Care and Protection

Why are you replacing the current system?

Legal Aid NSW wants to create an environment where you can do your best work. That includes better systems and clearer processes. Our responsibility is to create a system that supports you to support clients and makes legal aid work sustainable for you as private practitioners.

What will happen if you don’t replace the current system?

Replacing Grants Online is not optional. The current system is outdated, insecure and unable to handle the growing demand. Continuing with it would put client data and service deliver at risk. This includes managing payments to private practitioners doing legal aid work.

The funding for LA Apply (the new Legal Aid NSW grants management system) came from a specific source of funding that could not be used for private practitioner fees. This work is about upgrading legacy government systems to remove risk of failure, and it is expected to deliver a high return for all users in efficiency, stability and ease of use.

Why is Legal Aid NSW introducing lump sum fees for care and protection?

We received a lot of feedback that some of our panel practitioners did not know what they could claim and when. This meant that some lawyers didn’t claim anything or less than they should to avoid making a mistake. We heard that this led to inconsistencies in how practitioners were being paid.

Panel practitioners should all be paid the same amount of money for the same work. There should be consistency in what is being paid to panel practitioners.

The fee scale has been simplified and clarified. Our aim in doing this is for it to be easier for all panel practitioners to understand and apply.

Lump sum fees mean that you don’t need to keep coming back and asking for more funding. You will get the same amount for each matter. We understand that this means there will be some matters that you will be paid more for than you would have under the previous fee scale and some less, that it will be “swings and roundabouts”.

We also understand that there will be some matters that are much more complex and will require extra funding. This is why we have developed guidelines for when extra funding will be available.

Can I still claim disbursements?

Yes. After 2 February 2026 you will still be able to claim disbursements in the same way as you claimed them under the old fee scale.

What are the transitional fee arrangements?

Whenever a new fee scale is introduced, whether that be in care and protection or any another jurisdiction, the new fee scale must apply to funding decisions made on or after the implementation date.

This means that applications made and processed after the implementation date will have the new fee scale applied.

Our act does not allow us to make retrospective funding decisions. We acknowledge that in certain circumstances some private lawyers will likely receive less funding where they have an existing matter.

Unfortunately, this is unavoidable.

If you do have questions about the transitional arrangements, you can either call us on 1800 411 823 (option 2) or email us at servicedesk@legalaid.nsw.gov.au

Can I request additional fees for exceptional circumstances more than once for each stage of a matter?

No. This is a one-off fee for matters where it is determined that there are exceptional circumstances that warrant additional funding for preparation at either the establishment and placement stage or for preparation for final hearing.

When can I claim fees for each stage of a matter?

As with all fees, you can only claim once you have done the work.

The lump sum can be claimed at the completion of the work for that stage of funding. We understand that some of these matters can go for some time, so you will still be able to make multiple claims on the lump sum. You are still only able to claim fees for work that has been completed.

When submitting a claim, you are asked to certify the claim is correct and accurately reflects the services undertaken. Claiming the lump sum and certifying that work has been done, when it hasn’t, may be a breach of the Legal Aid NSW Service Agreement.

What can I claim when I transfer a matter (or receive a transfer of a matter) in the establishment and placement phase?

You will be able to claim a part of the lump sum. If you are transferring a matter, this should represent the work completed before the matter is transferred. If you are receiving a transfer of a matter, this should represent the work required from when you receive the transfer until the end of the establishment and placement phase. Where this is clear on the transfer application, the lump sum may be adjusted by Legal Aid NSW grants on transfer of the matter.

Please note that transfers will only be approved in exceptional circumstances.

Can I claim the funding for preparation approved for an interim hearing prior to 2 February 2026 and funding for preparation under the new fee scale?

No. You can only claim the preparation fee ($975) once.

If you had funding for an interim approved prior to 2 February 2026 and then received additional funding for the same interim hearing under the new fee scale, you can claim either:

• the new lump sum fee for preparation ($975), or
• the fee approved prior to 2 February 2026 (totalling $975) for:
  • preparation of court documents ($585), and
  • preparation ($390).

If you claim more than $975 for preparation, the claim will be disallowed and you may need to resubmit your claim, delaying payment to you.

How is “contested and/or requires judicial determination” different from “defended hearing” for court time?

We received feedback during our consultations that the definition of the term ‘defended hearing’ was too restrictive as it only allowed practitioners to claim when matters were listed for discrete hearings. We heard that the ‘defended hearing’ definition did not allow practitioners to claim for matters dealt with on court list days, even though arguments about establishment and interim applications would regularly need to be made and applications judicially determined.

In the new fee scale, we have removed reference to ‘defended hearing’ and have included the term ‘contested and/or ‘requires judicial determination’. This change is intended to expand the scope of court appearances caught by this phrase and will allow more practitioners to claim for the work that they do in relation to establishment and interim applications.

What do the changes in delegations mean for me?

Currently grants staff determine all grants of aid for care and protection matters, not private lawyers. In practice, this means that panel practitioners submit grants of aid which then are reviewed and determined by grants division staff. This can delay the grants of aid being approved and involves double handling.

From 2 February 2026, the CEO has given private lawyers delegation to determine certain care and protection applications for legal aid.

In simple terms, this means panel lawyers will make decisions about granting and refusing legal aid rather than someone in grants.

This means that when you are determining an application for aid, you are deciding whether your client meets all the eligibility requirements.

This should mean that you are able to obtain grants of aid faster and you can get on with representing your clients.

We encourage you learn more about your delegations and how to exercise them by reviewing the resources about delegations in Policy resources.

There is also a dedicated email address for delegation questions: delegation.questions@legalaid.nsw.gov.au

We continue to work through the feedback you have provided. We hope to implement improvements that better support you and the work you do. We will provide regular updates to you about our progress, as well as updating the Panel Practitioner Feedback document (PDF, 209KB), so please check back regularly.

If you have questions or feedback in relation to the changes, or want to provide feedback about how we can better support you and the work you do, please send us an email at: carechanges@legalaid.nsw.gov.au