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Panels

In order to provide legal aid services to a legal aid applicant you must be on Victoria Legal Aid’s referral panels. 

Practitioners on the Section 30 panel (general panel) have their applications for legal assistance processed via full assessment, ie, Applicants or their lawyers are to provide VLA with all relevant information so that the applications can be assessed by Assignments staff.

Section 29A panels are panels established for different classes of matters.  Appointment to each panel is limited to a specified period:

Currently all s29A panels except for the Independent Children’s Lawyer panel utilise the simplified grants process. The simplified grants process (SGP) requires lawyers to certify via checklists that the application meets VLA’s merits test and guidelines for funding.

This process is underpinned by a strong compliance system which ensures that lawyers on VLA’s section 29A panels have their legally aided matters randomly audited by a team of compliance officers.

The SGP streamlines the administration of the grants process and reduces the administrative costs of providing grants of legal assistance. Lawyers on the section 29A panels are provided with training to assist them in complying with VLA’s requirements. The SGP has proved popular with practitioners because it represents a more collaborative approach to grants administration and reflects the partnership that can and does exist between VLA and lawyers doing legally aided work.

For further information regarding the Section 29A panels please contact Meredith Zantuck on (03) 9606 5205 or Louise James on (03) 9606 55208 or email panels@vla.vic.gov.au

For enquiries regarding compliance issues please contact the Compliance team on (03)9606 5355 or email compliance@vla.vic.gov.au