Disclaimer: The material in this print-out relates to the law as it applies in the state of Victoria. It is intended as a general guide only. Readers should not act on the basis of any material in this print-out without getting legal advice about their own particular situations. Victoria Legal Aid disclaims any liability howsoever caused to any person in respect of any action taken in reliance on the contents of the publication.

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The consultation process on child protection guideline changes

Read the submissions in response to our consultation paper which put forward six proposals to substitute the current child protection legal aid service to ensure clients continue to receive the same level of representation once the amendments take effect.

In November 2015, we released a consultation paper which put forward six proposals to substitute the current child protection legal aid service to ensure clients continue to receive the same level of representation once the amendments take effect.

Download the State Family (Child Protection) Guidelines Consultation Paper.

State Family (Child Protection) Guidelines
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Read the submissions

In addition to informal consultations with stakeholders, we have received the following submissions:

Law Institute of Victoria submission for State Family (Child Protection) Guidelines
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Loddon Campaspe CLC submission for State Family (Child Protection) Guidelines
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Family Inclusion Network Victoria Inc submission for State Family (Child Protection) Guidelines
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Victorian Aboriginal Legal Service submission for State Family (Child Protection) Guidelines
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We also received three confidential submissions and several confidential letters that have not been published on our website.

Overview of feedback

Submissions were largely supportive of the direction taken by the proposals outlined in the consultation paper. Submissions included comments on the resource implications (for both Victoria Legal Aid and other key agencies in the sector) for some of the proposals. Technical comments, as well as views on implementation issues, were provided in response to a number of the proposals.

This feedback informed the development of revised State family guidelines for consideration by the Victoria Legal Aid Board.

Some feedback called for further expansion of the Victoria Legal Aid service guidelines. Where this feedback was out of scope of this guideline change process, it has been fed into the comprehensive review of child protection legal aid services that will commence in the first quarter of 2016.

More information

Read more about each proposal, including feedback, actions and next steps:

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