Useful legal resources
Following is a list of useful websites collated as an easy-to-access resource. The Law Handbook Online also contains a large database of addresses and links to useful websites that are related to specific topics. To access these links, either go to the topic of your choice and see the "Contacts" section, or click on the "Links" or "Services" tabs above.
For free access to legislation, case judgments and law updates:
Australasian Legal Information Institute (Austlii): www.austlii.edu.au
The ALII provides an online database of Commonwealth and state legislation and cases. It also includes provides tribunal judgments.
Australian Government Attorney-General's Department: www.ag.gov.au
The Attorney-General’s Department provides information about Commonwealth law. There is also access to information about the Australian legal and justice system and related websites.
ComLaw: www.comlaw.gov.au
ComLaw is an integral part of the Australian Law Online initiative to bring law or no cost access to the law for the community. The website provides access to a database of Acts, bills, legislative instruments and new and future law.
Judicial College of Victoria: www.judicialcollege.vic.edu.au
The Judicial College of Victoria provides a number of resources, including publications discussing current laws and recent legislative changes, free online.
Victorian legislation and parliamentary documents: www.legislation.vic.gov.au
This online service lists all bills currently under consideration by the Victorian Parliament and also provides access to the Victorian Statutory Book and Victorian Law Today, which provide a comprehensive listing of Victorian Acts and Statutory Rules.
Victorian Government Solicitors Office: www.vgso.vic.gov.au
The VGSO is the primary source of legal services to the State Government and provides online information about laws and legal cases which affect the government and statutory authorities.
For questions about or assistance with legal issues:
Bushfire Legal Help: www.bushfirelegalhelp.org.au
Bushfire Legal Help is a group of legal service organisations who provide free information and support for Victorians affected by bushfires.
Federation of Community Legal Centres (Victoria) Inc: www.communitylaw.org.au
The Federation is the peak body for over 50 Victorian community legal centres (CLCs). CLCs are independent community organisations that provide free legal services to the public. CLCs focus on helping clients who face economic and social disadvantage and who have nowhere else to go for help. (If you need information about CLCs outside of Victoria, please go to the National Association of Community Legal Centres (NACLC) website.)
Human Rights Law Resource Centre: www.hrlrc.org.au
Australia’s first human rights legal service provides access to relevant publications and resources including the Guide to the Victorian Charter of Human Rights and Responsibilities and the HRLRC Manual.
Law Institute of Victoria (LIV): www.liv.asn.au
The LIV represents the members of Victoria’s legal profession. The LIV provides a free online referral service to the general public, where you are referred to member solicitors throughout Victoria, practicing in the relevant area of law. All law firms included in the legal referral service will provide a thirty minute enquiry interview free of charge. You can use this interview to determine with the solicitor the nature of the legal issue, discuss the available options and receive an estimate of costs to proceed with the matter. The LIV also has for sale a series of legal information brochures that offer a general overview of the law surrounding common legal issues and the ways a lawyer can help.
Public Interest Law Clearing House (PILCH): www.pilch.org.au
The Public Interest Law Clearing House (Vic) Inc is an independent, not-for-profit organisation which is committed to furthering the public interest, improving access to justice and protecting human rights. PILCH facilitates the provision of pro bono legal services and advocates for law reform. A range of manuals, guides, fact sheets and reports are available free online.
Victoria Legal Aid (VLA): www.legalaid.vic.gov.au
Victoria Legal Aid helps people with their legal problems. The website details the various ways the VLA can assist and provides access to publications and legal updates and other legal aid resources.
Youth Law: www.youthlaw.asn.au
Youthlaw is a specialist statewide community legal centre for young people. It provides free and confidential legal advice. It also provides a number of publications and resources online about relevant youth issues and laws.
For assistance with consumer or financial issues:
Consumer Affairs Victoria Resource Centre: www.consumer.vic.gov.au
Consumer Affairs Victoria assists consumers and provides information and resources for a wide range of consumer issues as well as relevant legal changes. Information regarding consumer complaints and assistance is also available.
Financial and Consumer Rights Council Inc. (FCRC): www.fcrc.org.au
The FCRC is the peak body for financial counsellors, consumer rights workers, and other advocates of vulnerable consumers in Victoria.
Financial Counselling (Vic) (FCV): www.financial-counselling.org.au
The FCV endeavours through its casework and community contact to achieve a more just and equitable society. It will provide financial counselling to low income families and individuals.
