Governments must act on worsening access to justice workforce crisis
14 November 2025
The private legal profession is indispensable to the delivery of legal aid services ensuring that Australians in need are able to access justice.
However, the availability of these critical services is at risk as many of these practitioners are being forced to wind-back or withdraw from legal aid work as a result of unsustainable rates, unpaid work, overwhelming workloads and administrative burdens.
“Australia’s governments must act urgently to address the workforce crisis that was predicted by the Productivity Commission in 2014 – and has now arrived,” Law Council of Australia Executive Member, Elizabeth Shearer said.
“Without their intervention, the provision of legal aid delivery in this country will be decimated.
“The National Access to Justice Partnership, which commenced in July of this year, included a welcome increase in funding for legal assistance services, but it did not adequately support private practitioners despite the essential role they play in meeting the legal needs of vulnerable Australians.
“More than 70 per cent of approved legal aid matters are assigned to private practitioners. That is over 100,000 cases each year.
“The majority of legal aid work is undertaken by women, often working in sole or small legal practices. Many are located in regional areas. They commonly work with populations affected by domestic and family violence, and with vulnerable children.
“However, long term underfunding means the rates for legal aid work make it simply unsustainable for private practitioners to continue to do this important work. The profession remains willing to provide services to legal aid clients for less than market rates. However, the current remuneration is below the cost of delivering services, making it unfeasible for practices to continue to do legal aid work.
“Private practitioners have made it clear they simply cannot keep their businesses viable and continue to provide legal aid unless additional funding is provided by governments.
“We know practitioners have already had to make the tough decision to cease offering legal aid services or believe they will likely need to in the near future. They cannot continue to support access to justice, pay their staff and keep their doors open.
“This is having devastating consequences for vulnerable Australians who cannot be expected to self-navigate through the court system and for regional communities, which heavily rely on local solicitors for legal services, including legal aid and pro bono activities.
“Significant pressure is also being placed on the justice system. It is more difficult for Legal Aid Commissions to find lawyers able to act in legally aided matters in some locations. Representation becomes more costly because fewer practitioners have to cover larger areas, with increased travel time and expenses. And more people are having to represent themselves in matters which can lead to delays, escalating costs, and add to the workload of our courts.
“Funding of legal aid is a shared responsibility between the Commonwealth, State and Territory Governments. At the upcoming meeting of the Standing Council of Attorneys-General, our governments must come together to take steps to allay this crisis.”
Contact
Kristen Connell
P. 0400 054 227
E. kristen.connell@lawcouncil.au
Last Updated on 28/11/2025
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