonwealth and State Government grants 2.2 188,345 167,204

Grant from the Public Purpose Fund 2.3 35,539 30,037

Client contributions towards legal assistance 2.4 3,504 2,420

Costs recovered and costs awarded from the Appeal Costs Fund 2.5 1,973 1,094

Interest on investments 2.6 1,014 1,014

Other income 2.7 295 17

Total income from transactions 230,670 201,786

Income is recognised to the extent it is probable the economic benefits will flow to the organisation and the income can be reliably measured. Where applicable, amounts disclosed as income are net of returns, allowances, duties and taxes. All amounts of income over which the organisation does not have control are not included in the totals above and are disclosed as administered income (see Note 4.1).


2.2 Government grantsGrants payable by government are recognised as revenue when the organisation gains control of the underlying assets. For reciprocal grants (i.e. equal value is given back by the organisation to the provider) the organisation is deemed to have assumed control when it has satisfied its performance obligations under the terms of the grant. For non-reciprocal grants, the organisation is deemed to have assumed control when the grant is receivable or received. Conditional grants may be reciprocal or non-reciprocal depending on the terms of the grant.

2019$’000

2018$’000

Commonwealth grantsNational Partnership Agreement base funding 49,938 49,287

Expensive Commonwealth Criminal Cases 6,626 3,100

Specific project grants 2,109 1,271

Total 58,673 53,658

State grants

Base funding 74,433 71,404

Specific project grants 36,769 25,198

Community legal centre base funding 17,745 16,669

Community legal centre projects 725 275

Total 129,672 113,546

Total grants 188,345 167,204

2.3 Public Purpose Fund GrantsBase funding grants from the Public Purpose Fund are distributed to the Legal Aid Fund pursuant to section 6.7.9 of the Legal Profession Act 2004 and are recognised as revenue when received. The Public Purpose Fund comprises interest and investment earnings on clients’ funds held in solicitors’ trust accounts. The amount of any distribution from the Public Purpose Fund to the agency can vary from year to year depending on its investment performance and any other calls that may be made on the fund, as set out in the Legal Profession Act 2004.

The Public Purpose Fund project grant represents additional funds provided by the Victorian Legal Services Board for specific sponsored projects. The project currently sponsored by the Legal Services Board is the Digital Legal Aid strategy which aims to deliver significant benefits to the organisation and its partners in the justice sector by leveraging technology to improve client services, productivity and access to justice.

2019$’000

2018$’000

Public Purpose Fund - base funding 31,539 30,037

Public Purpose Fund - project funding 4,000 -


2019$’000

2018$’000

Total 35,539 30,037

2.4 Client contributions towards legal assistance

Granting of legal assistance

Pursuant to the Legal Aid Act 1978, as amended, the organisation is empowered to make a grant of legal assistance subject to certain conditions. Under section 27 of the Act, Victoria Legal Aid may require a client to:

make a contribution towards the cost of providing assistance;

make a contribution in respect of any out-of-pocket expenses incurred in providing assistance;

pay contributions in such a manner and within such a time as the organisation directs; or

provide the organisation with security against costs incurred on their behalf.

In accordance with Victoria Legal Aid’s means test and asset guidelines, a client may or may not be required to make a contribution towards the cost of their legal assistance and an assessment is made to determine the amount. Revenue from the provision of legal services to clients is recognised at its recoverable amount. Contributions for services are only recognised when the recoverable amount can be reliably determined. Annually this amount is reviewed for impairment and a provision for impairment raised for estimated irrecoverable amounts. Where contributions are deemed to be irrecoverable they are written off as bad debts when identified. There are two types of contributions that can be imposed, secured and unsecured:

secured contributions are established based on expected proceeds from the disposal of property and a client is directed to sign an agreement that will place a caveat over the client’s property; and

an unsecured contribution is one where the client is directed to make regular cash payments towards their legal matters.

2019$’000

2018$’000

Client contributions – secured 2,343 2,475

Client contributions – unsecured 1,161 (55)

Total 3,504 2,420


2.5 Costs recovered and costs awarded from Appeals Costs FundRevenue arising from costs recovered and costs awarded from the Appeal Costs Fund is recognised when Victoria Legal Aid has the right to receive revenue.

Costs recovered relate to court ordered reimbursements of legal costs incurred to be made to Victoria Legal Aid from a third party.

Costs awarded from the Appeals Cost Fund are court ordered reimbursements in criminal cases to cover costs that would otherwise be incurred more than once due to adjournments and abandonment of proceedings at no fault of the prosecution or the accused. The administration and payment of these matters is handled by the Appeal Costs Board.

2019$’000

2018$’000

Costs recovered 1,165 631

Costs awarded 808 463

Total 1,973 1,094

2.6 Interest on investmentsInterest income includes interest received on bank term deposits and other investments. Interest income is recognised using the effective interest method, which allocates the interest over the relevant period.

2019$’000

2018$’000

Interest on investments 1,014 1,014

Total 1,014 1,014

2.7 Other incomeOther income includes room hire, reimbursements and other minor income and is recognised when the right to receive payment is established.

2019$’000

2018$’000

Other income 295 17

Total 295 17

3 The cost of delivering our servicesIntroductionThis section provides an account of the expenses incurred by Victoria Legal Aid in delivering our services.

In Note 2, the funds that enable the provision of services were disclosed and in this note the costs associated with provision of services are recorded.


Structure3.1 Expenses incurred in delivery of services3.2 Case-related professional payments3.3 Community legal centre payments – State Government grant funded3.4 Employee benefits3.5 Other expenditure

3.1 Expenses incurred in delivery of services

Notes2019

$’0002018

$’000Case-related professional payments 3.2 105,164 93,027

Community legal centre payments – State Government grant funded 3.3 19,984 17,312

Employee benefits 3.4 77,578 71,735

Other expenditure 3.5 21,743 22,899

Total expenses incurred in delivery of services 224,469 204,973

3.2 Case-related professional paymentsPayments are made to the organisation’s panel members for legal work undertaken on behalf of the organisation along with duty lawyers. Other case-related expenditure includes mediation, interpreter fees, medical reports and conduct monies. Payments are recognised as an expense in the reporting period in which they are incurred and fluctuate depending on demand and types of cases funded.

2019$’000

2018$’000

Case-related legal expenditure 97,722 87,456

Duty lawyer expenses 3,983 3,400

Other case-related expenditure 3,459 2,171

Total case-related professional payments 105,164 93,027


3.3 Community legal centre payment – State Government Grant fundedPayments made to community legal centres are recognised as an expense in the reporting period in which they are incurred.

2019$’000

2018$’000

Grants to community legal centres 18,012 16,557

Project funds to community legal centres 1,972 755

Total community legal centre payments 19,984 17,312

Funding is provided from the State Government to Victoria Legal Aid for the benefit of community legal centres. Victoria Legal Aid also receives and administers funding to community legal centres on behalf of the Commonwealth Government which is not included in the summary of payments. See note 4.1 for this disclosure.

3.4 Employee benefits

3.4.1 Employee benefits in the comprehensive operating statementEmployee benefits include all costs related to employment including wages and salaries, leave entitlements and WorkCover premiums.

2019$’000

2018$’000

Employee benefitsSalaries and overtime 62,717 57,429

Annual leave and long service leave expense 7,995 7,942

Superannuation 6,510 5,990

WorkCover 356 374

Total employee benefits(1) 77,578 71,735(1) In 2019 some costs associated with staff training and engagement of agency staff that were previously reported as

Employee benefits (note 3.4) have been reclassified as Other expenditure - Supplies and services. The comparative reporting has been adjusted to reflect this reclassifica-tion however, there is no impact on the comprehensive result.

The amount recognised in the comprehensive operating statement in relation to superannuation is employer contributions for members of both defined benefit and defined contribution superannuation plans that are paid or payable during the reporting period. Victoria Legal Aid does not recognise any defined benefit liabilities because it has no legal or constructive obligation to pay future benefits relating to its employees. Instead, the Department of Treasury and Finance (DTF) discloses in its annual financial statements the net defined benefit cost related to the members of these plans as an administered liability (on behalf of the State as the sponsoring employer).


3.4.2 Employee benefits in the balance sheetProvision is made for benefits accruing to employees in respect of wages and salaries, annual leave and long service leave (LSL) for services rendered to the reporting date and recorded as an expense during the period the services are delivered.

2019$’000

2018$’000

Current provisions:Annual leave

Unconditional and expected to settle within 12 months 5,302 4,990

Long Service Leave

Unconditional and expected to settle within 12 months 677 970

Unconditional and expected to settle after 12 months 6,211 5,669

Provision for on costs

Unconditional and expected to settle within 12 months 605 602

Unconditional and expected to settle after 12 months 628 573

Total current provision for employee benefits 13,423 12,804

Non-current provisions:

Employee benefits 2,163 1,737

On-costs 219 175

Total non-current provisions for employee benefits 2,382 1,912Total provision for employee benefits 15,805 14,716

2019$’000

2018$’000

Reconciliation of movement in on-cost provisionOpening balance for the period 1,350 1,263

Additional provisions recognised 102 87

Closing balance for the period 1,452 1,350

Wages, salaries and annual leaveLiabilities for wages and salaries, including non-monetary benefits and annual leave expected to be wholly settled within 12 months of the reporting date, are recognised in the provision for employee benefits in respect of employee services up to the reporting date, classified as current liabilities and measured at their nominal values.

Those liabilities that are not expected to be settled within 12 months are recognised in the provision for employee benefits as non-current liabilities, measured at present value of the amounts expected to be paid when the liabilities are settled using the remuneration rate expected to apply at the time of settlement.


Long service leaveLiability for long service leave (LSL) is recognised in the provision for employee benefits.

Current liability—unconditional LSL (representing seven or more years of continuous service) is disclosed as a current liability even where Victoria Legal Aid does not expect to settle the liability within 12 months because it will not have the unconditional right to defer the settlement of the entitlement should an employee take leave or depart within 12 months.

The components of this current LSL liability are measured at:

nominal value—component that Victoria Legal Aid expects to settle within 12 months.

present value—component that Victoria Legal Aid does not expect to settle within 12 months

Non-current liability—conditional LSL (representing less than seven years of continuous service) is disclosed as a non-current liability. There is an unconditional right to defer the settlement of the entitlement until the employee has completed the requisite years of service.

This non-current liability is measured at present value. Gain or loss following revaluation of the present value of non-current LSL liability due to changes in bond interest rates is recognised as other economic flows in the Comprehensive Operating Statement.

Employee benefits on-costsEmployee benefits on-costs (workers compensation, superannuation, annual leave and LSL accrued while on LSL taken in service) are recognised separately from provision for employee benefits.

3.4.3 Super contributionsEmployees of the organisation are entitled to receive superannuation benefits and the organisation contributes to both defined benefit and defined contribution plans. The defined benefit plan(s) provides benefits based on years of service and final average salary.

Paid contributions for the year

Contribution outstanding at

year end Total2019$’000

2018$’000

2019$’000

2018$’000

2019$’000

2018$’000

Defined Benefit Scheme

70 92 1 1 71 93

Defined contribution plansVicSuper Pty Ltd 3,565 3,466 70 70 3,635 3,536

Other 2,750 2,310 54 51 2,804 2,361

6,385 5,868 125 122 6,510 5,990

Employees under the Defined Benefit Scheme are entitled to defined lump-sum benefits on retirement, disability or death. This benefit is based on years of service and final average salary. Victoria Legal Aid does not recognise any defined benefit liabilities (refer to Note 3.4.1).


