Guide
Legal volunteering opportunities in Victoria
If you would like to give some of your time, Victoria has many ways to do it. This guide shows you where the opportunities are, and settles the two practical questions first: your practising certificate and your insurance.
On this page
The certificate
Start with your authority to practise. If you hold a current Victorian practising certificate as a principal, employee, corporate lawyer, government lawyer or barrister, section 47(5) of the Legal Profession Uniform Law (Victoria) also authorises you to practise "as a volunteer at a community legal service, or otherwise on a pro bono basis". Any condition on your own certificate still applies. The Uniform Law is Schedule 1 to the Legal Profession Uniform Law Application Act 2014 (Vic).
If you are not otherwise practising, you can apply to the Victorian Legal Services Board + Commissioner for a certificate under section 47(1)(c). It authorises practice "both as a volunteer at a community legal service and otherwise on a pro bono basis, only". The Board charges no fee for it. A government lawyer who holds no certificate can apply for the same one.
The Board requires every applicant to have an organisation to be assigned to. Arrange your volunteer role first, then apply with that organisation as your entity.
The insurance
Insurance is a separate question, and one to settle before your first shift. The Uniform Law notes that all legal practice as a volunteer or on a pro bono basis needs to be covered by an approved insurance policy (section 211, note 3).
- At a community legal centre. Section 213 of the Uniform Law (Victoria) requires a community legal service to hold an approved policy that covers the service, each lawyer who practises for it, and that legal practice. The Board states that the centre will generally arrange cover for its volunteers. Confirm that with the centre before you begin.
- In-house and government lawyers. The Board states that corporate and government lawyers do not need professional indemnity insurance unless they volunteer at a community legal service or intend to provide pro bono legal services elsewhere. In those cases they must be covered.
- Pro bono work outside a centre. The Australian Pro Bono Centre runs the National Pro Bono Professional Indemnity Insurance Scheme. It gives free cover to lawyers and paralegals on projects the Centre has approved, and only where no other professional indemnity insurance is available. Each project needs a Supervising Lawyer with an unrestricted or unsupervised practising certificate, and must fit the policy's definition of pro bono work. A corporate or government lawyer who cannot obtain cover through the Centre must obtain a private policy and have it approved by the Board.
- Lawyers in private practice, and barristers. Confirm with your insurer, and your firm if you have one, that the work you plan to take is covered before you take it.
Community legal centres
There is no central application. The Federation of Community Legal Centres suggests you search for a centre near you, or one that matches your interests, and then look into that centre's own volunteer opportunities. Intakes are small and periodic, so if the first centre is not recruiting, check back or try another.
| Centre | Who it takes | How it works |
|---|---|---|
| Fitzroy Legal Service | Lawyers with a current practising certificate; people studying or holding a law or other relevant degree, who start as administrative assistants and may progress to paralegal | Day Service and Night Service shifts; a commitment of at least twelve months; recruits twice a year |
| Tenants Victoria | Law students, practical legal training students and others committed to community service | One to two days a week for at least six months; casework support, drafting and attending VCAT hearings |
| Victorian Aboriginal Legal Service | Volunteers in legal, policy, administrative, fundraising and events roles | Expression of interest form; some areas require you to be studying, or to have completed, a law degree |
| Djirra | Primarily people with experience in or studying law; also students of community development, social work, policy, Aboriginal studies, or marketing and communications | Volunteer and student placement program, subject to capacity |
| Refugee Legal | Lawyers and registered migration agents; paralegal, research and administrative volunteers | Application, information session, interview, reference check, then training |
| Disability Discrimination Legal Service | Third and fourth year law students first, then other law students, then people with disability community experience | Volunteer Application Form, by post or email |
| Environmental Justice Australia | Law students who have completed at least one full-time-equivalent year of an LLB or JD, and recent law graduates | Weekly placements of one full day for at least a semester; two-week summer or winter internships; a First Nations internship program |
| JobWatch | Law students through partner universities | Interns work mainly on the Telephone Information Service after training |
| Inner Melbourne Community Legal, Youthlaw, Mental Health Legal Centre, Consumer Action Law Centre | Varies | Each publishes a volunteer page; check it for whether intake is open |
Southside Justice advertises volunteer positions as they arise. The centres are mapped in Community legal centres in Melbourne.
