The National Pro Bono Resource Centre makes the following submission as an independent centre of expertise that aims to grow the capacity of the Australian legal profession to provide pro bono legal services. In making submissions to this inquiry, the Centre has adopted its concept of “pro bono work” as specifically meaning “pro bono legal work”. The Centre’s work is focused on the provision of pro bono legal work, as opposed to other forms of community service that lawyers may perform, because lawyers have an important role to play in providing access to justice given their exclusive right to practice law. Therefore wherever the Centre uses the term “pro bono work”, it should be taken to mean “pro bono legal work”. The Centre’s comments follows the order in which the Productivity Commission’s Draft Report presents its Draft Recommendations and Information Requests, but only provides responses where an issue relating to the provision of pro bono legal services is raised by the content of the Draft Report. REQUEST 5.3 – In relation to facilitating effective referrals for pro bono legal assistance, the Centre suggests that it would be desirable for there to be a single point for pro bono referrals in NSW as there is in most of the other states and territories, for example in Victoria where Justice Connect coordinates the pro bono referral service which includes the Victorian Bar Pro Bono Scheme and the Law Institute of Victoria Legal Assistance Scheme. Having several separate referral pathways in NSW, with separate pro bono schemes run by Justice Connect, the Law Society of NSW and the NSW Bar Association, creates confusion for people seeking assistance and inefficiencies in the referral process, and is inconsistent with the concept of providing a holistic service. 13.4 A
The National Pro Bono Resource Centre makes the following submission as an independent centre of expertise that aims to grow the capacity of the Australian legal profession to provide pro bono legal services. In making submissions to this inquiry, the Centre has adopted its concept of “pro bono work” as specifically meaning “pro bono legal work”. The Centre’s work is focused on the provision of pro bono legal work, as opposed to other forms of community service that lawyers may perform, because lawyers have an important role to play in providing access to justice given their exclusive right to practice law. Therefore wherever the Centre uses the term “pro bono work”, it should be taken to mean “pro bono legal work”. The Centre’s comments follows the order in which the Productivity Commission’s Draft Report presents its Draft Recommendations and Information Requests, but only provides responses where an issue relating to the provision of pro bono legal services is raised by the content of the Draft Report. 5.3 – In relation to facilitating effective referrals for pro bono legal assistance, the Centre suggests that it would be desirable for there to be a single point for pro bono referrals in NSW as there is in most of the other states and territories, for example in Victoria where Justice Connect coordinates the pro bono referral service which includes the Victorian Bar Pro Bono Scheme and the Law Institute of Victoria Legal Assistance Scheme. Having several separate referral pathways in NSW, with separate pro bono schemes run by Justice Connect, the Law Society of NSW and the NSW Bar Association, creates confusion for people seeking assistance and inefficiencies in the referral process, and is inconsistent with the concept of providing a holistic service. 13.4 REQUEST A
subdr199-access-justice.docx