- Published:
- Thursday 18 July 2024 at 1:47 am
Back Row: Legal Assistant Paula Doyle, Acting Regional Manager Slav Subbotin, Legal Assistant Casey Vanstan, Acting Senior Lawyer Nick Tsekinis, Lawyer Ropate Cabealawa, Lawyer Alyssa Evans, Family Lawyer Luchia Ador
Front row: Legal Assistant Kali Barnes, Legal Assistant Maureen Wilksch, Lawyer Ajith Anawaratna, Legal Assistant Hailey Crute, Administrative Services Manager Janelle Bales
Absent: Regional Manager Karla Randle and Senior Lawyer Erica Weatherly
Our Horsham office on Wotjobaluk, Jaadwa, Jadawadjali, Wergaia and Jupagulk country recently celebrated its 20-year anniversary.
A valued member of the Wimmera community, the office has seen significant growth since opening in April 2004.
Acting Regional Manager Slav Subbotin has seen much of that growth, having been with our Horsham office for the last 16 years.
‘We initially had seven staff when our office opened in 2004, comprising a regional managing lawyer, administrative services manager, three lawyers and two legal assistants.
‘Since then, we have doubled and grown to 14 staff, including a regional managing lawyer, administrative services manager, seven lawyers and five legal assistants,’ said Slav.
Our office services courts in Horsham, Stawell, St Arnaud, Edenhope, Hopetoun and Nhill and advises on family law, criminal law, child protection and family violence. We have also delivered community legal education programs in these areas as well as Ararat and Dimboola.
A vital part of the local community
A stalwart of our Horsham office, Administrative Services Manager Janelle Bales has been a part of our Wimmera team for 17 years, and has had a front row seat to plenty of changes in her time.
‘We have seen a big increase in support services locally, including The Orange Door Network, Family Relationship Centre, Ballarat and Grampians Community Legal Service, Grampians Community Health and Uniting Wimmera.
‘But perhaps one of the biggest wins since the establishment of the office is the impact we have had in the community. Through provision of services, engagement with local stakeholders and delivery of community legal education, the local community has gone from having very little knowledge or interaction with us to heavily relying on the services we provide,’ said Janelle.
The affection in which the office is held by the community is also reciprocated by our staff, who have close relationships with the local community.
‘One of the great things about our small office is that we share a close relationship with a lot of our clients, many of whom have a long history with us, and will sometimes come to the office seeking the assistance of a lawyer that has not worked with us for many years.
‘We have one client who we helped many years ago, yet regularly returns to our office to catch up with our receptionist and talk about footy, the Royal Family and Elvis. Another elderly client attends regularly and has difficulty hearing our team, but we send him to the audiologist over the road, which usually results in him being sent to the doctor for an ear infection.
'These vulnerable clients often have queries that don’t fit our guidelines or are even of a legal nature. However, it demonstrates the community values what we do and seek our assistance when they have a problem, due to our compassion and care,’ said Janelle.
Committed to each other
Like all our regional offices, our Horsham office is a tight crew, and bring camaraderie, care and compassion to the office each day.
‘Being a small team, we reach out and lean on other team members when needed, and each client success is the success of the whole office, and not just the individual lawyer.
‘This was exemplified recently when one of our lawyers completed their first County Court plea and had a great outcome for the client.
‘The first thing our lawyer did was thank every member of the admin team for their contribution to the matter.
‘Our friendly team culture and commitment to each other are what make this office great, and has made working here an absolute pleasure,’ said Slav.
The team also welcomes Karla Randle who recently joined the Horsham office as regional manager, and is relishing her new role, while getting to know her team.
‘The team here is fantastic. Everyone has been so welcoming and supportive, and I’d particularly like to thank Slav for going the extra mile in showing me the ropes, and sharing his wealth of knowledge gained over 16 years,’ said Karla.
More information
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