3.5 Other expenditureOther expenditure represents the day-to-day running costs incurred in normal operations.

2019$’000

2018$’000

Other expenditure from ordinary activitiesSupplies and services 9,514 11,292

Occupancy and asset related expenses 9,053 8,634

Information Technology expenses 2,891 2,894

Bad debts from transactions 285 79

Total other expenditure from ordinary activities 21,743 22,899

Supplies and servicesSupplies and services payments represent the day-to-day running costs incurred in the normal operations of Victoria Legal Aid. These items are recognised as an expense in the reporting period in which they are incurred.

Occupancy and asset related expensesOperating lease payments (including contingent rentals) are recognised on a straight line basis over the lease term, except where another systematic basis is more representative of the time pattern of the benefits derived from the use of the leased asset. In 2019 some costs associated with staff training and engagement of agency staff that were previously reported as Employee benefits (note 3.4) have been reclassified as Other expenditure.- Supplies and services. The comparative reporting has been adjusted to reflect this reclassification however, there is no impact on the comprehensive result.

Maintenance and repairs of assets are managed as part of an ongoing cyclical maintenance program. The costs of maintenance are charged as expenses as incurred, except where they relate to the replacement of a component of an asset, in which case the costs are capitalised and depreciated in accordance with Note 5.1.2.

Other routine operating maintenance, repair costs and minor renewals are also charged as expenses when incurred.

Information Technology ExpensesInformation management systems expense includes equipment maintenance and licence fees associated with internet, video conferencing and software.

Bad debtsBad and doubtful debts are assessed on a regular basis. Bad debts expense represents client contributions that are not recoverable from the client and are written off when they are identified.


4 Administered (non-controlled items)IntroductionThis section provides information on funds administered by Victoria Legal Aid which they do not control and consequently are not included in its financial statements as income or expenditure.

4.1 Community legal centre payments – Commonwealth Government Grant FundedThe Commonwealth and the Victorian Government entered into the National Partnership Agreement on Legal Assistance Services on 1 July 2015 which will expire on 30 June 2020. The agreement specifies arrangements for the delivery of Commonwealth-funded services by the state. Under this agreement the Commonwealth Government provides funding to community legal centres on a quarterly basis which Victoria Legal Aid receives on their behalf and distributes as per the State’s accountability under the National Partnership Agreement. Victoria Legal Aid does not control the allocation of grants received from the Commonwealth Government in this instance and consequently does not include these funds in its financial statements as income or expenditure. The total amount received from the Commonwealth for community legal centres to 30 June 2019 was $11.2 million (2018: $10.9 million).

Administered (non-controlled) items

For the financial year ended 30 June 2019

2019$’000

2018$’000

Administered income from transactionsGrants from the Commonwealth Government 11,192 10,861

Total administered income from transactions 11,192 10,861 Payments made on behalf of the Commonwealth Government 11,192 10,861

Total administered net result from transactions (net operating balance) 11,192 10,861 Administered net result - -

5 Key assets available to support delivery of our servicesIntroductionVictoria Legal Aid controls property, plant, equipment and intangible assets that are utilised in fulfilling its objectives and conducting its activities.

Fair value measurement

Where the assets included in this section are carried at fair value, additional information is disclosed in Note 8.3 in connection with how those fair values were determined.

Structure5.1 Property, plant and equipment


5.2 Intangibles5.3 Other assets

5.1 Property, plant and equipmentGross carrying

amountAccumulated

depreciationNet carrying

amount 2019$’000

2018$’000

2019$’000

2018$’000

2019$’000

2018$’000

Information technology at fair value(1) 2,804 2,668 (2,451) (1,989) 353 679

Furniture, fixtures and fittings at fair value 392 396 (252) (271) 140 125

Leasehold improvements at fair value 12,217 12,411 (7,330) (9,041) 4,887 3,370

Motor vehicles at fair value 573 589 (309) (257) 264 332

Office machines and equipment at fair value 322 615 (319) (610) 3 5

Cultural assets at fair value 140 140 - - 140 140

Assets under construction at cost 1,027 405 - - 1,027 405

Net carrying amount 17,475 17,224 (10,661) (12,168) 6,814 5,056 (1) Excludes Software and other IT intangibles disclosed separately in note 5.2


Initial recognitionItems of property, plant and equipment are measured initially at cost and subsequently revalued at fair value less accumulated depreciation and impairment. Where an asset is acquired for no or nominal cost, the cost is its fair value at the date of acquisition.

The cost of constructed non-financial physical assets includes the cost of all materials used in construction and direct labour on the asset.

Subsequent measurementProperty, plant and equipment are subsequently measured at fair value less accumulated depreciation and impairment. Fair value is determined with regard to the asset’s highest and best use (refer to Note 8.3.2).

Leasehold improvementsThe cost of improvements to or on leasehold properties is depreciated over the unexpired period of the lease or the estimated useful life of the improvement to Victoria Legal Aid. Leasehold improvements are measured at cost less accumulated depreciation and impairment.

Where applicable, leasehold improvements include a component for leasehold make-good at the end of the lease. A corresponding provision for decommissioning expense is created based on present value of the expected expense.

Cultural assetsCultural assets such as artworks that Victoria Legal Aid intends to preserve because of their unique cultural and historical attributes are valued at fair value.

5.1.2 Depreciation and amortisation2019

$’0002018

$’000Charge for the periodInformation technology equipment 635 735

Furniture, fixtures and fittings 22 25

Leasehold improvements 772 1,239

Motor vehicles 119 117

Office machines and equipment 2 12

Total depreciation 1,550 2,128Amortisation(1) 876 858

Total 2,426 2,986(1) Represents amortisation of future economic benefits associated with lease incentives.


DepreciationDepreciation is calculated on a straight-line basis to write off the net cost of each item of plant and equipment (excluding cultural assets) over its expected useful life to its estimated residual value. Leasehold improvements are depreciated over the period of the lease or estimated useful life, whichever is the shorter, using the straight-line method. Estimates of useful lives, residual values and depreciation method are reviewed on a regular basis.

The following useful lives are used for each major class of depreciable assets for the current and prior years:

Furniture, fixtures and fittings 10 years

Information technology equipment 3 years

Leasehold improvements 3 - 13 years

Motor vehicles 5 years

Office machines and equipment 6 years

Cultural assets are considered to have an indefinite life and are not depreciated because their service potential has not, in any material sense, been consumed during the reporting period.

ImpairmentNon-financial assets are assessed annually for indications of impairment.

If there is an indication of impairment, the assets concerned are tested as to whether their carrying value exceeds their recoverable amount.

No impairments were recognised in the financial year ended 30 June 2019.

The recoverable amount for most assets is measured at the higher of depreciated replacement cost and fair value less costs to sell. It is deemed that, in the event of the loss of an asset, the future economic benefits arising from the use of the asset will be replaced unless a specific decision to the contrary has been made.


5.1.3 Reconciliation of movements in carrying amount of property, plant and equipment

Information

technology

Furniture, fixtures

and fittings

Leasehold improve-

mentsMotor

vehicles

Office machines

and equipmen

tCultural

assets

Assets under const-

ruction TotalAt fair valueAt fair

valueAt fair value

At fair value

At fair value

At fair value

At fair value

$’000 $’000 $’000 $’000 $’000 $’000 $’000 $’000

2019Carrying amount at start of year 679 125 3,370 332 5 140 405 5,056

Additions 386 48 2,458 54 - - 4,111 7,057

Revaluations - - - - - - - -

Disposals (77) (11) (169) (3) - - - (260)

Transfers - - - - - - (3,489) (3,489)

Depreciation (635) (22) (772) (119) (2) - - (1,550)

Carrying amount at end of year 353 140 4,887 264 3 140 1,027 6,814

2018

Carrying amount at start of year 1,319 96 4,296 429 33 140 - 6,313

Additions 95 91 137 55 - - 405 783

Revaluations - - - - - - - -

Disposals - (37) 176 (35) (16) - - 88

Depreciation (735) (25) (1,239) (117) (12) - - (2,128)

Carrying amount at end of year 679 125 3,370 332 5 140 405 5,056

Property, plant and equipment is classified as Public safety and environment by purpose for which the assets are used, according to one of five ‘purpose groups’ based upon Government Purpose Classifications.

Revaluations occur every five years and align with the revaluation cycle in accordance with Financial Directions of the Minister for Finance. The next valuation review is due in financial year 2021.


5.2 Intangible assets

ReconciliationReconciliations of the carrying amounts of intangible assets at the beginning and end of the current and previous financial year are set out below.

2019$’000

2018$’000

Gross Carrying AmountOpening balance 8,852 8,872

Additions 133 -

Disposals (11) (20)

Closing Balance 8,974 8,852

Accumulated depreciation, amortisation and impairment

Opening balance (6,079) (5,221)

Amortisation (875) (858)

Closing Balance (6,954) (6,079)Net Balance 2,020 2,773

Intangible assets represent identifiable non-monetary assets without physical substance.

Initial recognitionPurchased intangible assets are initially recognised at cost. When the recognition criteria in AASB 138 Intangible Assets is met, internally generated intangible assets are recognised at cost. Subsequently, intangible assets with finite useful lives are carried at cost less accumulated amortisation and accumulated impairment losses. Depreciation and amortisation begins when the asset is available for use, that is, when it is in location and condition necessary for it to be capable of operating in the manner intended by management.

An internally generated intangible asset arising from development is recognised if, and only if, all of the following are demonstrated:

(a) the technical feasibility of completing the intangible asset so that it will be available for use or sale

(b) an intention to complete the intangible asset and use or sell it;

(c) the ability to use or sell the intangible asset;

(d) the intangible asset will generate probable future economic benefits;

(e) the availability of adequate technical, financial and other resources to complete the development and to scrap or sell the intangible asset; and

(f) the ability to measure reliably the expenditure attributable to the intangible asset during its development.


Until internally generated intangible assets are ready and available for use they are recorded as assets under construction.

Subsequent MeasurementWhere no internally generated asset can be recognised, development expenditure is recognised as an expense in the period incurred.

Intangible assets are measured at cost less accumulated amortisation and impairment, and are amortised on a straight-line basis over their useful lives as follows:

Capitalised software and development costs: 3–7 years.

Impairment of intangible assets Intangible assets are tested annually for impairment and whenever there is an indication

that the asset may be impaired.

5.3 Other assets2019

$’0002018

$’000Current 1,032 2,402

Non–current 9,083 10,061

Total other assets 10,115 12,463

Other assets recognises the capital leasehold incentive for 570 Bourke Street Melbourne. All leasehold incentives are being apportioned over the lease term. The outstanding capital incentive on 570 Bourke Street Melbourne is reported as other liabilities at note 6.5.

Leasehold incentives for Dandenong and Ringwood occupancies commenced in the 2018–19 financial year and were taken as a reduction in rental expenditure over time to the value of the incentive. These operating cost incentives have been recorded as prepayments.

6 Other assets and liabilitiesIntroductionThis section sets out those assets and liabilities that arose from Victoria Legal Aid’s operations.

Structure6.1 Accrued income6.2 Receivables6.3 Payables6.4 Other provisions6.5 Other liabilities


6.1 Accrued income2019

$’0002018

$’000Expensive Commonwealth Criminal Cases 1,044 642

Interest accrual - 210

1,044 852

Accrued income represents amounts that Victoria Legal Aid has earned through the provision of goods and services or obtained the right to receive. The amounts are recognised as an asset and income if the income recognition criteria are met but the cash will be received in the new reporting period.

