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Hundreds of women fleeing family violence will be left without critical legal assistance when a 30 per cent federal government funding cut comes into effect this year, a Bendigo legal service provider says.
ARC Justice executive officer Hayley Mansfield said the organisation would lose $121,000 in funding between its two community legal centres in Bendigo and the Goulburn Valley from July 1.
Ms Mansfield said the centres would lose a full-time, dedicated family violence solicitor under the cuts, meaning the number of people the organisation could help would fall by 240 cases per year, with family violence a factor in more than 67 per cent of those.
“Last year we helped 2347 clients, that is 2347 people who had nowhere else to turn to for legal advice and support at a time of crisis in their life,” she said.
“We will have to cut back on our advice and casework services and women and children fleeing family violence will suffer most.”
Loddon Campaspe Community Legal Centre legal practice manager Clare Sauro said assistance from the centre’s lawyers could mean the difference between a woman being in a position of strength and the prospect of having to face further intimidation from a violent partner during the legal process.
“It would be being with her at court if he is being aggressive and making sure that we’re spending time with her so that we’re separating her from him so we’re walking between her and him, making sure they’re sitting in different parts of the court and we’re shielding her from any of his outbursts,” she said.
“[Or] maybe he’s breaching the order in a more subtle way, for example driving past her house, or making a comment on Facebook, which is a general comment which might not name her but is really about her – talking her through how that is a breach of an intervention order and helping her work with the police to report that.
“Our view is it’s an incredibly important part of our work and it really affects most of our clients, even in matters where they haven’t come in for an issue around family violence, often it become apparent that it is part of their case and we make sure we take it into account when we’re then advising or assisting that person.”
A spokeswoman for federal Attorney-General George Brandis said Commonwealth funding for the LCCLC had increased by more than 230 per cent since 2010.
She said the government supported the important work of the legal assistance sector and was providing substantial funding to front-line services.
“Even in a resource constrained environment, the Australian government is providing over $1.6 billion for legal aid, community legal centres and Indigenous legal assistance between 2015 and 2020,” she said.
“On top of this, the Turnbull Government has provided an extra $45 million for front-line legal assistance services as part of its $200 million investment to reduce violence against women and children. This is new money for new services.”