MoneyHelp: www.moneyhelp.org.au
MoneyHelp provides free, confidential and independent financial information for Victorians experiencing difficulty paying their rent or mortgage or facing job loss.
The Consumer Credit Code: www.creditcode.gov.au
The website provides information for consumers and businesses in relation to the national initiative to standardise credit practice in Australia. It includes information about the new and national regulation of consumer credit.
Assistance for not-for-profit groups:
Our Community: www.ourcommunity.com.au
Our Community is a world-leading social enterprise that provides advice, tools and training for Australia's 600,000 community groups and schools, and practical linkages between the community sector and the general public, business and government.
PilchConnect: www.pilchconnect.org.au
PILCH provides assistance to not-for-profit organisations and has established a specialist service, PilchConnect, to provide free or low cost legal information, advice and training. The portal provides legal resources for not-for-profits, including plain English resources such as fact sheets and checklists.
Some useful online publications:
Environmental Law Online: www.envirolaw.org.au/doku.php
The Environment Defender's Office (Vic) provides the Environmental Law Online as a free resource, offering people a broad range of information on environmental law in Victoria in a single website.
Federal Discrimination Law Online: www.hreoc.gov.au/legal/FDL/index.html
FDL Online is the online version of Federal Discrimination Law produced by the Australian Human Rights Commission (formerly the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission). FDL Online is updated to reflect the latest developments in federal discrimination law and you can register to receive updates to the site as they happen.
Lawyers Weekly: www.lawyersweekly.com.au
This LexisNexis service provides access to free legal websites, legal updates and articles about new cases and legislation.
Rural Law Online: www.rurallaw.org.au
Rural Law Online is designed to give rural Victorians access to plain language information on areas of law which affect you. The national online forums run by Rural Law Online provide all Australians with an opportunity to ask legal questions and get a response from a lawyer in your state or territory.
Victorian Government Gazette: www.gazette.vic.gov.au
The Victorian Government Gazette provides official notification of decisions or actions taken by, or information from the Governor of Victoria, government authorities, government departments, local councils, companies and individuals.
Other useful sites:
BroCAP: www.bsllibrary.org.au
BroCAP is a new online social policy research library developed by the Brotherhood of St Laurence. This new service offers the most current information and is updated daily on a range of social issues. Areas covered include Children and families, education, employment equity financial and social inclusion housing older people immigration and indigenous. This service is an excellent research tool for policy officers, community workers, students and anyone who has an interest in current affairs.
Dispute Settlement Centre of Victoria: www.disputes.vic.gov.au/dscv/
Dispute Settlement Centre of Victoria has a new website offering information on their services, dispute resolution case studies, mediation training, and community legal education. The DSCV assists individuals and groups on a range of issues and has trained mediators to meet the cultural and communication needs of people from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds and offers multi-lingual publications in over 20 community languages.
Reaching Agreement: www.disputes.vic.gov.au/reachingagreement/
Developed by the Dispute Settlement Centre of Victoria, this is a video based website offering practical tips on how to negotiate with your neighbour, avoid conflicts and make lasting agreements. This is a multilingual website in eight community languages and Auslan.
Foolkit: www.foolkit.com.au
A comprehensive and useful free legal "toolkit". Provides general legal information based on the state in which you live, which is then also divided into lawyer and general public tabs.
Lawyers for Animals: http://lawyersforanimals.org.au
Lawyers for Animals is a volunteer-based organisation dedicated to improving the welfare of animals through education and law. Activities include: communicating with politicians and making submissions on Acts, Regulations, Codes of Practice and other laws and policies affecting animals; assisting other animal welfare groups with their work; developing educational materials; publishing articles; and promoting awareness of animal suffering through public-speaking and other events (e.g. during Victorian Law Week). The site contains many useful animal law and welfare links.
Victoria Law: www.victorialaw.org.au
Victoria Law is a new not-for-profit website that helps you find easy to understand information about the law and legal services in Victoria. All the information is supplied by Victorian agencies and government bodies with expertise in legal services and education – so you'll get the right information, straight from the source. There are five ways you can find the information you need – you can search by keyword or browse by topic, agency, language or popular tag. You can also search in five community languages: Chinese, Greek, Somali, Turkish and Vietnamese (in addition to English).
Victoria Online: www.vic.gov.au
This is an online service that provides information about local, state and federal government services. It is an entry point to other websites for matters as diverse as business, health, law and the environment, to name just a few.