Out and about in the regions

I spent most of last week out and about in the regions, first to Goulburn and Bowral then down to Wollongong, Nowra and Moruya. These regional visits have become a real highlight, giving me the chance to meet with practitioners working in our regional cities and country towns and discuss the issues unique to their local area. Topics high on the agenda on this particular visit included local court resources, Indigenous justice, COVID-19 and the ongoing impact of the devastating 2019/2020 bushfires.

When I visit the regions, I am always impressed by the extent of the community work undertaken by members of our profession - whether that be supporting charities and community causes, providing pro bono legal advice, working as volunteer members of the State Emergency Service or Rural Fire Service, sitting on committees for not-for-profit organisations, serving on school boards and parent associations, or providing support and networking opportunities to other solicitors through our regional law societies.

On this trip I have been reminding people that primary producers and small business owners can still access legal aid to deal with legal issues arising from the bushfires through the Commonwealth funded Bushfire Legal Aid Scheme. Practitioners can apply for an Early Resolution Assistance (ERA) approval of $2000 in professional fees for legal services and up to $5000 for disbursements. This process doesn’t involve a lot of red tape - practitioners need to register once via Legal Aid’s Grants Online Portal (if they are not already registered) and then they can apply for the grants. However, time is running out to apply for these grants, as the scheme closes on 30 June 2021.

Finally, members interested in taking part in the Law Society’s mentoring programs, either as a mentor or a mentee, need to be aware that applications for the program close this Friday, 21 May 2021. We have three uniquely targeted mentoring programs available for members - the Graduate Mentoring Program, Early Career Lawyers Mentoring Program and the Women’s Mentoring Program. These programs have been developed to support lawyers at different stages of their careers by connecting them with experienced lawyers who can help them focus on their personal and professional development. 

Juliana Warner, President, the Law Society of NSW

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