Law and Legal Service Reform

Definition

Law and Legal Service Reform include activities undertaken to change the law and legal process, or to improve the provision of legal assistance services. These activities often seek to improve equitable access to, and the effectiveness of, the justice system for the benefit of particular disadvantaged groups within the community and the Australian community as a whole.

Law and Legal Service Reform Activities may include:

• participation in research, analysis
• participation in evaluation activities, including programme evaluation
• developing papers about legal assistance services and systems
• developing submissions to government, parliamentary body or other inquiry to provide factual information and/or advice
• strategic advocacy, such as law reform work.

Law and Legal Service Reform Activities focus upon resolving systemic issues affecting the ability of people facing economic, social and other disadvantage to access or receive justice. While in some cases, this involves services delivered to a disadvantaged client, these services focus upon maximising benefits for the wider community or a vulnerable group within the community.

CLCs Australia received feedback that there is no need to have a separate category for LLR Resources as opposed to LLR Activities. 

For CLASS users, refer to CLASS Documentation for information about service characteristics that can be recorded for Community Project services.

How many services?

Each Law and Legal Reform Activity has a specific deliverable and usually occurs on one date – see the example set out below.

Case studies and examples

Example: Centre decides to lodge a submission on youth crime in response to a state government inquiry.  In CLASS they create a Community Project called Youth Crime Inquiry 2019, and then record the following Services:

• Submission developed and sent = LLR Activity 1
• Attending Inquiry on 5 September 2019 = LLR Activity 2
• Meeting with Attorney-General on 10 September = LLR Activity 3
• Meeting with local MPs on 16 September, 21 September and 5 October = LLR Activities 4, 5 and 6
• Talking to journalist 10 October = LLR Activity 7
  
  

Case Study – Submission to Senate Inquiry

Some Community Project activities do not fall neatly into one Service Type or another. See Community Project for examples.

If you have more case studies, please send them to us – see the Feedback page.