Bendigo's future law courts development and the need for more Legal Aid funding are two of the major issues up for discussion as the Law Institute of Victoria visits the city on Thursday.
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The institute's president Stuart Webb and chief executive officer Adam Awty are touring the existing court precinct on Pall Mall and meeting with local members of the legal community.
President of the Bendigo Law Association, Juliana Smith, said visiting Bendigo helped Mr Webb and Mr Awty understand what the Bendigo community was working with when it came to the law courts.
"It's really important for them to see the facilities we have now, so while they're lovely, they're really outdated," Ms Smith said.
The city's legal community has worked for several years to have new court facilities.
In 2017 the state government set aside funds for planning, last year committed money to acquire land, and this year set aside $152 million in the budget for the development.
Mr Webb said the Law Institute wanted to ensure consultation with the relevant stakeholders was taking place as needed, because it was important everyone's needs were being met with so much money invested in the project.
He said it was also vital to ensure the community had a facility that would be suitable to use in decades to come.
The development had not moved as fast as perhaps wanted, Mr Webb said, but he was pleased the government was setting up a consultative committee.
Legal Aid funding is also a significant issue on the agenda. Ms Smith said with an increased population came increased demand for the service.
There were serious shortfalls in funding for the service, Mr Webb said, and more people needed it more often.
John McPherson, a Bendigo lawyer and Law Institute of Victoria councillor, said Mr Webb and Mr Awty would gain an understanding of how this issue manifested in Bendigo.
Mr McPherson said it was not only an issue for lawyers but for the whole of the community, as it was a factor in issues such as safety and the administration of justice.
Mr Webb said the wellbeing of lawyers was another important issue to discuss, as being a lawyer was stressful and challenging, and in the profession there were concerns around rates of mental health issues.
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