Legal Aid Port Macquarie
Hannaway Lawyers Pty Ltd is a private law practice in Port Macquarie and is an accredited specialist in family law. Hannaway Lawyers is also a member of a small specialised panel appointed by the legal aid commission to undertake legal aid matters on their behalf.
Our firm also has a team of qualified independent children’s lawyers. Despite being a highly qualified private practice that represents clients in a range of cases, we undertake to do a portion of our work with people who qualify for a legal aid grant.
Recent changes to the law mean that attorneys must have a minimum of two years experience with such cases to get on the summary crime panel for criminal law. Both Douglas and Gabrielle at our firm meet those requirements.
When you hire our firm to pursue your case through legal aid, you can count on the best defence and the helpful guidance of specialists who know their profession inside out.
How can I qualify for a legal aid grant?
We can assist you with your application form regarding legal aid. The forms assess your financial means (your income and property), the merit of your case (whether it is likely to succeed and whether the cost can be justified), and whether you meet legal aid policy guidelines.
Clients are eligible for legal aid if they are on a government allowance, in custody or receiving a very low income.
Legal aid requires you to provide several documents to accompany your application as follows:
- A Centrelink statement, obtained from your local Centrelink office
- The previous two months worth of your bank statements
- Children's birth certificates
- Marriage certificate if there is one
It can take several days to several months to obtain a response from the legal aid commission depending on their number of applications that have to be processed. The legal aid commission will provide a letter to the client as well as the lawyer with the outcome of their decision.
Legal aid is not granted for all types of matters. Below are some of the areas in which legal aid can be granted:
- Family law & de facto relationships
- Child support
- Criminal law
- Children & criminal law
- Consumer issues
- Tenancy, caravan park & retirement village disputes
- Domestic violence
- Child welfare
- Refugee applications
- Disputes with government departments (such as social security)
- Discrimination & civil liberties
- Protected estate matters
- Mental health & guardianship matters
- Veterans' pension appeals
- Public interest environmental matters
- Prisoners
- Separate representatives for children in family court matters
- Public interest coronial inquests
To find out in further detail in which areas legal aid is granted, view the legal aid policies in brief.
