Other support for mental health and disability

Mental health laws in Victoria changed on 1 September 2023. You can read more about these important changes on the Department of Health website.

Mental health and your rights

How we can help

Our lawyers regularly visit the mental health inpatient units of hospitals in Melbourne, Bendigo, Dandenong and Geelong.

Our other free legal services include help at court. For some matters, we can also provide you with a lawyer to help you run your case.

We also have a range of mental health and disability resources that can help you, including:

• Are you on a treatment order? (also available in Vietnamese, Arabic, Italian, Spanish, Turkish, Greek, Traditional Chinese, Simplified Chinese, Dari, Macedonian, and Persian)
• Compulsory treatment plans: do you need help from a lawyer?
• Supervised treatment orders: do you need help from a lawyer?

Independent Mental Health Advocacy

If you are on a compulsory treatment order advocates from Independent Mental Health Advocacy can support you to have your say about your assessment, treatment and recovery. They will:

• listen to what you want and talk to you about your options
• give you information and support to act on your rights
• work with you so you can have your say
• refer you to other services as needed.

Find out how you can get support. This service is independent, free and confidential.

Other organisations that can help

Legal services

Your local community legal centre can give you legal information and advice. Most services are free.

Mental Health Legal Centre (MHLC) provides a free and confidential legal service to Victorians with a lived experience of mental illness or involvement with the mental health system.

Victorian Aboriginal Legal Service (VALS) provides legal advice, referrals and casework to First Nations people in Victoria including Mental Health Tribunal matters.

The Law Institute of Victoria can refer you to a private lawyer who can give you legal advice and represent you in court.

You can also find a private lawyer near you through the Law Institute of Victoria’s Legal Referral Service. All law firms included in the Legal Referral Service provide a free 30-minute interview. Note that the free interview is not 30 minutes of free legal advice. You can use this interview to understand more about the legal issue and discuss the available options and how much they will cost.

Mental health and referral services

The Department of Health is responsible for publicly funded mental health services. They have information about the Mental Health and Wellbeing Act, including a Mental Health and Wellbeing Act Handbook and Statements of Rights in English and other languages.

They also have a list of mental health service providers that offer advice and referral information.

Health Vic has booklets in English and other languages about patient rights that cover:

• involuntary patients
• restricted treatment orders
• security patients
• electroconvulsive therapy
• major non-psychiatric treatment
• non-custodial supervision orders.

Review of compulsory treatment orders

The Mental Health Tribunal is an independent tribunal that makes decisions about compulsory treatment orders and electroconvulsive treatment (ECT). It hears applications by authorised psychiatrists to make orders and applications seeking revocation (cancellation) of orders.

The Mental Health Tribunal also has a range of publications and forms.

Guardianship and administration orders

The Office of the Public Advocate is an independent statutory office, working to promote the interests, rights and dignity of Victorians with a disability. It provides advice about advocacy, guardianship, powers of attorney (including enduring guardianship) and consent to medical and dental treatment.

The Guardianship List of the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal makes orders, such as guardianship and administration orders for people over 18 who may not be able to make reasonable decisions about themselves, their circumstances, or their financial and legal affairs.

Complaints

The Mental Health Complaints Commissioner investigates complaints about publicly funded mental health service providers.

The Health Complaints Commissioner helps people with concerns about their health service providers, including privacy of health information.

The Victorian Ombudsman investigates actions and decisions by:

• government departments
• public statutory bodies, and
• municipal (local) councils.

If you have not been treated fairly by the police, we have information on how you can make a complaint about police.

You can also make a complaint about harassment or discrimination.

Support services

Other services that may be able to help you are:

• Kids Helpline
• Lifeline
• Mensline.

National Disability Insurance Scheme

How we can help

We may be able to help you with an external review in the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) by providing a free legal representative from our organisation. If you have already asked for an external review in the AAT, we also may be able to represent you if you meet our guidelines for legal assistance and an NDIS internal review decision has been made to:

• not let you join the NDIS
• stop you being part of the NDIS
• not fund (or limit) particular supports in your plan
• limit funding to you because of compensation you have received.

To apply for legal assistance please complete the form Application for NDIS Appeals Legal Services and email it to ndis@vla.vic.gov.au or post to:

Grants and Quality Assurance
GPO Box 4380
Melbourne VIC 3001

You may be able to get assistance from a disability advocacy organisation to prepare and lodge an application for legal assistance with our organisation.

Disability advocacy organisations

Disability advocacy organisations provide free individual advocacy and information for people with a disability in Victoria.

They may be able to provide help with preparing an application for legal assistance. They may also be able to help you with asking for an internal and external review in the AAT. You can find local advocacy organisations via the Disability Advocacy Finder. You can also use the finder to locate disability advocacy organisations with expertise in your disability or other circumstances.

