The information you give us in the Help Before Court form will be received by trained legal assistants who are not lawyers. They will normally contact you within 4 business days (Monday-Friday).
We will use this information to:
- assess how we can help you
- get information about your case from the agency that charged you if required. For example, this might be Victoria Police, a government department or a local council.
If you are not eligible to speak with a lawyer, the legal assistants will provide you with legal information or refer you to other services.
If you are eligible, they will ask for your consent to pass on your information to a lawyer. The lawyer may be employed by Victoria Legal Aid or they may be a private lawyer paid by Victoria Legal Aid to deliver this service. We will tell you which office at Victoria Legal Aid you are referred to or the name of the private lawyer or firm before you consent.
We may use the information you provide in the Help Before Court form for training purposes or to help us to improve the service. We may use the email address you provide to send you a survey about how we assisted you to help us improve the service.
We value your privacy and have a duty to keep your information confidential. We collect the minimum information needed to both help you and meet our legal obligations. When we ask you for personal information, we will tell you how we will use it. You can choose to not give us your name and contact details but this may mean that we are not able to help you as much.
If you have an enquiry or complaint about privacy
For questions about our privacy obligations and your right to access information held by Victoria Legal Aid you can contact our Internal Legal Services team:
- Tel: (03) 9280 3789
- Email: internallegalservices@vla.vic.gov.au
- Privacy enquiries - privacy@vla.vic.gov.au
- Freedom of Information enquiries – foi@vla.vic.gov.au
- Write to: GPO Box 4380, Melbourne VIC 300
For more information about how we handle your personal information and VLA’s privacy obligations, please view the following resources.
Disclaimer: The material in this print-out relates to the law as it applies in the state of Victoria. It is intended as a general guide only. Readers should not act on the basis of any material in this print-out without getting legal advice about their own particular situations. Victoria Legal Aid disclaims any liability howsoever caused to any person in respect of any action taken in reliance on the contents of the publication.
We help Victorians with their legal problems and represent those who need it most. Find legal answers, chat with us online, or call us. You can speak to us in English or ask for an interpreter. You can also find more legal information at www.legalaid.vic.gov.au
Reviewed 12 January 2024