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 – witnesses appearing before the Chief Examiner or Examiner
- Guideline 12 – social security cases at the ARO and SSAT stages
- Guideline 13 – drought legal assistance package
- 8 – Public interest and strategic litigation
- 9 – Standard grants assessment process
- 10 – Simplified grants assessment process
- 11 – Referral and practitioner panels
- 12 – Means test
- 13 – Commonwealth merits test
- 14 – State reasonableness test and interests of justice test
- 15 – Special circumstances
- 16 – Applying for a grant of legal assistance
- 17 – Decision to grant or refuse assistance
- 18 – Reconsideration and review of decisions
- 19 – Standard terms and conditions
- 20 – Contributions and overdue payments
- 21 – Abandoning legal assistance
- 22 – Finalising grants of legal assistance
- 23 – Allocation of work to lawyers and law firms
- 24 – Payments to lawyers and service providers
- 25 – Compliance reviews
- 26 – Privacy protection
- 27 – Complaints and feedback
- Topic index
- Invoice, worksheets and forms
- Contact us
Guideline 6 – family violence protection order cases
6.1 – applicants
VLA may make a grant of legal assistance to a person seeking a family violence protection order if all of the following apply:
- the applicant is aged 18 years or older
- the matter is listed for a contested hearing
- the applicant is more likely than not to succeed in obtaining a family violence protection order.
VLA will not normally make a grant of legal assistance to an affected family member where the application has been brought by the police. VLA expects an applicant to begin proceedings with the help of the police or a Magistrates’ Court registrar.
The merits of the application
As well as meeting the usual requirements of the State reasonableness test the application for a family violence protection order must not be frivolous, vexatious or in bad faith.
6.1.1 – child applicants
VLA expects an applicant under the age of 18 years to be included in any application by an adult applicant.
VLA will make a grant of legal assistance to a child aged 14 years or older to seek leave to apply to the court for a family violence protection order.
VLA will make a grant of legal assistance to a child aged 14 years or older where a court has granted leave to a child to apply for a family violence protection order, or where the court decides a child should be separately legally represented.
6.2 – respondents
VLA may grant assistance to a respondent to oppose the making of a family violence protection order if:
- the respondent is aged under 18 years
or - the order would deprive the respondent of an important right (for example, it would exclude the respondent from their home)
or - the respondent is in custody as a result of the alleged family violence
and - the respondent is more likely than not to succeed in contesting the making of a family violence protection order in the terms sought by the applicant.
6.3 – court-ordered representation of applicants and respondents
Where a court makes an order under the Family Violence Protection Act 2008 or under section 357 the Criminal Procedure Act 2009 for VLA to fund the applicant and/or respondent for the purposes of cross-examination of a protected witness, VLA may limit the grant of legal assistance to the cross-examination of the protected witness.
Where VLA is ordered to provide representation, the matter will be allocated to an in-house practice at first instance. If the in-house practice is unable to act for the respondent and/or applicant, VLA will decide who the matter will be allocated to.
6.4 – children who are not applicants or respondents
Where the court grants leave on its own initiative for a child to be legally represented pursuant to section 62 of the Family Violence Protection Act, VLA will make a grant of legal assistance to the child.
Cross-applications for orders
If the person applying for a grant of legal assistance is both the applicant and the respondent in a family violence protection order matter, then:
- if the person meets the guidelines for applicants but does not meet the guidelines for respondents, VLA will make a grant of legal assistance only for the application for a family violence protection order
- if the person meets the guidelines for respondents but does not meet the guidelines for applicants (because, for example, the application is merely vexatious), VLA will make a grant of legal assistance only to enable the person to respond to the application made against them
- VLA will only provide a single grant of legal assistance for a cross-application.
Proceedings for breach of a family violence protection order
If the person applies for a grant of legal assistance as a respondent in proceedings for breach of a family violence protection order, then VLA will assess the application under its Criminal law guidelines.
Applications by the respondent to appeal against an order, or to apply to revoke an order
If a respondent applies to appeal against the making of a family violence protection order, or to apply for its revocation, then this application cannot be the subject of a recommendation for assistance via the simplified grants assessment process. The applicant would need to apply via the standard grants assessment process and demonstrate there are special circumstances present.
Documentary requirements
Applications under this guideline are within the simplified grants assessment process or the standard grants assessment process.
Standard grants assessment process
Lawyers seeking a grant of legal assistance via the standard grants assessment process should submit an application via ATLAS for assessment, including all of the following documents:
- a copy of any application, complaint and interim order made
- if the person seeking a grant of legal assistance is a child, a copy of the court’s order granting leave for the child to apply (if this has been ordered)
- the lawyer’s assessment of how the matter meets the relevant guideline
- reference to how the matter meets the State reasonableness test
- documentary proof of any State special circumstances
- relevant proof of means.
Simplified grants assessments process
Lawyers seeking a grant of legal assistance via the simplified grants assessment process should submit an application via ATLAS, only after ensuring that the following documents are retained on file (unless they are requested by VLA for assessment):
- a copy of any application, complaint and complaint
- if the person seeking a grant of legal assistance is a child, a copy of the court’s order granting leave for the child to apply (if this has been ordered)
- the lawyer’s assessment of how the matter meets the relevant guideline
- documentary proof of any State special circumstances
- relevant proof of means.
Lawyers are also encouraged to complete a Family Violence Protection Act proceedings worksheet for their file.