As a result of entering the Central Banking System under the Standing Directions of the Assistant Treasurer, money previously invested in term deposits is now held at call and accrued interest revenue is no longer applicable on these funds as interest income on at call funds is received on the last day of each month.


6.2 Receivables2019

$’0002018

$’000ContractualSecuredSecured client contributions receivable 19,330 18,930

Provision for secured client contributions (6,060) (6,090)

Total secured client contributions receivable at net present value 13,270 12,840

Unsecured

Unsecured client contributions receivable 4,707 4,776

Provision for unsecured client contributions (2,480) (1,992)

Total unsecured client contributions receivable at net present value 2,227 2,784

Secured client contributions receivable on unfinalised matters 1,933 1,917

Total client contributions 17,430 17,541 Other receivables 981 618

Total contractual receivables 18,411 18,159

Statutory

GST receivable 2,081 7,329

Total statutory receivables 2,081 7,329

Total receivables 20,492 25,488

Represented by:

Current receivables 4,702 9,459

Non-current receivables 15,790 16,029

20,492 25,488

Receivables Include client contributions, Net GST receivables and other receivables.

Contractual receivablesContractual receivables are classified as financial instruments and categorised as ‘financial assets at amortised cost. They are initially recognised at fair value plus any directly attributable transaction costs. Victoria Legal Aid holds the contractual receivables with the objective of collecting the


contractual cash flows, they are therefore subsequently measured at amortised cost using the effective interest method, less any impairment.

Client ContributionsMeasurement of receivables for client contributions is based on an actuarial assessment completed by Finity Consulting Pty Limited actuaries who perform an annual independent assessment of the net present value of receivables. The analysis undertaken reviews the receivable portfolio, recovery history and the current and forecast financial environment to determine a recoupment pattern. This payment pattern was discounted by 1.78 percent (2018: 2.94 percent) for secured receivables which is the forecast earnings rate of the organisation’s investment portfolio to determine the net present value. The average repayment time for unsecured receivables is significantly less than that for secured, and therefore a different discount rate of 2.25 percent was used for 2019 (2018: 2.57 percent).

6.2.1 Movement in the provision for client contributions receivable2019

$’0002018

$’000Provision for secured client contributionsBalance at 1 July 6,090 6,608 Movements in actuarial assessment of secured client contributions receivable

(30) (518)

Balance at 30 June 6,060 6,090

Provision for unsecured client contributions

Balance at 1 July 1,992 2,428 Increase/(decrease) in provision for re-assessments and bad debt write-downs

285 79

Movements in actuarial assessment of unsecured client contributions receivable

203 (515)

Balance at 30 June 2,480 1,992

Total provision for client contributions 8,540 8,082

A provision is made against secured client contributions, determined by actuarial assessment of the recoverable amount. Secured debtors are long term, therefore the balance is measured at the net present value. The recoverable amount estimates the extent of future debts receivable after adjustments and the discount to net present value.

A provision for impairment has been made for unsecured client contributions receivable. The assessment estimates future cash flows receivable after adjustments and bad debts determined by reference to past default experience, and discounts the estimate to the net present value. Actuarial assessment of the recoverable amount is used.


Statutory receivablesStatutory receivables do not arise from contracts and are recognised and measured similarly to contractual receivables (except for impairment), but are not classified as financial instruments for disclosure purposes. The organisation applies AASB 9 for initial measurement of the statutory receivables and as a result statutory receivables are initially recognised at fair value plus any directly attributable transaction cost. Amounts recognised from the Victorian Government represent funding for all commitments incurred and are drawn from the Consolidated Fund as the commitments fall due.

6.3 Payables2019

$’0002018

$’000ContractualCase-related professional payable 15,935 18,425

Supplies and services payable 3,045 4,519

Statutory

GST payable 296 435

Funds on deposit for IBAC matters 1,472 1,612

Total payables 20,748 24,991

Represented by:

Current payables 20,748 24,991

Non-current payables - -

20,748 24,991

Payables are recognised when Victoria Legal Aid becomes obliged to make future payments resulting from the purchase of goods and services.

Payables consist of:

contractual payables, classified as financial instruments and measured at amortised cost.

Case-related professional creditors

This represents amounts owing to the organisation’s panel members for legal work undertaken on behalf of the organisation. The amount owing to legal creditors for work performed comprises two components:

(i) amounts certified but not paid; and

(ii) amounts incurred but not yet invoiced at balance date.

Measurement of outstanding payments for case-related professional creditors is based on an assessment of outstanding claims. The assessment makes reference to historical debt recognition, repayments and balance movements to model the updated estimate.


An assessment was undertaken by Victoria Legal Aid to identify amounts owing to legal creditors for work performed prior to 30 June 2019 but not yet invoiced. The assessment is based on an analysis of all historical files. These were examined to determine an average cost per file, the average period for finalisation and typical payment profile. We have estimated the value of work in progress by comparing the payments made on each file at balance date with the expected average payment for the file, and made an adjustment to our legal creditors balance for the difference.

No interest charge is applicable.

Supplies and services payable

Accounts payable represent liabilities for goods and services provided to the organisation prior to the end of the financial year that are unpaid. Payables for supplies and services have an average credit period of 30 days.

The terms and conditions of amounts payable to the government and agencies vary according to the particular agreements and as they are not legislative payables, they are not classified as financial instruments.

statutory payables, that are recognised and measured similarly to contractual payables, but are not classified as financial instruments and not included in the category of financial liabilities at amortised cost, because they do not arise from contracts.

Funds on deposit for IBAC matters

Victoria Legal Aid receives funding from the Department of Justice and Community Safety to provide legal assistance for witnesses examined by the Independent Broad-based Anti-corruption (IBAC) Commission. The money is held on deposit and drawn down when expenditure is incurred.

The maturity profile of financial liabilities held by Victoria Legal Aid is detailed below.

Maturity datesCarryingamount $’000

Nominalamount $’000

Less than1 month $’000

1–3months $’000

3 months–1 year $’000

1–5 years$’000

2019

Case-related professional creditors 15,935 15,935 7,195 8,740 - -

Supplies and services payable(1) 3,045 3,045 465 2,580 - -

18,980 18,980 7,660 11,320 - -

2018

Case-related professional creditors 18,425 18,425 7,195 11,230 - -

Supplies and services payable(1) 4,519 4,519 301 4,218 - -

22,944 22,944 7,496 15,448 - -


Note:(1) The carrying amounts disclosed here exclude statutory amounts (e.g. amounts owing from Victo-rian government and GST recoverable/payable).

6.4 Other provisions2019

$’0002018

$’000Other provisionsCurrent provisions

Decommissioning - -

Total current provisions - -

Non-current provisions

Decommissioning 1,181 1,771

Total non-current provisions 1,181 1,771 Total provisions 1,181 1,771

Other provisions are recognised when the organisation has a present obligation, the future sacrifice of economic benefits is probable, and the amount of the provision can be measured reliably. The amount recognised as a provision is the best estimate of the consideration required to settle the present obligation at reporting date, taking into account the risks and uncertainties surrounding the obligation.

Where a provision is measured using the cash flows estimated to settle the present obligation, its carrying amount is the present value of those cash flows, using a discount rate that reflects the time, value of money and risks specific to the provision.

When some or all of the economic benefits required to settle a provision are expected to be received from a third party, the receivable is recognised as an asset if it is virtually certain that recovery will be received and the amount of the receivable can be measured reliably.

The Decommissioning (make-good) provision is recognised in accordance with the lease agreement to restore the premises to its original condition at the end of the lease term.

Reconciliation of movements in provisionsDecommissio

n TotalOpening balance at 1 July 1,771 1,771

Adjustments to Provisions (495) (495)

Payments (95) (95)

Unwinding of discount and effect of changes in the discount rate

- -

Closing balance at 30 June 1,181 1,181


6.5 Other liabilities2019

$’0002018

$’000Current 1,352 1,064

Non–current 12,448 13,468

Total other liabilities 13,800 14,532

Other liabilities recognise the leasehold incentives provided in respect of leases held for offices in Melbourne, Ringwood and Dandenong. The lease for 570 Bourke Street Melbourne is for an initial tenure of 12 years ceasing 31 March 2029. The leasehold improvements are being apportioned over the lease term. The lease for Ringwood is for an initial tenure of 10 years ceasing on 31 July 2028 and the lease for Dandenong is for an initial tenure of eight years ceasing on 30 September 2026. The rent incentive for both these leases is being amortised over the life of each lease.

7 How we financed our operationsIntroductionThis section provides information on the sources of finance utilised by Victoria Legal Aid during its operations and information on current commitments for expenditure.

Structure7.1 Cash flow information and balances7.2 Trust account7.3 Commitments

7.1 Cash flow information and balances

7.1.1 Cash and cash depositsCash and deposits, including cash equivalents, comprise cash on hand, cash in banks and deposits at call, and highly liquid investments with an original maturity of three months or less, that are readily convertible to cash and are subject to an insignificant risk of changes in value.

2019$’000

2018$’000

Cash at bank and on hand 39,659 8,255

Fixed term deposits 2,000 27,312


43,131 37,179

Funds on deposit for IBAC mattersThese funds are for the purpose of administering specific matters and are held on behalf of the Department of Justice and Community Safety.


The above figures are reconciled to cash at the end of the financial year as shown in the cash flow statement as follows:

2019$’000

2018$’000

Cash at bank and on hand 39,659 9,867

Fixed term deposits 2,000 27,312

Less Funds on deposit for IBAC matters (1,472) (1,612)

Balance as per statement of cash flows 40,187 35,567


7.1.2 Reconciliation of net results from continuing operations to net cash inflow from operating activities

2019$’000

2018$’000

Net result from continuing operations 3,017 (5,251)

Non-cash movements

Depreciation and amortisation 2,426 2,986

Net (gain) loss on disposal of non-current assets 143 69

Bad debts from transactions 285 79

Movements in assets and liabilities

(Increase) decrease in accrued income (192) 36

Decrease (increase) in receivables 4,996 135

Decrease (increase) in prepayments 205 (327)

Increase (decrease) in trade creditors (1,439) (5,754)

Increase (decrease) in case-related professional creditors (2,490) 1,636

Increase (decrease) in employee provisions 1,087 875

Increase (decrease) in other provisions 364 (2,793)

Net cash inflow/(outflow) from operating activities 8,402 (8,309)


7.2 Trust accountVictoria Legal Aid as a corporate entity under the Legal Practice Act 1996 (Vic) maintains a trust account in accordance with that Act for the purpose of receiving money on account of legal costs in advance of provision of legal services from clients or their representatives.

2019$’000

2018$’000

Victoria Legal Aid Trust account statement of receipts and payments

For the year ended 30 June 2019

Balance at beginning of year 597 378

Receipts

Amounts received from Legal Practice Board - -

Amounts received on behalf of clients 443 332

1,040 710 Less Payments

Amounts paid on behalf of clients 487 113

Balance at end of year 553 597

This amount is represented by: 382 426

Cash at bank 171 171

Deposits with the Legal Practice Board 553 597

The trust fund does not form part of the organisation’s financial statements. It is included for information purposes only and is audited by Nexia Australia.


