Access to justice arrangements More resources are necessary to address the scope of unmet need across Australia. Statutory reform is only one part of the path towards improved protections from elder abuse. In many circumstances, the legal provisions that could protect an older person from abuse already exist, but the person has no means to access them. Access to justice is pivotal in ensuring the effective function of the law. Legal Aid is seeking to expand our services to older people, but this is unlikely in a difficult funding environment. Research indicates that older people face significant and unique difficulties in accessing legal assistance. As Australia’s population ages, more attention must be given to the needs of our older population. To meet these needs, it is critical that legal, health and community services have adequate funding. Many older people are excluded from accessing a grant of legal aid as a result of the Legal Aid means test. The maximum allowed weekly income for any client is $411.49; whereas the maximum pension payment rate for a single adult is currently indexed at $436.95 per week. On this basis alone, many older people are prohibited from accessing a grant of aid – this is exacerbated further when factoring in asset limits such as equity in the family home. The Productivity Commission has noted that there is a significant justice gap in Australia for those who cannot afford private legal assistance but do not qualify for a grant of legal aid. Many older people fall into this category. Legal Aid Commissions are not resourced to meet this gap: The present means tests used by the LACs are restrictive, reflecting the limited funds available. The income tests are below many established measures of relative poverty. It is not the case that people are ‘too wealthy’ to be eligible for legal assistance, but rather that they are ‘not sufficiently impoverished’. Ensuring access to justice for older clients should not be seen as a cost, but an investment. Former Chief Justice Gleeson noted that on a systemic level “What is not so obvious, and not so easily measurable, but what is real and substantial, is the cost of the delay, disruption and inefficiency, which results from absence or denial of legal representation.” The personal costs of elder abuse may be far greater. Understanding and responding to elder abuse Elder abuse is a complex and multi-faceted phenomenon. To institute appropriate legal responses, we must have an understanding of the way elder abuse occurs across different cross-sections of Australian
Access to justice arrangements More resources are necessary to address the scope of unmet need across Australia. Statutory reform is only one part of the path towards improved protections from elder abuse. In many circumstances, the legal provisions that could protect an older person from abuse already exist, but the person has no means to access them. Access to justice is pivotal in ensuring the effective function of the law. Legal Aid is seeking to expand our services to older people, but this is unlikely in a difficult funding environment. Research indicates that older people face significant and unique difficulties in accessing legal assistance. As Australia’s population ages, more attention must be given to the needs of our older population. To meet these needs, it is critical that legal, health and community services have adequate funding. Many older people are excluded from accessing a grant of legal aid as a result of the Legal Aid means test. The maximum allowed weekly income for any client is $411.49; whereas the maximum pension payment rate for a single adult is currently indexed at $436.95 per week. On this basis alone, many older people are prohibited from accessing a grant of aid – this is exacerbated further when factoring in asset limits such as equity in the family home. The Productivity Commission has noted that there is a significant justice gap in Australia for those who cannot afford private legal assistance but do not qualify for a grant of legal aid. Many older people fall into this category. Legal Aid Commissions are not resourced to meet this gap: The present means tests used by the LACs are restrictive, reflecting the limited funds available. The income tests are below many established measures of relative poverty. It is not the case that people are ‘too wealthy’ to be eligible for legal assistance, but rather that they are ‘not sufficiently impoverished’. Ensuring access to justice for older clients should not be seen as a cost, but an investment. Former Chief Justice Gleeson noted that on a systemic level “What is not so obvious, and not so easily measurable, but what is real and substantial, is the cost of the delay, disruption and inefficiency, which results from absence or denial of legal representation.” The personal costs of elder abuse may be far greater. Understanding and responding to elder abuse Elder abuse is a complex and multi-faceted phenomenon. To institute appropriate legal responses, we must have an understanding of the way elder abuse occurs across different cross-sections of Australian
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