More information

• Read more about Your review rights and the NDIS.
• Read about the National Disability Insurance Scheme.

We also provide legal assistance for veterans

We may also be able to help war veterans, war widows, and their dependants with some legal matters about pensions and payments.

We may be able to provide assistance for appeals to the Administrative Appeals Tribunal from a decision of the Veterans’ Review Board for:

• decisions about pensions for war-caused injury, disease or death
• some decisions about incapacity payments and compensation payments for permanent impairment relating to warlike or non-warlike service.

War veterans do not need to satisfy a means test to get a grant of legal assistance.

Other organisations that can help

Social Security Rights Victoria

Social Security Rights Victoria is a community legal centre that provides assistance, including legal help, to people with social security problems.

Community legal centres

Your local community legal centre can give you legal information and advice. Most services are free.

Legal Aid Commissions (outside Victoria)

Your local legal aid commission can give you information and advice.

Economic Justice Australia

Economic Justice Australia is a network of community legal centres throughout Australia that specialise in social security law.

Resources about Centrelink and the Disability Support Pension

• Disagree with a Centrelink decision?
• Am I old enough? Common legal issues for young people

See a list of all our free publications and resources.

We also have a video on Centrelink debts.

Economic Justice Australia

A range of fact sheets about Centrelink and social security matters are on the Economic Justice Australia website.

Centrelink

Centrelink has online estimators to help you estimate or compare various payments that you might get based on your circumstances.

The Services Australia website has information about Centrelink, including:

• owing money for a Centrelink debt
• reporting your earnings
• payments and services.

The Guide to Australian Government payments also has information about eligibility and payment rates for a wide range of Centrelink payments.

The Law Handbook

The Law Handbook from Fitzroy Legal Service has information about Centrelink payments and eligibility requirements:

• Dealing with social security.

Insurance discrimination

Other organisations that can help

Consumer Action Law Centre

The Consumer Action Law Centre gives free legal advice and representation to vulnerable and disadvantaged consumers across Victoria. If you are an individual consumer in a dispute with a credit provider, the centre can give you free advice on your rights and obligations.

Their resources and toolkits assist consumers and consumer advocates to deal directly with complaints, disputes and problems arising in the consumer marketplace.

National Debt Helpline

The National Debt Helpline and live chat service can help with debt problems by explaining your rights, giving legal information and referring you to a financial counsellor.

Consumer Affairs Victoria

Consumer Affairs Victoria provides advice to consumers, businesses and other organisations. You can contact them to:

• resolve a dispute
• make a complaint
• dob in a scam.

Do Not Call Register

Register your home, personal mobile or fax number to the Do Not Call Register to reduce telemarketing calls. Registration is free.

Complaints

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) can help you take action to resolve a consumer problem. For information about how to make a complaint and your consumer rights, read the ACCC website.

If you can't sort out problems with your electricity, gas (natural or LPG) or water provider and need help you can contact the Energy and Water Ombudsman (Victoria). Their website answers some of the most common questions and give you advice to assist you to handle your own enquiries and complaints. They also have an online chat service.

If you can’t resolve a complaint directly with your telephone company or internet provider contact the Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman.

The Victorian Ombudsman provides information on what to do if you have a complaint about a Victorian government body, and how they can help.

Consumer credit ombudsman service

The Australian Financial Complaints Authority (AFCA) is a free service for people who borrow money from credit companies(or other financial service providers), insurance companies and superannuation trustees.

Lenders have to be a member of this service. They have to tell you about this service and your rights when you make a contract.

You must complain directly to the company before you make a complaint to AFCA.

Resources about insurance discrimination

• Dealing with door-to-door sales (video series)
• Buying a car (video)

See a list of all our free publications and resources.

Consumer Affairs Victoria

The Consumer Affairs Victoria website has information to help buyers with their rights when they are shopping, including:

• bag searches
• shop breakages
• refunds
• buying a car
• shopping online
• getting goods repaired or replaced
• getting a refund.

Consumer Action Law Centre

The Consumer Action Law Centre website has information to help consumers with:

• resolving a dispute about goods and services
• making a complaint
• what to do if your purchase is faulty.

Australian Competition and Consumer Commission

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) website includes information and publications for consumer and businesses. There is information about shopping online, protecting yourself from scams, getting a refund, warranties, how to write a complaint letter and consumer protection.

Australian Communications Consumer Action Network

The Australian Communications Consumer Action Network (ACCAN) website has information about your rights for phones and the internet, including information about:

• choosing a mobile phone plan
• travelling overseas with a mobile
• tracking data and internet use
• avoiding scams
• connecting and using your NBN home phone service.

Victorian Ombudsman

The Victorian Ombudsman website has information about making complaints about services from local councils, Victorian universities and TAFEs and other government organisations such as VicRoads or Fines Victoria.