7.3 CommitmentsCommitments include those operating, capital and other outsourcing commitments arising from non-cancellable contractual or statutory sources and are disclosed at their nominal value and inclusive of GST payable. These future expenditures cease to be disclosed as commitments once the related liabilities are recognised in the Balance Sheet.

Commitments for expenditure

7.3.1 Total commitments payable2019

$’0002018

$’000Capital commitmentsCommitments for the acquisition of plant and equipment contracted for at the reporting date but not recognised as liabilities, payable:

Within one year 50 336

50 336

Lease commitmentsCommitments in relation to non-cancellable operating leases for office equipment and rental for premises contracted for at the reporting date but not recognised as liabilities, payable:

Within one year 8,702 9,356

Later than one year but not later than five years 35,428 36,048

Later than five years 55,288 70,800

99,418 116,204

Other expenditure commitmentsCommitments for the acquisition of other operations and maintenance contracted for at the reporting date but not recognised as liabilities, payable:

Within one year 778 976

778 976

Legal Aid grant assistance commitmentsCommitments for grants of legal aid assistance at the reporting date not recognised as liabilities, payable:

Within one year 47,446 43,919

Later than one year but not later than five years 16,167 13,502

63,613 57,421

Total commitments for expenditure (inclusive of GST) 163,859 174,937

Less GST Receivable from the Australian Taxation Office 14,896 15,903


2019$’000

2018$’000

Total commitments for expenditure (exclusive of GST) 148,963 159,034

8 Risks, contingencies and valuation judgementsIntroductionVictoria Legal Aid is exposed to risk from its activities and outside factors. In addition, it is often necessary to make judgements and estimates associated with recognition and measurement of items in the financial statements. This section sets out financial instrument specific information, (including exposures to financial risks) as well as those items that are contingent in nature or require a higher level of judgement to be applied, which for the Agency related mainly to fair value determination.

Structure8.1 Financial instruments8.2 Contingent liabilities8.3 Fair value determination

8.1 Financial instruments

IntroductionFinancial instruments arise out of contractual agreements that give rise to a financial asset of one entity and a financial liability or equity instrument of another entity.

From 1 July 2018, Victoria Legal Aid applies AASB 9 and classifies all of its financial assets based on the business model for managing the assets and the asset’s contractual terms.

Categories of financial assets under AASB 9

Financial assets at amortised cost

Financial assets are measured at amortised costs if both of the following criteria are met and the assets are not designated as fair value through net result:

the assets are held by Victoria Legal Aid to collect the contractual cash flows, and

the assets’ contractual terms give rise to cash flows that are solely payments of principal and interest.

These assets are initially recognised at fair value plus any directly attributable transaction costs and subsequently measured at amortised cost using the effective interest method less any impairment.

Victoria Legal Aid recognises the following assets in this category:

cash and deposits;

receivables (excluding statutory receivables); and

term deposits.


Categories of financial assets previously under AASB 139Receivables and cash are financial instrument assets with fixed and determinable payments that are not quoted on an active market. These assets and liabilities are initially recognised at fair value plus any directly attributable transaction costs. Subsequent to initial measurement and receivables are measured at amortised cost using the effective interest method (and for assets, less any impairment). Victoria Legal Aid recognises the following assets in this category:

cash and deposits;

receivables (excluding statutory receivables); and

term deposits.

Held to maturity financial assets: If Victoria Legal Aid has the positive intent and ability to hold nominated investments to maturity, then such financial assets may be classified as held to maturity. These are recognised initially at fair value plus any directly attributable transaction costs. Subsequent to initial recognition, held to maturity financial assets are measured at amortised cost using the effective interest method, less any impairment losses.

Victoria Legal Aid makes limited use of this classification because any sale or reclassification of more than an insignificant amount of held to maturity investments not close to their maturity, would result in the whole category being reclassified as available-for-sale. The held to maturity category includes term deposits and debt securities for which Victoria Legal Aid intends to hold to maturity.

Funds on deposit for IBAC matters are not recognised in the comprehensive operating statement, but are offset by related expenditure when incurred.

Client contribution receivable are actuarially adjusted to their net present value.

Categories of financial liabilities under AASB 9 and previously under AASB 139Financial liabilities at amortised cost are initially recognised on the date they are originated. They are initially measured at fair value plus any directly attributable transaction costs. Subsequent to initial recognition, these financial instruments are measured at amortised cost with any difference between the initial recognised amount and the redemption value being recognised in profit and loss over the period of the interest bearing liability, using the effective interest rate method. Victoria Legal Aid recognises the following liabilities in this category:

payables (excluding statutory payables); and

borrowings (including finance lease liabilities).

Derecognition of financial assets: A financial asset (or, where applicable, a part of a financial asset or part of a group of similar financial assets) is derecognised when:

the rights to receive cash flows from the asset have expired; or

Victoria Legal Aid retains the right to receive cash flows from the asset, but has assumed an obligation to pay them in full without material delay to a third party under a ‘pass through’ arrangement; or


Victoria Legal Aid has transferred its rights to receive cash flows from the asset and either:

has transferred substantially all the risks and rewards of the asset; or has neither transferred nor retained substantially all the risks and rewards of the asset,

but has transferred control of the asset.

Where Victoria Legal Aid has neither transferred nor retained substantially all the risks and rewards or transferred control, the asset is recognised to the extent of Victoria Legal Aid’s continuing involvement in the asset.

Derecognition of financial liabilities: A financial liability is derecognised when the obligation under the liability is discharged, cancelled or expires.

When an existing financial liability is replaced by another from the same lender on substantially different terms, or the terms of an existing liability are substantially modified, such an exchange or modification is treated as a derecognition of the original liability and the recognition of a new liability. The difference in the respective carrying amounts is recognised as an ‘other economic flow’ in the comprehensive operating statement.

Reclassification of financial instruments: Subsequent to initial recognition reclassification of financial liabilities is not permitted. Financial assets are required to reclassified between fair value through net result, fair value through other comprehensive income and amortised cost when and the Agency’s business model for managing its financial assets has changed such that its previous model would no longer apply.

If under rare circumstances an asset is reclassified, the reclassification is applied prospectively from the reclassification date and previously recognised gains, losses or interest should not be restated. If the asset is reclassified to fair value, the fair value should be determined at the reclassification date and any gain or loss arising from a difference between the previous carrying amount and fair value is recognised in net result.


8.1.1 Financial instruments: Categorisation

2019

Contractual financial assets–loans and

receivables and cash$’000

Contractual financial liabilities at amortised cost

$’000Total$’000

Contractual financial assetsCash at bank and on hand 39,659 - 39,659


Client contribution receivable 17,430 - 17,430

Accrued income - -

Other receivables(i) 981 - 981

Term deposits 2,000 - 2,000

Total contractual financial assets 61,542 - 61,542

Contractual financial liabilities

Case-related professional creditors - 15,935 15,935

Funds on deposit for IBAC matters - 1,472 1,472

Sundry payables(i) - 3,045 3,045

Total contractual financial liabilities - 20,452 20,452

2018

Contractual financial assets–loans and

receivables and cash$’000

Contractual financial liabilities at amortised cost

$’000Total$’000

Contractual financial assetsCash at bank and on hand 9,867 - 9,867


Client contribution receivable 17,541 - 17,541

Accrued income 210 - 210

Other receivables(i) 618 - 618

Term deposits 27,312 - 27,312

Total contractual financial assets 57,160 - 57,160


Case-related professional creditors - 18,425 18,425

Funds on deposit for IBAC matters - 1,612 1,612

Sundry payables(i) - 4,519 4,519

Total contractual financial liabilities - 24,556 24,556


Note:(i)The carrying amounts disclosed here exclude statutory amounts (e.g. amounts owing from Victorian government and GST recoverable/payable).

8.1.2 Financial instruments – Net holding gain/(loss) on financial instruments by category

2019

Net holding gain/(loss)

$’000

Total interest income/

(expense)$’000

Impairment loss

$’000Total$’000

Contractual financial assetsFinancial assets at amortised cost – other than on derecognition 252 - - 252

Total contractual financial assets 252 - - 252


Financial liabilities at amortised cost

Financial liabilities designated at fair value through profit/loss (3,964) - - (3,964)

Total contractual financial liabilities (3,964) - - (3,964)

2018

Net holding gain/(loss)

$’000

Total interest income/

(expense)$’000

Impairment loss

$’000Total$’000

Contractual financial assetsFinancial assets at amortised cost – other than on derecognition 1,473 - - 1,473

Total contractual financial assets 1,473 - - 1,473


Financial liabilities at amortised cost

Financial liabilities designated at fair value through profit/loss 110 - - 110

Total contractual financial liabilities 110 - - 110[Note: Amounts disclosed in this table exclude holding gains and losses related to statutory financial assets and liabilities.]

The net holding gains or losses disclosed above are determined as follows:

• for cash and cash equivalents, financial assets at amortised cost and debt instruments that are classified as financial assets at fair value through other comprehensive income, the net gain or loss is calculated by taking the movement in the fair value of the asset, the interest income, plus or minus foreign exchange gains or losses arising from revaluation of the financial assets, and minus any impairment recognised in the net result;

• for financial liabilities measured at amortised cost, the net gain or loss is calculated by taking the interest expense, plus or minus foreign exchange gains or losses arising from the revaluation of financial liabilities measured at amortised cost; and


• for financial asset and liabilities that are mandatorily measured at or designated at fair value through net result, the net gain or loss is calculated by taking the movement in the fair value of the financial asset or liability.


Financial risk management objectives and policies

Victoria Legal Aid’s activities do not expose it to any significant financial risks other than interest rates held on deposit. Victoria Legal Aid does not enter into derivative financial instruments to manage its exposure to interest rate risk.

Details of the significant accounting policies and methods adopted, including the criteria for recognition, the basis of measurement, and the basis on which income and expenses are recognised, with respect to each class of financial asset and financial liability.

The main purpose in holding financial instruments is to prudentially manage Victoria Legal Aid’s financial risks within government policy parameters.

Victoria Legal Aid’s main financial risks include credit risk, liquidity risk and interest rate risk. Victoria Legal Aid manages these financial risks in accordance with its financial risk management policy.

Victoria Legal Aid uses different methods to measure and manage the different risks to which it is exposed.

Financial instruments: Credit riskCredit risk refers to the risk that a counterparty will default on its contractual obligations resulting in financial loss to Victoria Legal Aid. Victoria Legal Aid has adopted a policy of obtaining sufficient collateral where appropriate, as a means of mitigating the risk of financial loss from defaults. Victoria Legal Aid measures credit risk on a fair value basis.

Victoria Legal Aid has a significant credit risk exposure to its client contributions receivable balance. These receivables are established on the basis of representation provided to clients and their ability to pay for such services following an assessment of their disposable income and net assets held. Services are provided where individuals do not have sufficient funds to afford privately funded legal representation. In this respect, the likelihood and timing of recovery may vary significantly between individual debtors. The services of a qualified actuary are utilised to establish the recoverable amount of these receivables.

There has been no material change in Victoria Legal Aid’s credit risk profile in 2018–19.


The credit risk on liquid funds is limited because the counterparties are banks with high credit ratings assigned by international credit-rating agencies.

The carrying amount of the financial assets recorded in the financial statements, net of any allowances for losses, represents Victoria Legal Aid’s maximum exposure to credit risk without taking account of the value of any collateral obtained.

