COVID-19 coronavirus
COVID-19 coronavirus
Learn about legal issues to do with the COVID-19 coronavirus and where Victorians can get help. We will update this page as the situation develops.
For the latest and most reliable health information, updates and advice about COVID-19, please refer to:
The COVID-19 pandemic is affecting people in many ways. A range of legal problems are emerging following the rollout of measures such as quarantining people to limit the spread of the virus.
Common legal problems include:
- employment issues such as pay, leave entitlements and dismissals
- financial hardship for individuals, families and businesses due to loss of income. This might mean being unable to pay bills or fines on time
- child support payments may be affected if a parent loses their job
- Centrelink issues, such as being unable to actively look for work
- tenancy issues, like not being able to pay your rent, or having signed a lease but being unable to travel to Australia
- family violence
- impacts on parenting and contact arrangements for children
- disputes over refunds for cancelled events or travel plans
- people experiencing racism because of perceptions about where the virus came from.
Our topics
- Learn about COVID-19 and parenting issues
- Learn about COVID-19 and discrimination at work
How we can help
Get help over the phone (please note that there may be longer wait times).
Many requests can be dealt with online rather than on the phone. Our live webchat service can provide general information about the law faster than our phone line.
Get help through Legal Help Chat, our live webchat service.
There are some legal problems we don’t give advice about, but we may be able to give you some information over the phone or through our live webchat service. If we can’t help, we can refer you to other organisations that can.