Background
The Victorian state government procures legal services through a whole-of-government legal services panel (Victorian Legal Services Panel). The current Victorian Legal Services Panel commenced on 1 July 2023 and consists of 37 law firms approved to provide legal services across 12 areas of law. The Victorian Legal Services Panel will end on 30 June 2026, unless extended by the Victorian government for a further 1 year, in accordance with clause 2.2 of the Deed of Standing Offer.
The pro bono provisions
All firms on the Victorian Legal Services Panel (each a “Service Provider”) must comply with the pro bono guidelines set out in the Deed of Standing Offer. This requires Service Providers to provide an amount of approved pro bono legal services equivalent to an agreed proportion of the value of all fees generated for the firm through the Panel. Each Service Provider’s agreed proportion is negotiated individually, and is not publicly available.
Schedule 6 of the Deed of Standing Offer sets out the meaning of ‘approved pro bono legal services’. These are pro bono legal services provided to a priority group for an approved cause. Schedule 6 also defines the terms “pro bono services”, “priority group” and “approved cause”.
“Pro bono services” include:
- the provision of legal assistance for free or at a substantially reduced fee to priority groups;
- law reform and policy work on issues affecting priority groups or issues of public interest; and
- the provision of free community legal education on issues affecting priority groups or are of public interest.
“Priority groups” means:
- individuals with a need for legal assistance, but who may not be eligible for Legal Aid or other access schemes without incurring significant financial hardship;
- individuals or organisations whose matter raises an issue of public interest which would not otherwise be pursued; and
- charities/not-for-profits/social enterprises where their sole or primary purposes is to work in the interests of low income or disadvantaged members of the community or the public good.
“Approved cause” means:
- the provision of pro bono services within Victoria or which will benefit priority groups based in Victoria.
Additionally, 60% of the Service Provider’s pro bono work must be undertaken in collaboration with Justice Connect or a Community Legal Centre operating within Victoria for the benefit of Victorians.
A Service Provider may face suspension from the Panel or any area of law if they fail to meet their pro bono obligations. However, Service Providers may also seek approval from the Department of Justice and Community Services (DJCS) to make a payment in lieu of providing some or all of the required pro bono services. If approved, the payment must be paid to the person or entity, specified by DJCS, that provides legal services to the priority group for the approved cause.
Service Providers are required to keep records of their pro bono services under the Deed of Standing Offer and submit reports quarterly on the pro bono services provided during each financial year.
Conflicts of interest
Clause 21.2 of the Deed of Standing Offer provides that Service Providers may act against the state in pro bono matters where there is no conflict of interest in them doing so.
Pro bono secondment obligations
The Victorian Legal Services Panel also contains pro bono secondment provisions that require Service Providers that meet certain criteria to provide secondee services to Victorian Community Legal Centres (Victorian CLCs). This is in addition to the pro bono requirements described above.
From 1 January 2025, if a Service Provider has 150 or more legal practitioners engaged in Australia on 30 June in each contract year, they will be required to provide 1,748 hours of secondment services to CLCs each following contract year. This is equivalent to the number of hours that one full-time equivalent staff member would work each year, less leave entitlements.
Service Providers may provide the total number of secondment hours in whatever manner is agreed between them and one or more Victorian CLCs. For example, a Service Provider may provide multiple secondees to one or more Victorian CLCs for the total number of hours required, over a shorter period than 12 months.
Service Providers may elect not to provide pro bono secondment services and instead make a payment in lieu of these services of $130,000 per annum into a Pro Bono Secondment Services Fund administered by the Department of Justice and Community Safety (DJCS). The payment in lieu can be prorated where a provider has delivered eligible secondment services totalling fewer than 1,748 hours. Up to the first $30,000 of each provider’s payment in lieu will be used to cover administration costs and training pro bono secondees, with the remainder evenly distributed to “Priority CLCs”, as defined by DJCS, as untied funding.
For more information
Further information on the Victorian Panel can be found here.
You can also find more discussion of pro bono provisions in government tender arrangements – including a comparison of the arrangements put in place by the Commonwealth, Victorian, New South Wales, South Australian, Western Australian and Queensland Governments – here.