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
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6 – State family guidelines
- Guideline 1 – child involved in a case in the Family Division of the Children’s Court
- Guideline 2 – parent, guardian or other interested person involved in a case in the Family Division of the Children’s Court
- 7 – State civil law guidelines
- 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 2 – parent, guardian or other interested person involved in a case in the Family Division of the Children’s Court
VLA may make a grant of legal assistance for a person to respond to certain proceedings in the Family Division of the Children’s Court if the person is:
- a parent or a guardian of a child
- another person whom the court has determined has a direct interest in the proceedings (someone who has been granted leave to be joined as a party).
VLA may provide a grant of legal assistance to that person if:
- they oppose a protection application being proved
- they oppose a breach application being proved
- they oppose a finding of irreconcilable difference
- they oppose an application to vary or to extend an order
- they seek an order different to an order recommended by the Department of Human Services (DHS) (including an interim accommodation order)
- the protection order which DHS seeks would, if made, remove the child from their custody and they are applying to keep custody of the child
- they oppose certain conditions being made, or seek to include other conditions, in an order relating to a substantive issue which will significantly affect their lifestyle or their family’s lifestyle
- DHS is applying for a guardianship order or permanent care order.
VLA may limit a grant for a final contested hearing
If VLA makes a grant of legal assistance for a final contested hearing, then VLA may limit the nature and extent of the assistance to:
- specific issues
- specific arguments
- a specific number of days.
VLA will not usually grant assistance to revoke or vary orders if there are no current proceedings
If there are no current proceedings, then, unless there are compelling reasons, VLA will not make a grant of legal assistance to a person for an application to vary or revoke an order made in the Family Division of the Children’s Court.
Documentary requirements
Applications under this guideline are within the simplified grants assessment process or the standard grants assessment process.
Standard grants assessment process
Lawyers or other applicants seeking a grant of legal assistance via the standard grants assessment process should forward all of the following documents to VLA for assessment.
- a completed VLA application form
- a copy of any protection, breach, variation or irreconcilable differences application
- a copy of any report
- an indication of the orders sought by the parties
- relevant proof of means.
Simplified grants assessment process
Lawyers seeking a grant of legal assistance via the simplified grants assessment process should submit a completed simplified VLA application form and a State family law checklist only after ensuring that the following documents are retained on file unless they are requested by VLA for assessment
- a copy of any protection, breach, variation or irreconcilable differences application
- a copy of any report
- an indication of the orders sought by the parties
- copies of any orders made
- the lawyer’s assessment of how the matter meets guideline 2
- reference to how the matter meets the State's reasonableness test or interests of justice test
- relevant proof of means.
Lawyers are also encouraged to complete a State family matter worksheet for their file.