Law Council representatives meet with parliamentarians
14 March 2024
In February and March 2024, representatives from the Law Council, including Mr Greg McIntyre SC (President), Mr James Popple (CEO), Mr Mark Fenlon (Co-Chair, Rural, Regional and Remote Committee) and members of the Policy Division, attended numerous meetings with Parliamentarians and their staff. The purpose of these meetings was to promote the Law Council’s Higher Education Loan Program (HELP) debt reduction and indexation relief policy for lawyers who live and work in RRR locations, in addition to discussing the Law Council’s October 2023 submission to the Independent Review of the National Legal Assistance Partnership (NLAP) and aspects of its January 2024 Pre-Budget submission.
The Law Council met with Parliamentarians across the political spectrum, including Mr Graham Perrett MP (Labor), Senator Michaelia Cash (Liberal), Senator Jacqui Lambie (Independent for Tasmania) and Ms Rebekha Sharkie (Independent for Mayo, South Australia). The Law Council also met with advisors to the Hon Mark Dreyfus KC MP (Attorney General), Senator Katy Gallagher (Minister for Finance), the Hon Kristy McBain MP (Minister for Regional Development, Local Government and Territories) and Dr Helen Haines MP (Independent Member for Indi, Victoria). Most of these meetings were held at Parliament House in Canberra, with some held over video conference.
The meetings were productive, with attendees receptive to the Law Council’s HELP relief proposal as an incentivisation tool for lawyers to relocate to—and stay in—certain RRR areas. The Law Council emphasised at each meeting that the majority of casework for legally assisted persons is undertaken by the private profession, particularly in RRR areas, and raised concerns about the threat of supply failure due to the increasing financial unviability of taking on legal aid briefs and the chronic shortages of lawyers in some areas.
The Law Council will continue to seek meetings with Parliamentarians—and other stakeholders—in the coming months to discuss its HELP debt relief proposal and the urgent need for increased Commonwealth funding for the legal assistance sector, including increased fees for private practitioners taking on legal aid work. The upcoming release of the NLAP Review Report will likely provide a further opportunity for the Law Council to engage across the Parliament in regards to policies and funding measures that will assist in the recruitment and retention of lawyers in RRR areas and address unmet legal need in these communities.
Last Updated on 20/06/2024