Pro bono referral for firms and solicitors
Justice Connect is a community legal service and legal charity with a network of pro bono lawyers. Law firms and legal teams join as members at one of three levels: Strategic, Engaged or Active Partner. Their lawyers take referrals and staff clinics across its programs: Homeless Law, Seniors Law, Self-representation Law, Connections and Not-for-profit Law. Individuals can register an interest in volunteering.
The Law Institute of Victoria's Find Your Lawyer Referral Service lets the public refine a search to lawyers offering free or pro bono services.
For barristers
Barristers reach pro bono work through the Victorian Bar.
| Scheme | How it works |
|---|---|
| Victorian Bar Pro Bono Scheme | Puts members of the public in touch with barristers who may be able to help on a pro bono basis. It is supervised by the Bar's Pro Bono Committee and administered by Justice Connect. Applicants must meet its Eligibility Guidelines on legal merit, financial means and the lack of other help. The Bar directs criminal law and family law matters to Victoria Legal Aid or a community legal centre. |
| Victorian Bar Pro Bono Court Referral Scheme | Operated by the Victorian Bar in conjunction with the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia, for family law proceedings. Referrals are made on the Court's initiative through an online platform. Barristers who practise in family law are notified and are not required to accept. |
| Court and tribunal referral arrangements | Victorian barristers also receive direct referrals for pro bono assistance under arrangements the Bar has in place with various courts and tribunals. |
New lawyers and students
If you are newly admitted, the Board confirms that volunteer work can count toward your period of supervised legal practice, which section 49(1) of the Uniform Law (Victoria) sets at the equivalent of 18 months or two years, depending on how you qualified for admission. Keep records of your hours, and obtain a supervisor letter from each place. Part-time work counts pro rata. The Board generally does not treat paralegal work or policy work as legal practice, and you cannot do unsupervised volunteer work while the condition applies.
Several centres refer to practical legal training students on their volunteer pages, including Inner Melbourne Community Legal, Tenants Victoria and Youthlaw. Justice Connect also recruits practical legal training students for placements.
Law schools run clinical programs with supervised work for real clients:
- Monash Law: clinics including a Family Violence Clinic and a Social Security Rights Victoria Clinic.
- Melbourne Law School: Melbourne Law School Clinics, including the Public Interest Law Clinic.
- Deakin: Deakin Law Clinic, across generalist, criminal, employment, family and policy advocacy law.
- La Trobe: placements at the La Trobe Law Clinic and its community clinics.
- RMIT: Clinical Legal Education, a Juris Doctor elective run through the Centre for Innovative Justice.
- Victoria University: clinical legal education programs with partners including Victoria Legal Aid.
Roles that do not involve giving legal advice
Some roles ask for your time and judgment without any legal advice.
- Court Network. Volunteers, known as Networkers, give free, non-legal support, information and referral to people at court. You commit to a regular roster for at least twelve months after training.
- Honorary justices. Justices of the peace and bail justices are volunteers appointed by the Governor in Council under the Honorary Justices Act 2014 (Vic), sections 7 and 14. Justices of the peace witness and certify documents. Bail justices conduct bail and remand hearings, mainly outside business hours.
- Boards. Youthlaw's board positions are voluntary, and it invites nominations from its members at each annual general meeting. Board service is governance: the Australian Pro Bono Centre's definition does not count time spent on a community organisation's board as pro bono legal work.
The National Pro Bono Target
The National Pro Bono Target is a voluntary and aspirational target run by the Australian Pro Bono Centre: at least 35 hours of pro bono legal services per lawyer per year. Law firms, incorporated legal practices, individual solicitors, individual barristers and barristers' chambers can sign. For in-house corporate and government lawyers, as teams or individuals, the target is at least 20 hours. Signatories report each year, and the Centre publishes a de-identified report.
Listings in the Atlas are editorial. Placement and order are never purchasable.
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