PRIVATE PRACTITIONER MANUAL - Legal Aid WA

1y ago
39 Views
2 Downloads
562.01 KB
44 Pages
Last View : 3d ago
Last Download : 2m ago
Upload by : Joanna Keil
Transcription

PRIVATE PRACTITIONERMANUALFor Legal Aid WA Panel and List members

Legal Aid WAPrivate Practitioner Manual, Version 8, 1 July 2021Document DetailsDocument ownerLegal Aid WADocument descriptionPrivate Practitioner Manual, Version 8, 1 July 2021Publication dateThursday, 1 July 2021Document HistoryVersionDateAuthor1September 2014Legal Practice DevelopmentFirst published: Version 12September 2014Legal Practice DevelopmentMinor edits: Version 23February 2015Legal Practice DevelopmentClauses modified or added in Version 3:4September 2015Legal Practice 1.8.222.223.323.528.428.529.13536Clauses modified or added in Version 4:325June 2016Legal Practice DevelopmentClauses modified or added in Version ANovember 2016Legal Practice DevelopmentClauses 9.7 and 33 updated email addresses61 August 2017Legal Practice DevelopmentClauses modified or added in Version 6:9.1.19.29.99.11 – 9.1712.113.321.3.2.123.3 – 23-526.227.228.2 – 28.7336A1 May 2018Legal Practice DevelopmentWeb links to LAWA website amended77 March 2019Legal Practice DevelopmentClauses modified or added in Version 7:81 July 2021Practitioner .220.42123.323.723.925-34Clauses modified in Version 8:9.718.1 21.4.1 21.4.1.132Copyright 2021 Legal Aid WA - all rights reservedThis document is the property of Legal Aid WA and may not be copied,transmitted or reproduced by any means without written permissionPage: 2 of 44

Legal Aid WAPrivate Practitioner Manual, Version 8, 1 July 2021ContentsPART 1 PRELIMINARY . 61Interpretation. 62Purpose of this Manual . 73Professional Services Agreement . 74Other guidelines . 75Variation . 86Notices and communications . 86.16.27To the Practitioner . 8To Legal Aid WA . 8Practitioner responsible for accuracy. 8PART 2 GRANTS OF AID . 98Grants of aid. 99Grant for benefit of assisted person . 159.169.17Application must be through GOL . 9Application form – correct law type . 9Application must be complete . 10Application must be accurate . 10Address of applicant . 11Grants Guidelines . 11Urgent applications. 11Work performed before application submitted . 12Multiple matters . 12Duplicate applications . 12Standard conditions of aid must be provided . 13Applicant Declaration – verification and acceptance of conditions of aid . 13Solicitor Declaration - certifying legal merit . 13Notification of grant . 14Terms of grant of aid . 14Payment limit . 14Contribution from assisted person . 1410 Disbursement grant for DR Chairperson services . 1511 Grant of aid for ICL/Child Representative. 1511.1 Notification of ICL/Child Representative grant . 1611.2 Terms of ICL/Child Representative grant . 1611.3 Payment limit for ICL/Child Representative grant . 1612 Extension to grant of aid . 1612.112.212.312.4Request extension in advance . 16Request must be complete and accurate. 17Extension request – grant for assisted person . 17Extension request - grant for ICL/Child Representative services . 18Page: 3 of 44

Legal Aid WAPrivate Practitioner Manual, Version 8, 1 July 202112.5 Notification of extension decision . 18PART 3 ASSIGNING GRANTS OF AID . 2013 Requirements for assigning grants of aid . 2013.1 Assigned practitioner must be member of relevant panel or list . 2013.2 Suspension of assignments . 2014 Assigning grant for assisted person. 2114.1 Guidelines for assigning grant of aid between in-house practitioner and privatepractitioner . 2114.2 Assigning grants for co-accused . 2114.3 Assisted person interstate . 2215 Assigning grant for DR Chairperson or ICL/Child Representative2216 Acceptance of assignment . 2216.116.216.316.4Availability to accept assignments . 22Acceptance may be confirmed . 22Otherwise deemed acceptance . 23Must notify of unavailability in advance . 2317 Transfer of assigned matter . 2317.117.217.317.4DR Chairperson services . 24Requirements for transfer request . 24Transfer Guidelines . 25Notification of transfer decision . 2618 Criminal – new or changed matter type after assignment . 2618.1 New charge and matter type . 2618.2 Change to charge and matter type . 2718.3 Must notify Legal Aid WA of new charge or changed matter type . 27PART 4 PRACTICE AND CASE MANAGEMENT STANDARDS . 2819 Must comply with standards . 2820 Professional standards . 2820.120.220.320.4Legal practitioners . 28Independent Children’s Lawyers and Child Representatives . 28DR Chairpersons . 28Practitioners acting in dispute resolution. 2821 Legal Aid WA standards. 2921.121.221.321.421.521.621.721.8Dealing with Legal Aid WA . 29Dealing with assisted person and parties. 29Obligations when providing legal services . 30Responsibility for legal services . 30Briefing agent or counsel or engaging instructing solicitor. 33Engaging an expert . 33Handling money . 34File management. 34PART 5 REPORTING AND RECORD KEEPING . 3522 Applicable time frame. 35Page: 4 of 44