Credit quality of financial assets

2019

Financial institution

(triple-A credit rating)

$’000

Government agencies


$’000Total$’000

Financial assetsFinancial assets with loss allowance measured at 12-month expected credit lossCash and deposits 43,131 - 43,131

Financial assets with loss allowance measured at lifetime expected credit loss: - Contractual receivables applying the simplified approach for impairment 18,411 - 18,411

Total financial assets 61,542 - 61,542

Credit quality of contractual financial assets that are neither past due nor impaired

2018

Financial institution


$’000

Government agencies


$’000Total$’000

Financial assets Cash and deposits 37,179 - 37,179

Contractual receivables 18,159 - 18,159

Investment and other financial assets - - -

Total financial assets 55,338 - 55,338 Notes:

(a) The total amounts disclosed here exclude statutory amounts (e.g. amounts owing from Victorian Government and GST input tax credit recoverable).


Impairment of financial assets under AASB 9 – applicable from 1 July 2018From 1 July 2018, Victoria Legal Aid has been recording the allowance for expected credit loss for the relevant financial instruments, replacing AASB 139’s incurred loss approach with AASB 9’s Expected Credit Loss approach. Subject to AASB 9 impairment assessment includes Victoria Legal Aid’s contractual receivables, statutory receivables and its investment in debt instruments.

Equity instruments are not subject to impairment under AASB 9. Other financial assets mandatorily measured or designated at fair value through net result are not subject to impairment assessment under AASB 9. While cash and cash equivalents are also subject to the impairment requirements of AASB 9, the identified impairment loss was immaterial.

Contractual receivables at amortised costVictoria Legal Aid applies AASB 9 simplified approach for all contractual receivables to measure expected credit losses using a lifetime expected loss allowance based on the assumptions about risk of default and expected loss rates. Victoria Legal Aid has grouped contractual receivables on shared credit risk characteristics and days past due and select the expected credit loss rate based on Victoria Legal Aid’s past history, existing market conditions, as well as forward-looking estimates at the end of the financial year.

On this basis, the agency determines the opening loss allowance on initial application date of AASB 9 and the closing loss allowance at end of the financial year as follows:

2019 CurrentLess than

1 month1–3

months3 months

– 1 year1–5

years TotalExpected loss rate 0% 1.0% 0% 10.0% 52.55%

Gross carrying amount of contractual receivables - 241 - 2,380 15,790 26,951

Loss allowance - 2 - 239 8,299 8,540

2018 CurrentLess than

1 month1–3

months3 months

– 1 year1–5

years TotalExpected loss rate 0% 0% 0% 10.0% 49.0%

Gross carrying amount of contractual receivables - - - 2,130 16,029 26,241

Loss allowance - - - 214 7,868 8,082

Credit loss allowance is classified as other economic flows in the net result. Contractual receivables are written off when there is no reasonable expectation of recovery and impairment losses are classified as a transaction expense. Subsequent recoveries of amounts previously written off are credited against the same line item.

In prior years, a provision for doubtful debts is recognised when there is objective evidence that the debts may not be collected and bad debts are written off when identified. A provision is made for estimated irrecoverable amounts from when there is objective evidence that an individual receivable is impaired. Bad debts considered as written off by mutual consent.


Statutory receivables and debt investments at amortised costVictoria Legal Aid’s non-contractual receivables arising from statutory requirements are not financial instruments. However, they are nevertheless recognised and measured in accordance with AASB 9 requirements as if those receivables are financial instruments

Both the statutory receivables and investments in debt instruments are considered to have low credit risk, taking into account the counterparty’s credit rating, risk of default and capacity to meet contractual cash flow obligations in the near term. As the result, the loss allowance recognised for these financial assets during the period was limited to 12 months expected losses. No loss allowance recognised at 30 June 2018 under AASB 139. No additional loss allowance required upon transition into AASB 9 on 1 July 2018.

Financial instruments: Liquidity riskLiquidity risk is the risk that Victoria Legal Aid will be unable to meet its payment obligations when they fall due. Victoria Legal Aid operates under the Government Fair Payments policy of settling financial obligations within 30 days and in the event of a dispute, making payments within 30 days from the date of resolution.

Ultimate responsibility for liquidity risk management rests with the Board, who have built an appropriate liquidity risk management framework for the management of Victoria Legal Aid’s short, medium and long-term funding and liquidity. This framework takes into consideration that Victoria Legal Aid is prohibited by the Legal Aid Act 1978 from incurring borrowing costs and, consequently, borrowing funds. Victoria Legal Aid manages its liquidity risk by maintaining adequate cash reserves, by continuously monitoring forecasts and actual cash flows while matching the maturity profiles of financial assets and liabilities and an expectation of continuation of funding by the State and Commonwealth Governments.

Financial instruments: Market riskVictoria Legal Aid’s exposures to market risk are primarily through interest rate risk. Objectives, policies and processes used to manage each of these risks are disclosed below.

Sensitivity disclosure analysis and assumptions Victoria Legal Aid’s sensitivity to market risk is determined based on the observed range of actual historical data for the preceding five-year period, with all variables other than the primary risk variable held constant. Sensitivity analyses shown are for illustrative purposes only.

Financial instruments: Interest rate riskFair value interest rate risk is the risk that fair value of a financial instrument will fluctuate because of changes in market interest rates. Victoria Legal Aid does not hold any interest bearing financial instruments that are measured at fair value, and therefore has no exposure to fair value interest rate risk.

Cash flow interest rate risk is the risk that the future cash flows of a financial instrument will fluctuate because of changes in market interest rates. Victoria Legal Aid has minimal exposure to cash flow interest rate risks through cash and deposits and term deposits.


Victoria Legal Aid manages this risk by mainly undertaking fixed rate or non-interest bearing financial instruments with relatively even maturity profiles, with only insignificant amounts of financial instruments at floating rate. Management has concluded for cash at bank and bank overdraft—as financial assets that can be left at floating rate without necessarily exposing the organisation to significant bad risk—management monitors movement in interest rates on a daily basis.

The carrying amounts of financial assets and financial liabilities that are exposed to interest rates and Victoria Legal Aid’s sensitivity to interest rate risk are set out in the table that follows.

Interest rate exposure of financial instruments

2019 Notes

Weighted average interest

rate%

Carrying amount

$’000

Fixed interest

rate $’000

Variable interest

rate $’000

Non-interest bearing

$’000Financial assetsCash at bank and on hand 7.1 1.90% 39,659 - 39,659 -

Funds on deposit for IBAC matters 7.1 1.81% 1,472 - 1,472 -

Accrued investment income 6.1 - - - -

Term deposits 7.1 2.64% 2,000 2,000 - -

Receivables(i) 6.2 18,411 - - 18,411

Total financial assets 61,542 2,000 41,131 18,411

Financial liabilities

Case-related professional creditors 6.3 15,935 - - 15,935

Funds on deposit for IBAC matters 6.3 1,472 - - 1,472

Sundry payables(i) 6.3 3,045 - - 3,045

Total financial liabilities 20,452 - - 20,452 Notes:

(i) The carrying amounts disclosed here exclude statutory amounts (e.g. amounts owing from Victorian government and GST recoverable/payable).


2018 Notes

Weighted average interest

rate%

Carrying amount

$’000

Fixed interest

rate $’000

Variable interest

rate $’000

Non-interest bearing

$’000Financial assetsCash at bank and on hand 7.1 1.45% 9,867 - 9,867 -

Funds on deposit for IBAC matters 7.1 1.69% 1,612 - 1,612 -

Accrued investment income 6.1 210 - - 210

Fixed term deposits 7.1 1.81% 27,312 27,312 - -

Receivable(i) 6.2 18,159 - - 18,159

Total financial assets 57,160 27,312 11,479 18,369


Case-related professional creditors 6.3 18,425 - - 18,425

Funds on deposit for IBAC matters 6.3 1,612 - - 1,612

Sundry payables(i) 6.3 4,519 - - 4,519

Total financial liabilities 24,556 - - 24,556 Note:

(i)The carrying amounts disclosed here exclude statutory amounts (e.g. amounts owing from Victorian government and GST recoverable/payable).

Interest rate risk sensitivity 2019 2018

Carrying amount

-100 basis points Net result

+ 100 basis points Net result

Carrying amount

-100 basis points Net result

+ 100 basis points Net result

Contractual financial assetsCash at bank and on hand 39,659 (397) 397 9,867 (99) 99

Fund on Deposit for IBAC matters 1,472 (15) 15 1,612 (16) 16

Interest rate analysis is based upon the investment term of financial assets not exceeding one year. Investments are all on fixed interest rates. Minimum and maximum exposures are calculated at shifts of 100 basis points. A net decrease in interest translates into a fall in revenue as investment income is reduced.


8.2 Contingent liabilitiesThe organisation does not have any contingent liabilities or claims of a material nature which have not already been disclosed in these financial statements (2018:Nil).

8.3 Fair value determinationSignificant judgement: Fair value measurements of assets and liabilities

Fair value determination requires judgement and the use of assumptions. This section discloses the most significant assumptions used in determining fair values. Changes to assumptions could have a material impact on the results and financial position of the organisation

This section sets out the information on how Victoria Legal Aid determined fair value for financial reporting purposes. Fair value is the price that would be received to sell an asset or paid to transfer a liability in an orderly transaction between market participants at the measurement date.

Fair value hierarchyAll assets and liabilities for which fair value is measured or disclosed in the financial statements are categorised within the fair value hierarchy, described as follows, based on the lowest level input that is significant to the fair value measurement as a whole:

Level 1 – quoted (unadjusted) market prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities

Level 2 – valuation techniques for which the lowest level input that is significant to the fair value measurement is directly or indirectly observable; and

Level 3 – valuation techniques for which the lowest level input that is significant to the fair value measurement is unobservable.

For the purpose of fair value disclosures, Victoria Legal Aid has determined classes of assets and liabilities on the basis of the nature, characteristics and risks of the asset or liability and the level of the fair value hierarchy as explained above.

How this section is structuredFor those assets and liabilities for which fair values are determined, the following disclosures are provided:

carrying amount and the fair value (which would be the same for those assets measured at fair value); and

which level of the fair value hierarchy was used to determine the fair value.

This section is divided between disclosures in connection with fair value determination for financial instruments (refer to Note 8.1) and non-financial physical assets (refer to Note 5.1).

8.3.1 Fair value determination of financial assets and liabilitiesThe fair values and net fair values of financial instrument assets and liabilities are determined as follows:

Level 1 – the fair value of financial instrument with standard terms and conditions and traded in active liquid markets are determined with reference to quoted market prices


Level 2 – the fair value is determined using inputs other than quoted prices that are observable for the financial asset or liability, either directly or indirectly

Level 3 – the fair value is determined in accordance with generally accepted pricing models based on discounted cash flow analysis using unobservable market inputs.

The net fair value of other monetary financial assets and financial liabilities is based upon market prices where a market exists or by discounting the expected future cash flows by the current interest rates for assets and liabilities with similar risk profiles.

On-balance sheetThe organisation considers the net fair value of cash and cash equivalents and non-interest-bearing monetary financial assets and financial liabilities of Victoria Legal Aid approximates their carrying amounts.

