Table of contents
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Table of contents
- 1 – Introduction
- 2 – Types of matters that may be assisted
- 3 – Criminal law guidelines
- 4 – Commonwealth family law and child support guidelines
- 5 – Commonwealth civil law guidelines
- 6 – State family guidelines
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7 – State civil law guidelines
- Guideline 1 – general civil claims of $5000 or more
- Guideline 2 – Mental Health Review Board cases
- Guideline 3 – guardianship and/or administration cases in the Guardianship List
- Guideline 4 – coronial inquests
- Guideline 5 – equal opportunity or discrimination cases
- Guideline 5a – Victims of Crime Assistance Tribunal cases
- Guideline 6 – family violence protection order cases
- Guideline 6a – personal safety intervention order cases
- Guideline 7 – adoption
- Guideline 8 – State civil law matters that will not be assisted
- Guideline 10 – infringements cases
- Guideline 11 – a public interest case or a test case
- Guideline 12 – witnesses appearing before the Chief Examiner or Examiner
- Guideline 13 – social security cases at the ARO and SSAT stages
- Guideline 14 – drought legal assistance package
- 8 – Standard grants assessment process
- 9 – Simplified grants assessment process
- 10 – Referral and practitioner panels
- 11 – Means test
- 12 – Commonwealth merits test
- 13 – State reasonableness test and interests of justice test
- 14 – Special circumstances
- 15 – Applying for a grant of legal assistance
- 16 – Decision to grant or refuse assistance
- 17 – Reconsideration and review of decisions
- 18 – Standard terms and conditions
- 19 – Contributions and overdue payments
- 20 – Abandoning legal assistance
- 21 – Finalising grants of legal assistance
- 22 – Allocation of work to lawyers and law firms
- 23 – Payments to lawyers and service providers
- 24 – Compliance reviews
- 25 – Privacy protection
- 26 – Complaints and feedback
- Topic index
- Invoices, worksheets and forms
- Contact us
Guideline 1 – general civil claims of $5000 or more
VLA may make a grant of legal assistance to a person for a general civil law matter if the amount of the claim is $5000 or more, subject to the restrictions discussed below.
VLA may limit the grant to:
- an investigation of and further report on the merits of the case
- mediation of the dispute.
VLA will not grant assistance to a plaintiff if there is an alternative funding arrangement available
VLA will not grant legal assistance to a plaintiff or a prospective plaintiff seeking damages or the recovery of property in a common law, equitable or statutory action if the action could be conducted either:
- under a conditional costs agreement with a private lawyer
- through the Law Aid Scheme.
VLA may grant assistance to a defendant in limited circumstances
VLA may make a grant of legal assistance to a defendant in a general civil law claim for an amount of $5000 or more only if:
- the defendant’s sole home is at immediate risk in the action (for example, the defendant has given a security over their house or their house is the only asset they have to meet a claim against them)
and - there is a strong prospect the defendant can defend the action or get a life tenancy of the property.
Documentary requirements
Applications under this guideline can only be submitted via the standard grants assessment process.
A member of the section 29A practitioner panel or section 30 referral panel or other person seeking a grant of legal assistance should forward the following documents for assessment:
- a completed VLA application form
- a reference to how the matter satisfies guideline 1
- details of the proposed claim/defence
- the lawyer’s assessment of the strengths and weaknesses of the claim (if the application is made via a lawyer)
- reference to how the matter meets the State's reasonableness test or interests of justice test
- documentary proof of any State special circumstances
- relevant proof of means.