Legal Aid WAPrivate Practitioner Manual, Version 8, 1 July 202122.1 Generally . 3522.2 Life or indefinite imprisonment . 3523 Reporting and record keeping requirements . 3523.123.223.323.423.523.623.723.823.923.10Request to provide information . 35Practitioner changing firm . 35Information supporting application for grant of aid . 36Information substantiating services and costs . 36Information affecting grant of aid or assignment of grant of aid . 37Information from assisted person . 37Inability to continue to perform services in assigned matter . 38Progress report . 38Final report with claim for payment . 38DR Chairperson report . 39PART 6 CLAIMING PAYMENT FROM LEGAL AID WA . 4024 Legal Aid WA to pay practitioner . 4025 Payment from Legal Aid WA only . 4026 Practitioner must submit claim for payment . 4026.1 Report to be submitted with claim . 4027 Method of payment by Legal Aid WA . 41PART 7 RECONSIDERATION AND REVIEW. 4228 Reconsideration . 4229 Review . 4230 Decisions that can be reconsidered or reviewed . 42PART 8 HELP AND CONTACTS . 4431 Using Grants Online (GOL) . 4432 Contacting the Grants section. 4433 Information for assisted persons . 4434 Panel and list membership enquiries. 44Page: 5 of 44

Legal Aid WAPrivate Practitioner Manual, Version 8, 1 July 2021PART 1 PRELIMINARY1InterpretationIn this manual, unless the contrary intention appears:Act means the Legal Aid Commission Act 1976 (WA);applicant means a person who is applying for a grant of aid;assign or assignment means the allocation of a grant of aid or adisbursement grant to a practitioner to perform legal services;assigned matter means a case matter that is the subject of a grant of aidfrom Legal Aid WA and which has been allocated to a practitioner for theprovision of legal services;assigned practitioner means a practitioner who has been allocated anassigned matter;assisted person means a person who is receiving the benefit of a grant ofaid;audit means to collect, examine and evaluate information to determinecompliance with specified requirements, procedures and standards;contribution means the monetary amount required to be paid by anassisted person to Legal Aid WA, which goes towards the funding of legalservices for the assisted person under a grant of aid;Costs Rules means the Legal Aid Commission (Costs) Rules 1990;DR means dispute resolution;Duty Lawyer Service means duty lawyer services provided by Legal AidWA in any jurisdiction;GOL means the Grants Online system operated by Legal Aid WA for thepurposes of the electronic management of grants of aid;grant of aid means the funding of legal services by Legal Aid WA;Guide to Claiming Payment means the Legal Aid WA Guide to ClaimingPayment and any schedules, annexures or attachments, as published fromtime to time;ICL means Independent Children’s Lawyer;in-house practitioner means a practitioner employed by Legal Aid WA;Legal Aid WA means the Legal Aid Commission of Western Australia,established under the Legal Aid Commission Act 1976 (WA) and itsdelegates;legal services means services provided by a practitioner that are fundedby Legal Aid WA;list means a list of private practitioners set up by Legal Aid WA to providecertain legal services and which is not governed by the requirements in s40of the Act;Page: 6 of 44

Legal Aid WAPrivate Practitioner Manual, Version 8, 1 July 2021manual means this manual including any schedules, annexures andattachments;matter type means the type of legal matter as described by Legal Aid WA,to which the grant of aid applies or will apply;panel means a panel of private legal practitioners set up by Legal Aid WAto provide certain legal services to assisted persons in accordance with s40of the Act;practitioner means an Australian legal practitioner within the meaning ofs3 of the Legal Profession Act 2008 (WA), or a registered Family DisputeResolution Practitioner;private practitioner means a practitioner who provides legal services in aprivate capacity and who is not employed by a government agency, theAboriginal Legal Service or by Legal Aid WA;Professional Services Agreement means the agreement between thePractitioner and Legal Aid WA which makes provision for the terms uponwhich the Practitioner will engage with Legal Aid WA and provide legalservices as a member of a panel or list;restricted practitioner means a practitioner who is entitled to engage inrestricted legal practice only, pursuant to s50 or s72 of the Legal ProfessionAct 2008 (WA);the Practitioner means a private practitioner who has entered into aProfessional Services Agreement with Legal Aid WA to receive and conductassigned matters.2Purpose of this ManualThis manual makes provision for the terms upon which the Practitioner willengage with Legal Aid WA and provide legal services as a member of apanel or list.3Professional Services AgreementThis manual is to be read together with the Professional ServicesAgreement.4Other guidelinesThis manual is to be read together with any other policies, standards orguidelines referred to in this manual or that Legal Aid WA may specify bynotice in writing from time to time.Page: 7 of 44