The carrying amounts and net fair values of financial assets and liabilities at reporting date are:

2019 2018Carrying amount

Fair value at end of period using:

Carrying amount


Level 1(ii) Level 2(ii) Level 1(ii) Level 2(ii)

$’000 $’000 $’000 $’000 $’000 $’000

On-balance sheet financial instrumentsFinancial assetsCash at bank and on hand 39,659 39,659 - 8,255 8,255 -

Funds on deposit for IBAC matters 1,472 1,472 - 1,612 1,612 -

Accrued investment income - - - 210 - 210

Term deposits 2,000 2,000 - 27,312 27,312 -

Receivables(i) 18,411 - 18,411 18,159 - 18,159

61,542 43,131 18,411 55,548 37,179 18,369


Case-related professional creditors 15,935 - 15,935 18,425 - 18,425

Funds on deposit for IBAC matters 1,472 1,472 - 1,612 1,612 -

Sundry payables(i) 3,045 - 3,045 4,519 - 4,519

20,452 1,472 18,980 24,556 1,612 22,944 Note:

(i) The carrying amounts disclosed here exclude statutory amounts (e.g. amounts owing from Victorian government and GST recoverable/payable).

(ii) There were no significant transfers between level 1 and level 2 during the year.


8.3.2 Fair value determination of non-financial physical assets2019 2018

Carrying amount


Carrying amount


Level 2 Level 3 Level 2 Level 3

$’000 $’000 $’000 $’000 $’000 $’000

Information technology 353 - 353 679 - 679

Furniture, fixtures and fittings 140 - 140 125 - 125

Leasehold improvements 4,887 - 4,887 3,370 - 3,370

Motor vehicles 264 - 264 332 - 332

Office machines and equipment 3 - 3 5 - 5

Cultural assets 140 140 - 140 140 -

5,787 140 5,647 4,651 140 4,511

There have been no transfers between levels during the period.

To the extent that artworks do not contain significant, unobservable adjustments, these are classified as Level 2 under the market approach.

Information Technology is equipment excluding intangibles and is held at fair value. When equipment is specialised in use, such that it is rarely sold other than as part of a going concern, fair value is determined using the depreciated replacement cost method.

Furniture, Fixtures and Fittings is held at fair value. When plant and equipment is specialised in use, such that it is rarely sold other than as part of a going concern, fair value is determined using the depreciated replacement cost method.

Leasehold Improvements are held at fair value.

Motor Vehicles are valued at the depreciated replacement cost method. Victoria Legal Aid acquires new vehicles and at times disposes of them before the end of their economic life. The process of acquisition, use and disposal in the market is in accordance with the Victorian Government standard motor vehicle policy.

Office Machines and equipment are held at fair value. When plant and equipment is specialised in use, such that it is rarely sold other than as part of a going concern, fair value is determined using the depreciated replacement cost method.

Cultural Assets refer to artwork that is valued using the market approach, whereby assets are compared to recent comparable sales or sales of comparable assets that are considered to have nominal value. No valuation was required for artwork for the financial period ending at 30 June 2019.

There were no changes in valuation techniques throughout the period to 30 June 2019.

For all assets measured at fair value, the current use is considered the highest and best use.


Description of significant unobservable inputs to Level 3 valuationsAsset Valuation techniques Significant unobservable

inputs

Information technology Current depreciated replacement cost

Cost per unitUseful life of equipment

Furniture, fixtures and fittings Current depreciated replacement cost

Cost per unitUseful life equipment

Leasehold improvements Current depreciated replacement cost

Cost per unitUseful life of building fitout

Motor vehicles Current depreciated replacement cost

Cost per unitUseful life of vehicles

Office machines equipment Current depreciated replacement cost

Cost per unitUseful life of equipment

Unobservable inputs to level three valuations for the current and prior years.

9 Other disclosuresIntroductionThis section includes additional material disclosures required by accounting standards or otherwise, for the understanding of this financial report.

Structure9.1 Ex-gratia expenses 9.2 Other economic flows included in net result9.3 Change in accounting policies9.4 Responsible persons9.5 Remuneration of executives9.6 Related parties9.7 Remuneration of auditors9.8 Subsequent events9.9 Other accounting policies9.10 Australian Accounting Standards issued that are not yet effective 9.11 Glossary of technical terms9.12 Style conventions

9.1 Ex-gratia expensesVictoria Legal Aid made total ex-gratia payments of $121,580 during the period upon termination of employment (2018: $0.2M).

9.2 Other economic flowsOther economic flows are changes in the volume or value of an asset or liability that do not result from transactions.


2019$’000

2018$’000

Other economic flowsNet gains/(losses) on non-financial assets:

Net gains/(losses) on disposal property, plant and equipment (143) (69)

Net actuarial gains/(losses) on receivable amounts:Net actuarial gains/(losses) of secured client contributions receivables– net present value 30 518

Net actuarial gains/(losses) on impairment of unsecured client contribution receivables (488) 436

Total net actuarial gains/(losses) on recoverable amounts (458) 954

Net gains/(losses) arising from other economic flows:

Net gains/(losses) arising from revaluation of long service leave liability due to changes in discount bond rates and staff retention (157) 36

Total other economic flows (758) 922

Net gains/(losses) on non-financial assets and liabilities includes realised and unrealised gains and losses from revaluations, impairments, disposals of all non-financial assets and intangible assets.

Any gain or loss on the sale of non-financial assets is recognised at the date that control of the asset is passed to the buyer and is determined after deducting from the proceeds the carrying value of the asset at that time.

Intangible assets are tested annually for impairment and whenever there is an indication that the asset may be impaired. All other assets are assessed annually for indications of impairment, excluding financial assets (refer to Note 5.1).

Net gains/(losses) on financial instruments and statutory receivables/payables includes realised and unrealised gains and losses from revaluations by actuarial assessment of legal payables and receivables.

Net gains/(losses) arising from other economic flows include the gains or losses from reclassification of amounts from reserves and/or accumulated surplus to net result, and from the revaluation of the present value of the long service leave liability due to changes in the bond interest rates.

9.3 Change in accounting policies Victoria Legal Aid has elected to apply the limited exemption in AASB 9 paragraph 7.2.15 relating to transition for classification and measurement and impairment, and accordingly has not restated comparative periods in the year of initial application. As a result:

(a) any adjustments to carrying amounts of financial assets or liabilities are recognised at beginning of the current reporting period with difference recognised in opening retained earnings; and


(b) financial assets and provision for impairment have not been reclassified and/or restated in the comparative period. financial assets and provision for impairment have not been reclassified and/or restated in the comparative period.

There was no difference between the previous carrying amount and the revised carrying amount at 1 July 2018 to be recognised in opening retained earnings as a result of the adoption of AASB 9 Financial Instruments on Victoria Legal Aid’s financial statements.


9.4 Responsible personsIn accordance with the Ministerial Directions issued by the Assistant Treasurer under the Financial Management Act 1994 (FMA), the following disclosures are made regarding responsible persons for the reporting period.

NamesThe persons who held the above positions in Victoria Legal Aid are as follows:

Responsible ministers

Victorian Attorney-General The Hon. Martin Pakula MP 1 July 2018 to 28 November 2018

The Hon. Jill Hennessy MP 29 November 2018 to 30 June 2019

Acting Victorian Attorney-General The Hon. Benjamin Carroll MP 6 April 2019 to 14 April 2019

Responsible Body and Board

Chairperson Mr Bill Jaboor 1 July 2018 to 30 June 2019

Director The Hon. Betty King 1 July 2018 to 30 June 2019

Director Ms Robbie Campo 1 July 2018 to 30 June 2019

Director Ms Joh Kirby 1 July 2018 to 30 June 2019

Director Mr John O’Donoghue 1 July 2018 to 30 June 2019

Director Mr George Habib 3 July 2018 to 30 June 2019

Accountable Officer

Chief Executive Officer (current) Ms Louise Glanville 1 November 2018 to 30 June

2019

Mr Cameron Hume (Acting) 23 December 2018 to 14 January 2019

Managing Director (previous) Mr Bevan Warner 1 July 2018 to 3 August 2018

Ms Louise Glanville 15 October 2018 to 31 October 2018

Mr Peter Noble (Acting) 1 July 2018 to 6 July 2018

Mr Peter Noble (Acting) 2 August 2018 to 5 October 2018

As a result of the Justice Legislation Amendment (Access to Justice) Act 2018 changes to Victoria Legal Aid’s leadership structure were implemented on 1 November 2018, replacing the Managing Director role with a Chief Executive Officer position. Until this date the Managing Director was considered a member of the board. The CEO position does not hold board membership.


RemunerationAmounts relating to the Minister are reported are excluded. The Minister’s remuneration and allowances is set by the Parliamentary Salaries and Superannuation Act 1968 and is reported within the Department of Parliamentary Services’ Financial Report.

Remuneration received or receivable by the Accountable Officer in connection with the management of the organisation during the reporting period was in the range: $320,000–$329,999 ($330,000–$339,999 in 2017–18).

Income Band Total Remuneration2019No.

2018No.

$0 - $9,999 0 2

$10,000 - $19,999 5 4

$20,000 - $29,999 0 2

$30,000 - $39,999 0 1

$50,000 - $59,999 1 0

$320,000 - $329,999 1 0

$330,000 - $339,999 0 1

Total numbers 7 10Total amount $000’s 470 487

9.5 Remuneration of executivesThe remuneration of executive officers, other than the Chief Executive Officer and their total remuneration during the reporting period are shown in the table below. Total annualised employee equivalents provides a measure of full time equivalent executive officers over the reporting period.

Remuneration comprises employee benefits in all forms of consideration paid, payable or provided by entity, or on behalf of the entity, in exchange for services rendered, and is disclosed in the following categories:

Short-term employee benefits include amounts such as wages, salaries, annual leave or sick leave that are usually paid or payable on a regular basis, as well as non-monetary benefits such as allowances and free or subsidised goods or services;

Post-employment benefits: superannuation entitlements;

Other long-term benefits include long service leave, other long service benefits or deferred compensation; and

Termination benefits include termination of employment payments, such as severance packages.


Total remuneration2019$’000

2018$’000

Short-term employee benefits 1,738 1,481

Post-employment benefits 173 145

Other long-term benefits 39 38

Total remuneration 1,950 1,664 Total number of executives(i) 9 8Total annualised employee equivalents(ii) 7 7.5

Notes:(i) The total number of executive officers includes persons who meet the definition of Key Man-agement Personnel (KMP) of the entity under AASB 124 Related Party Disclosures and are also reported within the related parties note disclosure (refer to Note 9.6).

(ii) Annualised employee equivalent is based on the time fraction worked over the reporting peri-od.

9.6 Related partiesVictoria Legal Aid is a statutory authority and a controlled entity of the State of Victoria.

Related parties of Victoria Legal Aid include all key management personnel and their close family members and personal business interests


Key management personnel

Key management personnel of Victoria Legal Aid includes Board Members and the Senior Executive Team of the organisation.

Key management personnel Position title

Mr Bill Jaboor Chairperson

The Hon. Betty King Director

Ms Robbie Campo Director

Ms Joh Kirby Director

Mr John O’Donoghue Director

Mr George Habib Director

Ms Louise Glanville Chief Executive Officer and Accountable Officer

Mr Matthew Dale Chief Financial Officer

Mr Alan Dewis Associate Director - Aboriginal Services

Mr Cameron Hume Executive Director - Corporate Affairs

Mr Dan Nicholson Executive Director - Criminal Law Services

Ms Dianna Gleeson Executive Director - Legal Practice

Ms Georgie Dwyer Head of People and Culture

Ms Nicole Rich Executive Director - Family, Youth and Children’s Law

Mr Peter Noble Executive Director - Services and Innovation

Ms Rowan McRae Executive Director - Civil Justice, Access and Equity

Mr Tim Marsh Chief Counsel

Remuneration of key management personnel

2019$’000

2018$’000

Short-term employee benefits(i) 1,878 640

Post-employment benefits 186 57

Other long-term benefits 39 13

Total(i) 2,103 710 Notes:

(i) Note that KMPs are also reported in the disclosure of remuneration of executive officers (Refer to Note 9.5).

