Post by emilykate on Sept 30, 2010 22:24:07 GMT -5
Need free legal information, advice and/or advocacy?
I am still in the process of updating this info, so please bar with me! Any new information would be greatly appreciated also!
Women’s Legal Service Victoria
Women's Legal Service Victoria (WLSV) is a statewide legal service for women, specialising in relationship breakdown and violence against women. WLSV provides face to face legal services, including court representation, telephone legal advice and referral, legal education, and law reform activities on issues affecting women and their legal rights.
WLSV conducts a clinic at Melbourne Magistrates' Court on Monday to Friday from 9.30am onwards.
Postal address: Level 3, 43 Hardware Lane, Melbourne VIC 3000
Street address: Level 3, 43 Hardware Lane, Melbourne VIC 3000
Phone Advice and Administration: (03) 9642 0877
Fax: (03) 9642 0232
Toll free: 1800 133 302
Email: justice@vicnet.net.au
Hours of Operation: Mon-Fri 9am-5pm
Legal advice line: Monday 10am-1pm; Tuesday, Thursday 6.30-8.30pm; Wednesday 2-5pm; Drop In Thursday 9.30am-12pm
Website: www.womenslegal.org.au
Disability Discrimination Legal Service (DDLS) - FREE
They provide free telephone advice - they can provide you with information and can also provide assistance if you decide to go down the legal path and make a complaint, such as referral, advice and casework assistance. They may be able to offer you services such as writing letters of demand from a solicitor, or accompanying you in mediation/conciliation. The DDLS also undertake research into such things as legal and economic issues affecting those with disabilities, community legal education and policy and law reform. DDLS was reccomended to me by the Anxiety Recovery Centre. Sadly, there are times when people with mental illness may find themselves discriminated against - for example, if your school does not recognise that your condition is a medical one when you apply for special consideration or alternative assessment arrangement for an exam, etc - however the DDLS may be of help.
Their telephone service operates from 9am-5pm Mon-Friday.
Ph: (03) 9654-8644
Fax: (03) 9639-7422
TTY: (03) 9654-6817
Country: 1300-882-872
Email: info@ddls.org.au
Website: www.communitylaw.org.au/ddls/
Victoria Legal Aid
VLA is a statutory authority established by legislation called the Legal Aid Act 1978, funded by Commonwealth and state governments but operate independently of government.
Victoria legal aid caters for socially and economically disadvantaged Victorian and can help in areas of criminal law, family law and some civil law matters. Please note Victoria Legal Aid do not give advice in the areas of taxation or commercial law, buying property, superannuation law, or intellectual property law; however, if they are not able to help you, they may still be able to refer you to someone who can – so it’s worth giving them a call! VLA may be of assistance in cases to be before the Magistrate’s Court, Children’s Court, Family Court, Federal Magistrate’s Court, Victorian Civil an d Administrative Tribunal (VCAT), Administrative Appeals Tribunal as well as the Mental Health Review Board.
They do offer legal information over the phone, public workshops on divorce and family law, funding cases by grants of legal assistance – including legal advice, assistance in preparing documents and speaking for you at court, resolving family disputes through FREE and confidential Rountable Dispute Management (RDM) as so on. Once-off legal advice is completely FREE of charge. You can have anywhere between 10 minutes to and hour with a lawyer – possibly longer, if the case is complex.
Auslan interpreters and relay services assistance is also available – just call them up and ask. Interpretors for court, as well as people who can help you understand the legal jargon can also be accessed through VLA. The web content is also available in Mandarin, Arabic, Turkish, Vietnamese and other languages.
Ph: (03) 9629 0120
Country: 1800 677 402
TTY: 133 677 then ask for (03) 9269 0120 or 1800 677 402 (country callers).
Speak and listen users can call 1300 555 727 and then ask for (03) 9269 0120 or 1800 677 402 (country callers).
Internet relay users, connect to the National Relay Service at www.relayservice.com.au/ – and then ask for (03) 9269 0120 or 1800 677 402 (country callers).
عربي / Arabic: (03) 9269 0127
Hrvatski / Croatian: (03) 9269 0164
Ελληvικά / Greek: (03) 9269 0167
Italiano / Italian: (03) 9269 0202
فار س / Persian: (03) 9269 0123
Polski / Polish: (03) 9269 0228
Српски / Serbian: (03) 9269 0332
Українська Moba / Ukrainian: (03) 9269 0390
If your language is not listed, phone the Translating and Interpreting Service on 131 450 and ask to be put through to (03) 9269 0120 or 1800 677 402 (country callers).
Hours: Mon-Fri, 8.45am-5.15pm (Australian Eastern standard time, except public holidays).