Legal Aid WAPrivate Practitioner Manual, Version 8, 1 July 20215VariationThe requirements in this manual or in any policies, standards or guidelinesreferred to in clause 4, may be varied by Legal Aid WA at any time.Legal Aid WA will notify the Practitioner in a timely manner of any suchvariation.6Notices and communicationsA notice or other communication required or permitted under this manualwhich is to be served on or provided to the Practitioner or to Legal Aid WAmust be in writing.6.1To the PractitionerUnless the notice or communication is provided through the GOL system oranother electronic system specified by Legal Aid WA, a notice orcommunication to the Practitioner will be provided:a) by email to the address provided by the Practitioner for the service ofnotices; orb) by post or delivered to the business address of the Practitioner.6.2To Legal Aid WAA notice or communication to Legal Aid WA must be provided:a) if required by this manual to be through the GOL system or anotheridentified electronic system, then through that system; orb) if not required to be through the GOL system or another electronicsystem specified by Legal Aid WA, then by email to the address providedby Legal Aid WA for the purpose of such communication or notice.If the notice or communication cannot be provided in accordance withclause 6.2 a) or clause 6.2 b), then it must be provided by post or deliveredto the Head Office of Legal Aid WA in Perth.7Practitioner responsible for accuracyThe Practitioner must take reasonable steps to ensure that all informationprovided to Legal Aid WA is accurate. This includes all information providedin support of an application for a grant of aid, a request for an extension, insupport of a claim for payment and in any report.Any information prepared or submitted to Legal Aid WA by staff on behalfof the Practitioner is taken to have been confirmed by the Practitioner asaccurate.Page: 8 of 44

Legal Aid WAPrivate Practitioner Manual, Version 8, 1 July 2021PART 2 GRANTS OF AID8Grants of aidA grant of aid or a disbursement grant may be made by Legal Aid WA:9 For the benefit of a specific individual who is involved in a legalprocess, referred to as an assisted person; For ICL/Child Representative services; and For DR Chairperson services.Grant for benefit of assisted personA grant of aid may be issued by Legal Aid WA to benefit a specific individualafter an application for aid is lodged and certain eligibility guidelines andrequirements have been met.Grants of aid in these circumstances may be assigned to a practitioner onthe relevant panel.The processes for issuing and managing a grant of aid in thesecircumstances are detailed below.9.1Application must be through GOLThe Practitioner may apply for a grant of aid on behalf of an applicant. Todo so, the Practitioner must complete and submit an electronic applicationform through the Grants Online system (GOL).9.1.1Access to GOLTo access the GOL system, the Practitioner and any of the Practitioner’sadministration staff nominated by the Practitioner, will each be issued withan individual user name and password.User names and passwords must not be shared. Information submittedthrough GOL will be attributed to the person whose user name andpassword is used when submitting the information.If the Practitioner, or a nominated staff member with GOL access, changestheir employment or no longer requires access, the Practitioner must notifyLegal Aid WA immediately.Click here to access the GOL login page.For help with the GOL system, see Part 8 Help and Contacts.9.2Application form – correct law typeThere are different application forms for civil, criminal and family law mattersin the GOL system.Page: 9 of 44