As a result of the Justice Legislation Amendment (Access to Justice) Act 2018 changes to Victoria Legal Aid’s leadership structure key management personnel has been reassessed to include members of the Senior Executive Team in 2019.


Significant transactions with government-related entitiesVictoria Legal Aid received funding from and made payments to the Consolidated Fund during the year. The agency had the following government-related entity transactions:

Receipts2019

$’0002018

$’000Commonwealth Grants

National Partnership Agreement 49,938 49,287

Attorney General Department 6,626 3,100

Project Grants 2,109 1,271

Total Commonwealth Grants 58,673 53,658

State Grants

Base Funding 74,433 71,404

Department of Justice and Community Safety - Community Legal Centres

17,745 16,669

Legal Services Board 31,539 30,037

Total State Grants 123,717 118,110

Specific Project Grants

Department of Justice and Community Safety 32,223 21,033

Department of Justice and Community Safety - Community Legal Centres

725 275

Department of Economic Development, Jobs, Transport and Resources 1,075 910

Department of Health and Human Services 3,341 3,075

Department of Premier and Cabinet 130 180

Legal Services Board 4,000 -

Total Specific Project Grants 41,494 25,473

Total State Grants and Specific Project Grants 165,211 143,583

Total receipts from government-related entities 223,884 197,241

Payments2019

$’0002018

$’000Community Legal Centres(1) 19,984 17,312

(1) Excludes Commonwealth Grants recorded as administered (non-controlled items). See Note 4.


Transactions and balances with key management personnel and other related partiesGiven the breadth and depth of State government activities, related parties transact with Victorian public sector in a manner consistent with other members of the public e.g. stamp duty and other government fees and charges. Further employment processes within the Victorian public sector occur on terms and conditions consistent with the Public Administration Act 2004 and Codes of Conduct and Standards issued by the Victorian Public Sector Commission. Procurement processes occur on terms and conditions consistent with the Victorian Government Purchasing Board requirements.

Outside of normal citizen type transactions, there were no related party transactions that involved key management personnel, their close family members and their personal business interests.

9.7 Remuneration of auditors2019

$’0002018

$’000Remuneration of auditors comprises:

Audit of financial reports: Victorian Auditor General’s Office 60 59

60 59

9.8 Subsequent eventsThere are no events that have arisen since 30 June 2019 that have significantly affected or may significantly affect the operations, or results, or state of affairs of Victoria Legal Aid.

9.9 Other accounting policies

Contribution by ownersConsistent with Interpretation 1038 Contribution by Owners Made to Wholly-Owned Public Sector Entities, appropriations for additions to net assets have been designated as contributions by owners. Other transfers that are in the nature of contributions or distributions have also been designated as contributions by owners.

9.10 Australian Accounting Standards issued that are not yet effectiveThe following AASs become effective for reporting periods commencing after 1 July 2019 that are applicable to Victoria Legal Aid:

AASB 16 Leases;

AASB 15 Revenue from Contract with Customers; and

AASB 1058 Income of Not-for-Profit Entities.


AASB 16 LeasesAASB 16 Leases replaces AASB 117 Leases, AASB Interpretation 4 Determining whether an Arrangement contains a Lease, AASB Interpretation 115 Operating Leases-Incentives and AASB Interpretation 127 Evaluating the Substance of Transactions Involving the Legal Form of a Lease.

AASB 16 sets out the principles for the recognition, measurement, presentation and disclosure of leases and requires lessees to account for all leases on the balance sheet by recording a Right-Of-Use (RoU) asset and a lease liability except for leases that are shorter than 12 months and leases where the underlying asset is of low value (deemed to be below $10,000).

AASB 16 also requires the lessees to separately recognise the interest expense on the lease liability and the depreciation expense on the right-of-use asset, and remeasure the lease liability upon the occurrence of certain events (e.g. a change in the lease term, a change in future lease payments resulting from a change in an index or rate used to determine those payments). The amount of the remeasurement of the lease liability will generally be recognised as an adjustment to the RoU asset.

Lessor accounting under AASB 16 is substantially unchanged from AASB 117. Lessors will continue to classify all leases using the same classification principle as in AASB 117 and distinguish between two types of leases: operating and finance leases.

The effective date is for annual reporting periods beginning on or after 1 January 2019. Victoria Legal Aid intends to adopt AASB 16 in 2019–20 financial year when it becomes effective.

Victoria Legal Aid will apply the standard using a modified approach to calculate the outstanding liabilities for existing leases using the incremental borrowing rate at the date of transaction to measure the RoU assets at an amount equal to the liabilities, with no restatement of comparative information.

Various practical expedients are available on adoption to account for leases previously classified by a lessee as operating leases under AASB 117. Victoria Legal Aid will elect to use the exemptions for all short-term leases (lease term less than 12 months) and low value leases (deemed to be below $10,000).

In addition, AASB 2018-8 – Amendments to Australian Accounting Standards – Right-of-Use Assets (RoU) of Not-for-Profit Entities allows a temporary option for not-for-profit entities to not measure RoU assets at initial recognition at fair value in respect of leases that have significantly below-market terms, since further guidance is expected to be developed to assist not-for-profit entities in measuring RoU assets at fair value. The Standard requires an entity that elects to apply the option (i.e. measures a class or classes of such RoU assets at cost rather than fair value) to include additional disclosures. Victoria Legal Aid intends to choose the temporary relief to value the RoU asset at the present value of the payments required (at cost).

Victoria Legal Aid has performed a detailed impact assessment of AASB 16 and the potential impact in the initial year of application has been estimated as follows:

increase in RoU ($46.3M),

increase in related depreciation ($5.4M),

increase in lease liability ($46.3M),

increase in related interest ($1.7M) calculated using effective interest method, and

decrease in rental expense ($6.4M).


AASB 15 Revenue from Contract with Customers/AASB 1058 Income of Not-for-Profit Entities.AASB 15 supersedes AASB 118 Revenue, AASB 111 Construction Contracts and related Interpretations and it applies, with limited exceptions, to all revenue arising from contracts with its customers.

AASB 15 establishes a five-step model to account for revenue arising from an enforceable contract that imposes a sufficiently specific performance obligation on an entity to transfer goods or services. AASB 15 requires entities to only recognise revenue upon the fulfilment of the performance obligation. Therefore, entities need to allocate the transaction price to each performance obligation in a contract and recognise the revenue only when the related obligation is satisfied.

To address specific concerns from the ‘not-for-profit’ sector in Australia, the AASB also released the following standards and guidance:

AASB 2016-8 Amendments to Australian Accounting Standards – Australian implementation guidance for NFP entities (AASB 2016-8), to provide guidance on application of revenue recognition principles under AASB 15 in the not-for-profit sector.

AASB 2018-4 Amendments to Australian Accounting Standards – Australian Implementation Guidance for Not-for-Profit Public-Sector Licensors (2018-4), to provide guidance on how to distinguish payments receive in connection with the access to an asset (or other resource) or to enable other parties to perform activities as tax and non-IP licence. It also provides guidance on timing of revenue recognition for non-IP licence payments.

AASB 1058 Income of Not-for-Profit Entities, to supplement AASB 15 and provide criteria to be applied by not-for-profit entities in establishing the timing of recognising income for government grants and other types of contributions previously contained within AASB 1004 Contributions.

AASB 15, AASB 1058 and the related guidance will come into effect for not-for-profit entities for annual reporting periods beginning on or after 1 January 2019. Victoria Legal Aid intends to adopt these standards in 2019-20 financial year when it becomes effective. The agency will apply the standard using a modified retrospective approach with the cumulative effect of initial application recognised as an adjustment to the opening balance of accumulated surplus at 1 July 2019, with no restatement of comparative information.

The Agency has performed a detailed impact assessment of AASB 15 and AASB 1058 and the potential impact for each major class of revenue and income in the initial year of application.

Management has reviewed specific grants and other funding agreements as well as all budgeted revenue for 2019-20 and found that most contracts do not have a sufficiently enforceable performance obligation. A requirement that the agency must spend the funds to perform core activities for the provision of legal assistance is not sufficiently specific, even if it is provided to enable the Victoria Legal Aid to achieve its objectives. On this basis there is no significant change to the way we represented revenue at 30 June 2019 and hence no quantifiable disclosure.


AASB 1059 Service Concession Arrangements: GrantorPrior to the issuance of AASB 1059 there was no definitive accounting guidance in Australia for service concession arrangements which include a number of public private partnership (PPP) arrangements. The AASB issued the new standard to address the lack of specific accounting guidance and based the content thereof broadly on its international equivalent: International Public Sector Accounting Standard 32: Service Concession Arrangements: Grantor.

For arrangements within the scope of AASB 1059, the public sector grantor will be required to record the asset(s) used in the service concession arrangement at current replacement cost in accordance with cost approach to Fair Value under AASB 13: Fair Value Measurement (AASB 13), with a related liability, which could be a financial liability, an accrued revenue liability (referred to as the Grant Of A Right To The Operator or CORTO liability) or a combination of both. The AASB recently announced a one-year deferral on the new accounting requirements for public sector grantors in the service concession arrangements. As a result, AASB 1059 will apply to annual periods beginning on or after 1 January 2020, rather than 1 January 2019. However, the Organisaiton intends to early adopt AASB 1059 in line with the original adoption date of 1 January 2019, i.e. the 2019–20 financial year.

The Organisation will apply the standard using a full retrospective approach to prior reporting periods from 1 July 2018 (transition date). As a result, all comparative information in the financial statements has been prepared as if AASB 1059 had always been in effect with a cumulative adjustment between the recognition of service concession assets and financial liabilities and/or GORTO liabilities recognised in accumulated surplus as at 1 July 2018.

9.11 Glossary of technical termsAmortisation is the expense that results from the consumption, extraction or use over time of a non-produced physical or intangible asset. This expense is classified as an ‘other economic flow’.

Commitments include those operating, capital and other outsourcing commitments arising from non-cancellable contractual or statutory sources.

Comprehensive result is the amount included in the operating statement representing total change in net worth other than transactions with owners as owners.

Depreciation is an expense that arises from the consumption through wear or time of a produced physical or intangible asset. This expense is classified as a ‘transaction’ and so reduces the ‘net result from transaction’.

Effective interest method is the method used to calculate the amortised cost of a financial asset and of allocating interest income over the relevant period. The effective interest rate is the rate that exactly discounts estimated future cash receipts through the expected life of the financial asset or, where appropriate, a shorter period.

Employee benefits expenses include all costs related to employment including wages and salaries, fringe benefits tax, leave entitlements, redundancy payments, defined benefits superannuation plans, and defined contribution superannuation plans.

Ex-gratia expenses mean the voluntary payment of money or other non-monetary benefit (eg a write-off) that is not made either to acquire goods, services or other benefits for the entity or to meet a legal liability, or to settle or resolve a possible legal liability or claim against the entity.


