New South Wales has a new 'one stop shop' providing access to legal services and assistance. LawAccess NSW was launched by the Attorney General of NSW, the Hon Bob Debus MP, on 17 June 2002.

The Bar Association is one of the founding partners in the initiative, together with the NSW Attorney General's Department, the NSW Legal Aid Commission and the Law Society of NSW. In addition to the founding partners, the Combined Community Legal Centres and Public Interest Advocacy Centre are on the LawAccess NSW board.

LawAccess NSW is a free service providing a single point of access to legal and related assistance services in New South Wales. The service helps customers to find the information and services that are best able to assist with legal problems and questions. LawAccess NSW is available to all NSW residents but is particularly aimed at people who have difficulty
accessing traditional community and government legal services such as people in regional and isolated areas and people with disabilities.

Contact LawAccess NSW for legal information, referrals and in some cases advice on 1300 888 529, 1300 889 529 TTY or visit LawAccess Online at www.lawaccess.nsw.gov.au.

LawAccess Online is designed to provide customers with quick and easy access to plain language legal information and assistance services. The service indexes resources from over 100 justice sector organisations and currently holds over 1500 plain languages factsheets, including resources in community languages. Customers can use a legal topic index to find resources on different areas of the law such as family law, drink driving and domestic violence or search for resources by language, keyword and various other methods.

What is LARS?

The New South Wales Bar Association (the Bar Association) has a scheme under which a person may obtain legal assistance from members of the Bar. The scheme is called the Legal Assistance Referral Scheme (LARS).

Is LARS different from pro bono work?

Yes. LARS is separate and distinct from the pro bono work of individual members of the Bar. The Bar’s pro bono work is usually carried out on an informal basis by individual barristers who voluntarily provide legal services for no fee.

In contrast, the barristers who agree to provide legal services under LARS do so at the request of the Council of the Association. It is the Association which imposes itself on its members’ largesse when it seeks them out to firstly provide an advice on the merits of the matter and, (subject to the advice) to then provide ongoing legal assistance and representation to an applicant under the scheme.

This major difference ensures that LARS operates as a referral system under which a member of the public can be referred to a member of the Bar who may be willing to provide legal assistance.

LARS is not a substitute for legal aid, nor is it a last resort for unsuccessful applicants from other pro bono schemes.

The LARS approach to facilitating legal assistance

The consideration and referral of an application for legal assistance under LARS is a matter entirely within the discretion of the Association.

It must not be assumed that an applicant will automatically receive assistance under LARS simply because he or she does not fall within any of the specific exclusions to the scheme. Each application is considered carefully by the Association and a decision to grant assistance is a discretionary one.

Considering an application

Consideration of an application and exercise of the Council’s discretion is a 3 stage process.

First stage – Consideration of material which the applicant must provide

The applicant must provide the following information:

• completed application form.

• written details of the problem in respect of which assistance is sought and all relevant documentation.

• the existence of any relevant court proceedings and the stage of preparation or hearing of such proceedings.

• the names of any legal representatives who have given advice or acted in respect of the matter.

• details of all applications for legal aid or other pro bono or legal assistance and the results of the applications.

• the extent to which the applicant is able to contribute to the cost of any assistance provided under the scheme.

• the extent of any work likely to be sought.

• verification of applicant’s income, for example a copy of their most recent tax return, financial or other records.

• any other documents required by the Bar Association to facilitate consideration of the application.

The following factors will also be taken into consideration:

• the financial resources available to the applicant.

• the effect that any provision of assistance might have on the resources available to the scheme.

• the nature and effect of any previous assistance and the conduct of the applicant in any previous or current application for assistance.

Applicants are required to cooperate reasonably at all time with the Bar Association in respect of their application and must be prepared to retain a solicitor in respect of the matter if considered necessary by the Bar Association.

Applicants must also be prepared to waive rights of confidentiality and/or privilege as required to enable officers of the Bar Association to make enquiries in relation to the matter the subject of the application.

If the application has any of the following characteristics then assistance would automatically not be granted:

• whether the applicant has been refused assistance by the Legal Aid Commission in respect of the matter upon the basis that the assistance lacks merit.

• whether the applicant has been refused assistance under a pro bono scheme offered by a court, The Law Society of New South Wales or firms of solicitors.

• an applicant whose gross household income exceeds $1,000 per week.

• an applicant who is a plaintiff in a personal injury or medical negligence case whether in the first instance or on appeal of any aspect of the matter.

• an application which relates to a neighbourhood dispute.

• an application which relates to an apprehended violence matter.

• an application which, in the opinion of the Bar Council, could be resolved using services provided by Community Justice Centres or any other alternative scheme of assistance.

• a matter which is not the subject of current court proceedings or foreshadowed litigation.

• a matter which seeks to overcome Dietrich type problems.

• a matter in which it is likely to be or has been set down for a long trial.

Second stage – Bar Council’s consideration of the application

If, at the conclusion of the first stage, LARS is of the view that the application should be put to the Bar Council, then the Bar Council will consider whether, in its opinion, the applicant’s application discloses a meritorious case at law. This means whether the matter has, from a legal point of view, reasonable prospects of success.

Barristers providing services under the scheme will be asked in the first instance to provide the Council with advice (usually written) as to whether the matter has reasonable prospects of success. The advice is provided solely for the purpose of the Council considering whether it should exercise its discretion to provide referral assistance. The Council, having considered the advice, then exercises its discretion to grant referral assistance or not grant referral assistance.

The Bar Council may delegate its authority in this matter to the Executive Director.

Third Stage – Bar Council’s consideration of any other relevant matters & exercise of its discretion

Provided that:
a) all administrative requirements are met as set out above; and
b) the Council is of the opinion that the matter has reasonable prospects of success; then

the Council will consider any other relevant factors (such as whether the conduct of the case would be in the public interest or the general nature of the matter with particular regard to any risk to a person’s liberty) prior to deciding whether to exercise its discretion in favour of the applicant by facilitating the referral of the applicant to an appropriate member of the Bar.

What happens if the application for referral is refused?

If referral assistance is not granted, any supporting documentation provided in support of the application will be returned to the applicant.

What happens if the application for referral is successful?

In the event that the Council exercises its discretion in favour of the applicant to the effect that referral assistance should be granted, LARS will take reasonable steps to find a barrister prepared to provide an advice as to the prospects of success or legal merit of the matter.

What happens next?

If the advice of the barrister is that the matter has limited prospects of success, the barrister and the Association have no obligation to be further involved. The identity of the barrister will not be disclosed to the applicant. All paperwork will be returned to the applicant.

The applicant must agree to waive any rights the applicant may have against the Bar Association and the Bar Council in respect of its assistance to the applicant and in respect of the further conduct of the matter by counsel.

If the barrister has informed the Bar Council that he or she is willing to provide legal services to the applicant, the role of the Association, Bar Council and LARS then ceases.

What about the barrister’s fees?

The barrister and applicant are free to enter into a retainer and fee disclosure agreement directly (or with the applicant’s solicitor, if a solicitor instructed) which must comply with Part 3.2 of the Legal Profession Act 2004. The fee arrangement may include one or more of the following terms:

• the barrister may elect to cease acting on behalf of the applicant if the proceedings are transferred out of New South Wales.

• fees may be charged by the barrister at his/her usual fee rate for a matter of that type, complexity and jurisdiction, payable only in the event of a successful outcome by verdict or settlement and/or an order for costs, and/or actual recovery of costs from another party.

• fees may be payable on an instalment basis.

• fees may be charged on a reduced basis.

• no fees may be charged.

25 March 2004

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