Legal Aid WAPrivate Practitioner Manual, Version 8, 1 July 2021It is important to use the correct form. The application will have to be resubmitted if the incorrect form is used.Please note: a Family Law Application Form must be used for a Family ViolenceRestraining Order matter; a Civil Law Application Form must be used for a Violence RestrainingOrder matter.9.3Application must be completeEvery application for a grant of aid must be fully completed. If not, anapplication may be refused or pended for further information. If furtherinformation is not provided when requested, the application may be refused.Other party or co-accused details must be included to facilitate conflictchecks.Significant aspects of the application should be summarised in thenotes section at L1 of the GOL application form. Legal Aid WA musthave sufficient information to decide: Whether an applicant is financially eligible for assistance; What, if any, contribution should be required from the applicant; and Whether the legal matter is one for which a grant of aid should beprovided.In considering financial eligibility, Legal Aid WA will take into account all ofthe applicant’s significant assets and liabilities and those of any financiallyassociated person. This information must be fully disclosed in theapplication form irrespective of whether the applicant or associated person’sassets are the subject of confiscation proceedings or are included in thelikely distribution of a deceased estate.Information obtained in support of an application for a grant of aid must beretained by the Practitioner in accordance with the Reporting and recordkeeping requirements set out in Part 5.9.4Application must be accurateEvery application must be accurate. This includes providing the correctmatter type to enable Legal Aid WA to consider whether to grant aid and ifaid is granted, to consider the assignment of the grant to a practitioner onthe appropriate panel.The Practitioner must notify Legal Aid WA as soon as practicable afterbecoming aware of any inaccuracy in the information supporting anapplication for a grant of aid, including an inaccuracy in relation to mattertype, in accordance with the Practitioner’s reporting requirements in Part 5.Certain inaccuracies cannot be corrected manually and will require theapplication to be resubmitted, namely where: the applicant’s name has been entered incorrectly;Page: 10 of 44

Legal Aid WAPrivate Practitioner Manual, Version 8, 1 July 2021 the applicant’s date of birth has been entered incorrectly; the applicant’s title is incorrect, for example a female has been giventhe title Mr; or the incorrect application form has been used.9.5Address of applicant9.5.1Postal addressWritten communications from Legal Aid WA to the applicant will be sent tothe postal address if provided and if none is provided, to the home addressprovided.If an applicant’s safety is in issue, the Practitioner should ensure that theapplicant understands how the postal address will be used by Legal Aid WAand prompt them to provide a safe postal address. If necessary for thesafety of the applicant, the Practitioner may choose to allow them to use thePractitioner’s business address as their postal address.If an applicant is in custody, the address of the prison should be included asthe postal address.9.5.2No current addressIf the applicant does not have a current address the Practitioner shouldinclude their own business address as the postal address for the applicant.9.6Grants GuidelinesThe Practitioner must be aware of Legal Aid WA’s current Grants Guidelineswhen completing an application through GOL on behalf of an applicant.These Guidelines will be applied by Legal Aid WA when considering anapplication for a grant of aid, subject to funding restrictions that may arisefrom time to time. Such restrictions may preclude grants of aid being madefor certain matters at certain times.The Grants Guidelines are available in the GOL system and on Legal AidWA’s website under For lawyers – Managing grants of aid – Grantguidelines.9.7Urgent applicationsIf applicable, the Practitioner should indicate whether an application isurgent by including the details of the urgency in the notes section at L1 ofthe application form (where it states “Briefly describe your legal problem”).Examples of matters that will justify classification as urgent may include: Plea within seven days; Trial commencing within four weeks; Appeal nearing expiry date; Family law matter where:Page: 11 of 44

Legal Aid WAPrivate Practitioner Manual, Version 8, 1 July 2021o applicant or child is at immediate risk;o recovery orders are required for the return of children;o urgent injunctive relief is required.In order to alert Legal Aid WA to the urgency of the application, thePractitioner should provide the Request ID associated with the applicationin GOL and the nature of the urgency either by email toGrantsPriority@legalaid.wa.gov.au or telephone on 9261 6530 for crime orcivil law matters, or 9261 6204 for family law matters.The email address provided here must only be used for this purpose andmust not be disclosed to an applicant, assisted person or any other party.9.8Work performed before application submittedPursuant to s 37(5) of the Act, Legal Aid WA may backdate thecommencement date of an assignment of a grant of aid to the Practitionerfor a maximum period of 30 days where: work in the assigned matter has been performed or partly performedprior to an application for a grant of aid being submitted; and Legal Aid WA is satisfied there are good reasons for the delay insubmitting the application.The Practitioner must provide the reasons for the delay in the application forthe grant of aid. They may be included in the notes section at L1 of the GOLapplication form.If Legal Aid WA agrees to backdate the commencement date of theassignment, the written notification of the assignment will include theapproved date of commencement.9.9Multiple mattersGenerally, where there are separate matters to be heard in differentjurisdictions or in different courts and they cannot be brought together to bedealt with, separate applications for a grant of aid must be made. Forexample, two separate application forms must be submitted when there isa family violence restraining order matter and a related family law matter.9.9.1Exception in s32 criminal mattersAn exception arises where summary criminal matters are able to proceedwith matters on indictment, as the subject of a Section 32 Notice. In thiscase the matters on indictment and the matters the subject of the Section32 Notice may be included in the same application for a grant of aid.9.10Duplicate applicationsWhere the Practitioner has previously submitted an application for a grantof aid for an applicant and a new matter arises, or there are multipleapplications required for the same applicant, certain information is likely tobe replicated in each new application.Page: 12 of 44