Financial asset is any asset that is:

(a) cash

(b) an equity instrument of another entity;

(c) a contractual right:

to receive cash or another financial asset from another entity; or to exchange financial assets or financial liabilities with another entity under

conditions that are potentially favourable to the entity; or

(d) a contract that will or may be settled in the entity’s own equity instruments and is:

a non-derivative for which the entity is or may be obliged to receive a variable number of the entity’s own equity instruments; or

a derivative that will or may be settled other than by the exchange of a fixed amount of cash or another financial asset for a fixed number of the entity’s own equity instruments.

Financial instrument is any contract that gives rise to a financial asset of one entity and a financial liability or equity instrument of another entity.

Financial liability is any liability that is:

(a) a contractual obligation:

to deliver cash or another financial asset to another entity; or to exchange financial assets or financial liabilities with another entity under

conditions that are potentially unfavourable to the entity.

Financial statements in the Model Report comprises:

(a) a balance sheet as at the end of the period;

(b) a comprehensive operating statement for the period;

(c) a statement of changes in equity for the period;

(d) a cash flow statement for the period;

(e) notes, comprising a summary of significant accounting policies and other explanatory information;

(f) comparative information in respect of the preceding period as specified in paragraph 38 of AASB 101 Presentation of Financial Statements; and

(g) a statement of financial position as at the beginning of the preceding period when an entity applies an accounting policy retrospectively or makes a retrospective restatement of items in its financial statements, or when it reclassifies items in its financial statements in accordance with paragraphs 41 of AASB 101.

Interest income includes unwinding over time of discounts on financial assets and interest received on bank term deposits and other investments.

Leases are rights to use an asset for an agreed period of time in exchange for payment. Leases are classified at their inception as either operating or finance leases based on the economic substance of the agreement so as to reflect the risks and rewards incidental to ownership. Leases of infrastructure, property, plant and equipment are classified as finance leases whenever the terms of


the lease transfer substantially all the risks and rewards of ownership from the lessor to the lessee. All other leases are classified as operating leases.

Net result from transactions is a key fiscal aggregate and is revenue from transactions minus expenses from transactions. It is a summary measure of the ongoing sustainability of operations. It excludes gains and losses resulting from changes in price levels and other changes in the volume of assets. It is the component of the change in net worth that is due to transactions and can be attributed directly to government policies.

Non-financial assets are all assets that are not financial assets. It includes plant and equipment, information technology, cultural assets and intangibles.

Non-produced assets are assets needed for production that have not themselves been produced. They include land, subsoil assets, and certain intangible assets. Non-produced intangibles are intangible assets needed for production that have not themselves been produced. They include constructs of society such as patents.

Other economic flows included in net result are changes in the volume or value of an asset or liability that do not result from transactions. In simple terms, other economic flows are changes arising from market remeasurements. They include gains and losses from disposals, revaluations and impairments of non-current physical and intangible assets; fair value changes of financial instruments and agricultural assets; and depletion of natural assets (non-produced) from their use or removal.

Payables includes short and long-term trade debt and accounts payable, grants, taxes and interest payable.

Receivables include amounts owing from government through appropriation receivable, short and long-term trade credit and accounts receivable, accrued investment income, grants, taxes and interest receivable.

Transactions are those economic flows that are considered to arise as a result of policy decisions, usually an interaction between two entities by mutual agreement. They also include flows into an entity such as depreciation, where the owner is simultaneously acting as the owner of the depreciating asset and as the consumer of the service provided by the asset. Taxation is regarded as mutually agreed interactions between the government and taxpayers. Transactions can be in kind (eg assets provided/given free of charge or for nominal consideration) or where the final consideration is cash. In simple terms, transactions arise from the policy decisions of the Government.

9.12 Style conventionsFigures in the tables and in the text have been rounded. Discrepancies in tables between totals and sums of components reflect rounding. Percentage variations in all tables are based on the underlying unrounded amounts.

The notation used in the tables is as follows:

- zero, or rounded to zero(xxx.x) negative numbers200x year period

200x 0x year period


Appendices

Appendix 1: Disclosure indexThe annual report of Victoria Legal Aid is prepared in accordance with all relevant Victorian legislation. This index has been prepared to enable identification of our compliance with statutory disclosure requirements.

Ministerial Directions

Report of operations—FRD Guidance

Charter and purpose

Legislation Requirement Page

FRD 22H Manner of establishment and the relevant Ministers 164

FRD 22H Purpose, functions, powers and duties 1–2

FRD 8D Departmental objectives, indicators and outputs 3–108

FRD 22H Key initiatives and projects 18–74

FRD 22H Nature and range of services provided 18–108

Management and structure


FRD 22H Organisational structure 75

Financial and other information


FRD 8D Performance against output performance measures 8

FRD 8D Budget portfolio outcomes 3–108

FRD 10A Disclosure index 178–180

FRD 12B Disclosure of major contracts 103

FRD 15E Executive officer disclosures 93–94

FRD 22H Employment and conduct principles 88

FRD 22H Occupational health and safety policy 95–96

FRD 22H Summary of the financial results for the year 47

FRD 22H Significant changes in financial position during the year 47–48

FRD 22H Major changes or factors affecting performance 48

FRD 22H Subsequent events 169

FRD 22H Application and operation of Freedom of Information Act 1982 104–105



FRD 22H Compliance with building and maintenance provisions of Building Act 1993

105

FRD 22H Statement on National Competition Policy 107

FRD 22H Application and operation of the Protected Disclosure Act 2012 105

FRD 22H Application and operation of the Carers Recognition Act 2012 107

FRD 22H Details of consultancies over $10 000 101–102

FRD 22H Details of consultancies under $10 000 102

FRD 22H Disclosure of government advertising expenditure 100

FRD 22H Disclosure of ICT expenditure 102–103

FRD 22H Statement of availability of other information 108

FRD 24D Reporting of office-based environmental impacts 107–108

FRD 25D Local Jobs First 103

FRD 29C Workforce Data disclosures 89–94

SD 5.2 Specific requirements under Standing Direction 5.2 89–108

Compliance attestation and declaration


SD 5.4.1 Attestation for compliance with Ministerial Standing Direction 108

SD 5.2.3 Declaration in report of operations i

Financial statements

Declaration


SD 5.2.2 Declaration in financial statements 115

Other requirements under Standing Directions 5.2


SD 5.2.1(a) Compliance with Australian accounting standards and other authoritative pronouncements

116, 176–177

SD 5.2.1(a) Compliance with Standing Directions i, 108

SD 5.2.1(b) Compliance with Model Financial Report n/a


Other disclosures as required by FRDs in notes to the financial statements(a)


FRD 9B Departmental Disclosure of Administered Assets and Liabilities by Activity

n/a

FRD 11A Disclosure of Ex gratia Expenses 161

FRD 13 Disclosure of Parliamentary Appropriations n/a

FRD 21C Disclosures of Responsible Persons, Executive Officers and other Personnel (Contractors with Significant Management Responsibilities) in the Financial Report

93–94(164–

166)

FRD 103H Non-Financial Physical Assets 112

FRD 110A Cash Flow Statements 95

FRD 112D Defined Benefit Superannuation Obligations 126

FRD 114C Financial Instruments – general government entities and public non-financial corporations

146–152

LegislationAct Page

Freedom of Information Act 1982 104–105

Building Act 1993 105

Protected Disclosure Act 2012 105

Carers Recognition Act 2012 107

Disability Act 2006 105–107

Local Jobs Act 2003 103

Financial Management Act 1994 i, 108, 164

Appendix 2: Policy and law reform submissionsWe are regularly consulted on a variety of law reform issues. We use our unique practice experience to engage in consultations and inquiries to drive reform that will have a positive impact for our clients and the community.

Our policy and law reform work is based firmly upon principle and evidence, and focuses on matters where we have a ‘distinctive contribution’ to make, informed by our significant practice experience.

Utilising this experience to advocate for efficient and effective solutions to problems faced by the justice system and the community is an integral part of pursuing our statutory objectives.

In the last financial year, we made ten public submissions. We also joined with National Legal Aid for another five submissions. As well as the public submissions listed in the tables below, we also participated in a range of confidential processes and made submissions to confidential consultations at the invitation of government and other bodies.


Submission Authority Date

Statutory review of the Administrative Appeals Tribunal

Commonwealth Attorney-General

August 2018

Investigation of State TrusteesVictorian Ombudsman

September 2018

Review of the Family Law System - discussion paper

Australian Law Reform Commission

November 2018

Mental Health Royal Commission terms of reference Victorian Government

January 2019

National Inquiry into Sexual Harassment in Australian Workplaces

Australian Human Rights Commission

February 2019

General issues around the implementation and performance of the NDIS

Joint Standing Committee on the NDIS

March 2019

Disability Amendment (National Disability Insurance Scheme Transition) Bill 2019

Department of Premier and Cabinet

April 2019

Inquiry into the Economic Impacts of Mental Ill-Health

Productivity Commission

April 2019

OPCAT inspection of Port Phillip Prison, Malmsbury Youth Justice Precinct and Secure Welfare Services Victorian Ombudsman

May 2019

Review of the Law Relating to Contempt of Court Victorian Law Reform Commission

June 2019

National Legal Aid submissions that Victoria Legal Aid endorsedSubmission Authority Date

Family Law Amendment (Family Violence and Cross-examination of Parties) Bill 2018

Senate Legal and Constitutional Affairs Legislative Committee

July 2018

Veterans’ Advocacy and Support Services Discussion Paper

Department of Veterans Affairs

August 2018

Australian Solicitors’ Conduct Rules Law Council of Australia

September 2018

Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (Consequential Amendments and Transitional Provisions) Bill 2018

Senate Legal and Constitutional Affairs Committee

December 2018

Disability Royal Commission terms of reference Department of Social Services

March 2019


Contact detailsMain reception

570 Bourke Street, Melbourne

Postal – GPO Box 4380, Melbourne Vic 3001

Telephone – (03) 9269 0234

www.legalaid.vic.gov.au

Monday to Friday 8.45 am to 5.15 pm

Legal Help

Telephone – 1300 792 387

Monday to Friday 8 am to 6 pm

Disaster Legal Help

We have a dedicated telephone line for legal help after disasters such as a bushfires or floods.

Monday to Friday 8 am to 6 pm

Telephone – 1800 113 432

For hearing impaired (TTY)

Call the National Relay Service and ask to be put through to Victoria Legal Aid.

TTY/voice – 133 677 or 1800 555 677 (country callers)

SSR/speak and listen – 1300 555 727 or 1800 555 727 (country callers)

In different languagesArabic (03) 9269 0127

Bahasa Ring main Legal Help line and request

Bosnian (03) 9269 0164

Cantonese (03) 9269 0161

Mandarin (03) 9269 0212

Croatian (03) 9269 0164

Farsi (Persian) (03) 9269 0123

Greek (03) 9269 0167

Hindi (03) 9269 0487 currently not available

Hokkien Ring main Legal Help line and request

Korean Ring main Legal Help line and request

Polish (03) 9269 0228

Samoan Ring main Legal Help line and request


http://www.legalaid.vic.gov.au/

Serbian (03) 9269 0332

Turkish (03) 9269 0386

Ukrainian (03) 9269 0390

Vietnamese (03) 9269 0391

For all other languages, call the Translating and Interpreting Service on 131 450 and ask to be put through to Victoria Legal Aid.

Acknowledgements

We would like to thank everyone who contributed to the delivery of our work throughout the year and to the development of this report.

Feedback

Feedback on this report is welcome. Please write to:

Victoria Legal Aid, Corporate Affairs GPO Box 4380, Melbourne Vic 3001

ISSN: 2209-7678


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