Access to VOCAT Assistance

Organisations reliant on grants or funding from government, in our case funding at the discretion of the Victims of Crime Assistance Tribunal, are often challenged with the commercial realities impinging on the organisation’s purpose.

The low compensation the Tribunal affords us is compounded by the delay in payment so there are seasons when our staff express the sense of their work not being valued. Finding the right people who can get the balance between legal skills, managing 300 matters at a time, and communicating with clients in a trauma-informed way, has been difficult at times. In the last few years, we have been able to recruit some really good quality people and reset the foundations.

We are open for new referrals.

We note the Victims helpline and the government websites are directing victims to Legal Aid and Community Legal Centres. These organisations are under immense pressure servicing existing clients. Community Legal Centre Australia’s published a paper last month, “A Sector In Crisis”, reporting that 2 out of 3 people seeking assistance are being turned away from these organisations. As an organisation, YourLawyer firmly believes that no victim should be left without the support they need. We are committed to ensuring that victims have access to the legal assistance they require through our VOCAT services as well as other relevant legal services such as crime compensation and personal injury claims, where appropriate.

VOCAT services are free to the victim – we are funded by the Tribunal and will continue to be funded under the new Financial Assistance Scheme. It is clear that community legal centres are not coping and frustrating that organisations like ours are not being used to relieve some of the burden.

Despite these challenges, we remain steadfast in our commitment to providing exceptional legal support to victims. We reaffirm our commitment to ensuring that no victim is left without the necessary support. We believe that by working collaboratively, we can alleviate some of the burden on overstretched support services.

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