Website: www.legalaid.vic.gov.au
Postal Adress: GPO Box 4380, Melbourne Victoria, DX 210646 Melbourne.
Street Address: 350 Queen Street, Melbourne Victoria 3000 – open Mon-Fri, 8.45am-5.15pm (Australian Eastern standard time, except public holidays).
Federation of Community Legal Centres Victoria
Victoria’s Community Legal Centres (CLCs) are a series of independent community organisations that provide free legal services to the public, focusing on helping clients who face economic and social disadvantage and who have nowhere else to go for assistance. Issues they may be able to assist with include credit and debt, car accidents, family law, family violence and sexual assault, victims of crime compensation, wills and powers of attorney, neighbourhood disputes, fines and some criminal matters. CLCs can be found throughout metropolitan Melbourne, as well as across regional and rural Victoria – not that each CLC has different eligibility criteria. To find your closest Community Legal Centre go to www.communitylaw.org.au/find_a_clc.php - the closest one to Monash Clayton is in Beddoe Avenue (see ‘Monash Oakleugh Legal Service Inc’)!
Ph: (03) 9652 1500
Website: www.communitylaw.org.au
Monash Oakleigh Legal Service Inc
Monash Oakleigh Legal Service is funded by the Monash University Faculty of Law, Victoria Legal Aid, the Commonwealth Government and the City of Monash , offering FREE advice and assistance in relation to a range of areas of law to members of the community. It caters primarily to people who are unable to afford private legal assistance and representation or are unable to obtain access to the legal system because of language barriers or other disadvantages. The Monash Oakleigh Legal Service is part of the Faculty of Law at Monash University. It is staffed by final year and graduate law students working under the close supervision of qualified solicitors to assist in legal matters brought to them by clients – members of the community. Once you have an appointment, make sure you bring any facts and documents with you. Note that whilst this advice is free, taking legal action – such as having letters of demand sent or going to court – will incur costs.
Address: 60 Beddoe Avenue, Clayton North, 3168
Ph: (03) 9905 4336
Fax: (03) 9905 1113
Website: www.communitylaw.org.au/monashoakleigh
Law Institute Victoria Legal Referral Service
Whilst the Legal Referral Service does not provide any legal service, they can provide you with a FREE initial thirty minute enquiry interview with a lawyer from a law firm – this may help you to determine the nature of the legal issue, discuss available options as well as looking at a rough estimate of the costs involved in proceeding with the matter in question.
IT IS IMPORTANT TO NOTE that normal fees will apply if you request the solicitor to undertake any legal work on your behalf – this would include reading contracts and writing letter.
Your referral letter should list up to 3 firms practicing in the relevant area of law – you may make an appointment for a FREE thirty minute enquiry interview with ONE of those firms; only one letter will be provided by Legal Referral Service per legal matter. You will need to take this referral letter with your to your enquiry interview.
Ph: (03) 9607 9550 – for enquiries about Legal Referral Service as well as to obtain a referral
Hours: Mon-Fri, (am-5pm.
Website: www.liv.asn.au/Referral
Email: referrals@liv.asn.au
Please note the online legal referral service is available 24 hours a day but make sure that you have access to a functioning printer so that you may print your referral letter, which you will need to take with you to your thirty minute enquiry interview.
Family Relationship Centre
As an alternative to going down the legal track, the Family Relationship centre offers family dispute resolution - mediation and conciliation – by independent practitioner/s to separated/separating families.
Ph: 1800 050 321
Website: www.familyrelationships.gov.au
Victims Support Agency Helpline
Ph: 1800 819 817
Legal Online
Online info on crime, driving – vehicles, license and registration, road safety; drugs and alcohol – includes info on drink driving; building and building disputes; money – includes contracts, credit and debt; relationships – including info on de facto relationships, children, divorce, property settlement, ‘same-sex’ (non-hetero) relationships, property settlement, wills, sex, violence, births deaths and marriages; plus more.
Website: www.legalonline.vic.gov.au
Collaborative Professionals Victoria
This process differs from mediation – you may wish to look into this option.
Ph: (03) 9607 9365
Website: www.liv.asn.au/collablaw
Court Network
Ph: 1800 681 614
Legal Services Commissioner
Ph: 1300 796 344
Melbourne Magistrates Court
Website: www.magistratescourt.vic.gov.au
For further assistance, contact the Women's Information Referral Exchance ("wire"). You can also drop in to the Women's Information Centre: 210 Lonsdale Street, Melbourne 10.30am to 5pm Monday to Friday or visit www.wire.org.au
Email: inforequests@wire.org.au
For hearing impaired: 133-677
For free, confidential information, support and referrals, local call statewide (excl. mobiles) : 1300-134-130 Interpreter available upon request.
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