Pro bono response to natural disasters
The Centre’s report, Pro Bono Response to Natural Disasters, synthesises insights from 34 organisations across Australia, including legal aid commissions, community legal centres, referral schemes and law firms into 27 key national recommendations on pro bono best practice in this context.
The report briefly describes the disaster response landscape in New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland, South Australia, Western Australia, and Tasmania, from where contributions to this research were made. It extracts key learnings and recommendations for pro bono practitioners to consider when offering their support during live disasters in each jurisdiction, and how they might better support disaster resilience and preparedness outside of live disasters.
The report also collates key recommendations from across the country to form a blueprint for pro bono practitioners for the future.
Pro Bono Response to Natural Disasters
Best practice pro bono responses to natural disasters.
“Congratulations to the [Australian] Pro Bono Centre on the release of this report! It is an exciting step for the sector as a whole to be considering best practice models for disaster – related legal assistance, and given the likely state of summer and the years ahead, is timely and important. The report is detailed and interesting and I hope serves as a valuable tool for those engaged in supporting communities impacted by extreme weather events.”
Melanie Kallmier
Legal Services Manager and Solicitor at the Mid North Coast Legal Centre
What does the Report include?
The Report includes:
- a description of the disaster response landscape in New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland, South Australia, Western Australia, and Tasmania
- key learnings and recommendations for pro bono practitioners to consider when offering their support during live disasters in each jurisdiction
- recommendations to better support disaster resilience and preparedness outside of live disasters, and
- key recommendations from across the country to form a blueprint for pro bono practitioners for the future.
List of Contributors
The Centre recognises and thanks the following organisations for their contributions to this research:
Organisations | |
| Aboriginal Legal Service NSW/ACT Limited | Law Access Western Australia |
| Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Legal Service (Qld) Ltd | Law Institute of Victoria (through DLHV) |
| ARC Justice | LawRight |
| Ashurst | Law Society of New South Wales |
| Caxton Legal Centre | Legal Aid New South Wales |
| Community Justice Services SA | Legal Aid Queensland |
| Community Legal Centres New South Wales | Legal Services Commission of South Australia |
| Community Legal Centres Queensland | Makinson d’Apice Lawyers |
| Department of Justice Western Australia | Mid North Coast Legal Centre |
| Disaster Legal Help Victoria (DLHV) | MinterEllison |
| Federation of Community Legal Centres | New South Wales Bar Association |
| Financial Rights Legal Centre | Northern Rivers Community Legal Centre |
| Herbert Smith Freehills | Shoalcoast Community Legal Centre |
| Hobart Community Legal Service | Townsville Community Law |
| HopgoodGanim Lawyers | Victorian Aboriginal Legal Service (through DLHV) |
| Hume Riverina Community Legal Service | Victorian Bar (through DLHV) |
| Justice Connect | Victoria Legal Aid (through DLHV) |
| JusticeNet SA | Welfare Rights Centre |
| King & Wood Mallesons | Women’s Legal Service New South Wales |
| Lander & Rogers | |
You can find more of the Centre’s publications and resources here.