Legal Aid WAPrivate Practitioner Manual, Version 8, 1 July 2021As a result, the GOL system enables the Practitioner to create a duplicateof a previous application within six months of the previous application.This function is designed to assist the Practitioner by minimising the amountof new information that needs to be inputted into each new application form.It is only appropriate to use a duplicate application where the new matter(s)cannot be dealt with by way of an extension to any existing grant of aid.The requirements in clause 9.3 and clause 9.4 for completeness andaccuracy in an application form apply equally to a duplicate application form.The Practitioner must take reasonable steps to ensure that all informationin each duplicate application form is current, accurate and complete. Thisincludes ensuring that the new application refers to the correct matter type.Requisite evidence of the applicant’s means and assets applicable at thetime of each duplicate application must be obtained and retained inaccordance with the reporting and record keeping requirements set out inPart 5.9.11Standard conditions of aid must be providedWhere an application is submitted by the Practitioner through GOL, thePractitioner must provide the applicant with a copy of the standardConditions of aid applicable to an assisted person.If a copy of the Conditions of aid cannot be provided to the applicant, theymust instead be read to the applicant.The Conditions of aid are available in the GOL system.9.12Applicant Declaration – verification and acceptance ofconditions of aidWhere an application is submitted by the Practitioner through GOL, thePractitioner must ensure the applicant signs the Applicant Declaration toverify the content of the application and to accept the conditions of a grantof aid.If the applicant is unable to sign the Applicant Declaration the Practitionermust read the Declaration to the applicant and make a written record of theapplicant’s verbal declaration and acceptance of the conditions of the grantof aid.The Practitioner must retain a copy of the signed Applicant Declaration orthe written record of the applicant’s verbal declaration, in accordance withthe record keeping requirements in Part 5.9.13Solicitor Declaration - certifying legal meritThe Practitioner must properly consider the merit of the legal matter(s) thesubject of the application and complete the Solicitor Declarationaccording

Practitioner and Legal Aid WA which makes provision for the terms upon which the Practitioner will engage with Legal Aid WA and provide legal services as a member of a panel or list; restricted practitioner means a practitioner who is entitled to engage in restricted legal practice only, pursuant to s50 or s72 of the Legal Profession Act 2008 (WA);

Related Documents:

injury case - may apply for civil legal aid (since this leaflet deals only with civil legal aid, where we refer to "legal aid" we mean "civil legal aid"). Legal aid is financial help from public funds. It helps people who qualify to get legal advice and the help of a solicitor to put their case in court.

Foreign aid has various different forms; economic aid, social aid and "other aid" components are the main ones. Economic aid is a form of physical capital, aid to both infrastructure and the production stage, social aid refers to aid in form of human capital whereas other aid components entail food and emergency aid (Akramova 2012, 119-120).

Is a CLC the same as Legal Aid? Community legal centres are not the same as Legal Aid. Legal Aid NSW is a government body that provides legal services to people who experience significant disadvantage across NSW. Legal Aid provides assistance for criminal, family and civil law plus domestic and family violence.

Training for Candidate Legal Practitioners - 2020 Page 1 of 5 Introduction to the course Before admission as a legal practitioner an LLB graduate must serve as a candidate legal practitioner with a practising legal practitioner and attend a course approved by the Legal Practice Council (LPC). This compulsory course for candidate legal

Training for Candidate Legal Practitioners - 2020 Page 1 of 5 Introduction to the course Before admission as a legal practitioner an LLB graduate must serve as a candidate legal practitioner with a practising legal practitioner and attend a course approved by the Legal Practice Council (LPC). This compulsory course for candidate legal

History of Civil Legal Aid in Oklahoma 1940’s Some county bar organizations provided legal aid to veterans & their families. 1950’s The Oklahoma Bar Association and local United Ways created funding for free civil legal aid. 1964 Legal Aid became part of the U.S. War on Poverty and rec

provides legal aid to defend the accused.”33 State-Subsidized Legal Aid China’s state-subsidized legal aid program is substantial and detailed. Under the Regulations on Legal Aid, the PRC legal aid system has four levels.34 At the national

5541 (SCM 2034) for all animal species (EFSA-Q-2019-00319) A.02.02 Safety and efficacy of 31 flavouring compounds belonging to different chemically defined groups for all animal species (EFSA-Q-2020-00175) A.02.03 Benzoic acid for pigs and poultry as a flavouring compound. FAD-2016-0078 - Supplementary information