Questions about my legal aid

Yes, your lawyer can talk to someone you choose about your matter.  You will have to give your lawyer permission (authority) to speak or write to that person about your matter.

Talk to your lawyer about how to do this.

We pay your lawyer directly.  Your lawyer is not allowed to charge you whilst you have a grant of legal aid.  However, you will have to pay your lawyer for any costs incurred before you get a grant of legal aid or for any costs incurred if your grant is concluded or terminated.

Your lawyer may not be available to discuss your matter with you at the time of your call or email as they may be in court or in other appointments. 

If after several attempts to contact your lawyer, you still have not received a response you can contact the Grants Division on 02 9219 5880 to discuss your concerns. 

You may only request to change your lawyer under exceptional circumstances.  These include:

• a conflict of interest
  
• when the lawyer is or becomes unavailable
• where Legal Aid NSW determines there has been a breakdown in the relationship between you and your lawyer
• where Legal Aid NSW decides that changing lawyers is an appropriate use of resources

When deciding whether we will change your lawyer, we will consider:

• the reasons you want to change your lawyer and if there are exceptional circumstances,
• the amount of work that has been done by your lawyer,
• the amount of money spent my Legal Aid NSW so far, and
• where the proceedings are up to.

In cases where a request to change your lawyer is refused, Legal Aid NSW will continue your grant of legal aid on the condition that you continue to provide instructions and cooperate with your assigned lawyer.

Legal Aid NSW may consider terminating your grant of aid if you refuse to continue to provide instructions or don’t cooperate with your assigned lawyer.

If you need to change your lawyer because of exceptional circumstances, you can ask your current lawyer to submit a transfer via Grants Online.

If you cannot get in contact with your current lawyer, you must put your request in writing.  Please include your full name, legal aid reference number, the name of your lawyer and the reasons for the transfer, and sent your request to the Grants Division of Legal Aid NSW at:

The Grants Division of Legal Aid NSW
PO Box K847
Haymarket NSW 1240

or by email to:

Family Law matters
Criminal Law matters 
Civil Law matters

Legal Aid NSW imposes an initial contribution in most legally aided matters.  Payment of the initial contribution is a condition of the grant.  This means you must pay the contribution amount imposed.  The amount and how to pay will be outlined in your approval letter.

In some matters, a final contribution may be imposed at the end of a grant of legal aid.

If your lawyer is in private practice or works at a Community Legal Centre (not at a Legal Aid NSW office) you should pay your contribution directly to him or her.

If your lawyer works at a Legal Aid NSW office, you have the following options for paying your contribution:

>By BPAY using internet banking. Your BPAY details can be found in the letter you received from Legal Aid NSW advising you of your debt. You can also obtain your BPAY details from any Legal Aid NSW office or by calling us on (02) 9219 5189.

>In person at any post office using cash, cheque or EFTPOS. Your Post Billpay details can be found on the letter you received from Legal Aid NSW advising you of your debt. You can also obtain these details from any Legal Aid NSW office or by calling us on (02) 9219 5189.

>By Centrepay. Please complete the Centrepay form and take it to your nearest Centrelink office or Legal Aid NSW office. If your debt is $500 or more, please call us on (02) 9219 5189 before completing a Centrepay form. Go to servicesaustralia.gov.au/centrepay for more information.

>By credit card (MasterCard or Visa) online or by calling us on (02) 9219 5189. There is a 0.4% surcharge for credit card payments. When paying online you need to enter your File Reference, which is F+your Legal Aid File ID (see below) e.g. F14C001122

If you own a home and are approved a grant of legal aid, you will have to pay back the total costs Legal Aid NSW spends on your matter.  Signing a Charge Agreement is a way of making sure that we will be paid back the legal costs we spend on your matter.  This is a condition of the grant.  You will be advised of the final amount at the end of your matter.

Legal Aid NSW will not force the sale of your home and will recover total costs when you sell or refinance your home in the future.   However, you can choose to pay us back anytime.

Yes, we can talk to someone you choose about your application or grant of aid.  You will have to give us permission (authority) to speak or write to that person about your application or grant of aid.

You can do this by completing a client authority form.

If you are not satisfied with the decision made by Legal Aid NSW you may be able to appeal the decision. This right of appeal is given under section 56 of the Legal Aid Commission Act 1979.

Not all decisions can be appealed, however. For example, you cannot appeal against a condition that you are to be represented by a Legal Aid NSW officer, a Public Defender, or a private practitioner.

Click here for further information.