Whats New for lawyers providing Legal Aid

 On this page:

CPIP Duty Lawyer Operational Policy Pilot Auckland Region 

14/03/2024 The Criminal Process Improvement Programme (CPIP) identified changes to the duty lawyer service as a key piece of work to help address backlogs and delays in the courts.

The new Duty Lawyer Operational Policy seeks to reduce the number of court events required by supporting timely case progression through a Duty Lawyer or urgently assigned lawyer who can represent a defendant.

The new Duty Lawyer Operational Policy is presently being piloted at three District Courts (Hamilton, Christchurch, and Hutt Valley). The pilots began in September 2023.

A review in January 2024 concluded that the pilots are delivering improved outcomes while fully safeguarding the fair trial rights of defendants.

The decision has been made to continue the new policy at the initial three sites and extend it to the four busiest Auckland region district courts. The opportunity to reduce backlogs and delays in the courts will be greatly expanded by extending the pilot to these courts.

The pilot is scheduled to commence on these dates:

25 March 2024 – Waitakere DC

08 April 2024 – North Shore DC

15 April 2024 – Manukau DC

27 May 2024 – Auckland DC.

Details of information sessions to be provided for the lawyers at each court for will be sent directly to you.

Changes to legal aid funding for section 27 reports

08/03/2024 - The Legal Services Amendment Act received Royal assent on 7 March 2024. This prevents the Legal Services Commissioner (the Commissioner) from funding written reports or in-person appearances, pursuant to section 27 of the Sentencing Act 2002. This change will take effect on Friday 22 March 2024.

Legal Aid Services (LAS) can continue to consider amendment to grant requests for section 27 matters until 22 March 2024.

To enable LAS to assess amendment to grants for section 27 report funding, please submit your requests by 12pm on Thursday 21 March 2024.

LAS will endeavour to assess new amendment to grant requests for section 27 report funding received after 12pm on 21 March 2024, and before 22 March 2024.

Providers can still submit invoices for a section 27 report, but only if the funding for the report was approved before 22 March 2024.

If you have any questions about amendment to grant submissions or invoicing, please contact WGNCriminallegalaid@justice.govt.nz or AKLCriminallegalaid@justice.govt.nz.

Message from the Legal Services Commissioner

29/02/2024 - We have been recently experiencing technical difficulties with our computer system. 

We are working hard to resolve these issues, however, this may result in longer processing times than you are used to. I apologise in advance, please bear with us.

We are working to restore normal service as soon as possible and have also allocated additional Ministry staff to assist with work volumes.

Increase to Accommodation and Meals Disbursement

29/02/2024 - We have increased the Accommodation and Meals disbursement rate from 4 March 2024.

We have undertaken our annual review of the meals and accommodation disbursement for legal aid cases.

We have increased the maximum amount for overnight accommodation and meals to from $266.96 to $275.75 (excl. GST). Where an overnight stay is not required, the rate for meals has remained at $100.00 (excl. GST) per day. You can read more about this disbursement on page 130 of the grant’s handbook which can be found here: Grants handbook(external link)

The new maximum can be claimed on invoices received from 4 March 2024. Any invoices received prior to this date will be paid at the old rate.

In considering the increase, we have aligned the disbursement to the current Ministry expenditure guidelines. While there are no plans to undertake a full market review of the disbursement rates at this time, we intend to review this disbursement annually and will provide any further updates via What’s New for Legal Aid Lawyers in due course.

Thank you for your continued cooperation.

The eligibility for a Family Violence Safety Programme in the Family Court has been expanded

29/02/2024 - From January 2024, people who apply for protection orders without notice, which are then directed to proceed on notice by the judge, will be offered a safety programme before the protection order application is considered.

What does this mean for you?

  • If your client applies for a protection order without notice and this is directed to on notice by the judge, please advise them they are eligible for a safety programme.
  • If they would like to be referred, please provide them with, and if appropriate help them to fill out, the referral form.
  • In line with the current process for referrals to strengthening safety services, any time spent on the referral comes under the tasks covered in the ‘Application(s)/Order(s)’ activity on the family violence applicant fixed fee schedule.

Key points to note:

  • The roles and responsibilities of Ministry staff will be consistent with the current referral process. 
  • Children will be able to access safety programmes when requested by the service provider, as they are best placed to assess the risk to the applicant and their children.

Background to the initiative:

This is the first phase of implementation for the Budget 23 initiative to ‘Improve access to family violence programmes in court and the community’ which will:

  • improve access to safety programmes for victims in family violence proceedings, including when they could be at greater risk
  • support providers of family violence services to deliver more flexible, responsive, and holistic services for their clients and connect them to other necessary services or additional supports.

For further information on the Budget 23 initiative and its implementation, please see the summary of initiatives(external link), or contact moj-fvsv@justice.govt.nz with any questions.

Updates to the Word template package

14/12/2023- A new version of the Word template package will be available from 18 December 2023.

A new version of the Word template package will be available from 18 December 2023. It is important you download these new forms so that all rates calculate correctly.

This update includes the following changes:

  • Pre-hearing administration fees deactivated for Care of Children and Guardianship (CoCA) proceedings
    The fixed fees for available for pre-hearing administration have been removed from the CoCA grants schedules. From 18 December 2023, the fixed fees for Application(s)/Order(s) should be used for these matters instead.
  • New parole fees added to forms 27a
    More information about this change can be found here: New hearing preparation fee for extended parole board matters

  • Fee for DNA test disbursement has been amended to a free text field
    This is to ensure that the Word template package is fit for use in future as this fee changes on a regular basis. This fee has been increased and can be claimed up to a maximum of $623.48 (excl GST) or $717.00 (incl GST).
  •  Changing the mileage rate to GST inclusive
    More information on this change can be found here.

This can be downloaded with instructions from the Ministry website: Download Word template package | New Zealand Ministry of Justice(external link)

Mileage must be claimed as a GST inclusive rate

14/12/2023-As of 18 December 2023, mileage must be invoiced as a GST inclusive rate. This change has been made to align with the kilometre rates set by IRD.

As of 18 December, mileage must be claimed as a GST inclusive rate. This change has been made to ensure that we are aligning with the kilometre rates set by IRD.

The Word template package has been updated to reflect these changes. This can be downloaded with instructions from the Ministry website: Download Word template package | New Zealand Ministry of Justice(external link)

From 18 December 2023, you must use the updated Word template package for the mileage rate to calculate correctly.

Thank you for your patience and co-operation.

Reminder – the nationwide holiday period roster for the PDLA service starts tomorrow

14/12/2023- A reminder that the nationwide roster for the PDLA service will be implemented this Friday. This roster will run from 6pm 15 December 2023 to 6am 8 January 2024.

A reminder that the nationwide roster for the PDLA service will be implemented this Friday. This roster will run from 6pm 15 December 2023 to 6am 8 January 2024.

PDLA lawyers rostered on the nationwide roster for the PDLA service during this period will be paid a flat hourly rate to deliver the service during rostered shifts. During rostered shifts PDLA providers will be answering PDLA calls from all over Aotearoa, New Zealand.

These changes are made to ensure there is timely access to justice throughout the holiday period.
The nationwide holiday period PDLA roster will replace the current lists or rosters used for the service between 6pm 15 December 2023 to 6am on 8 January 2024.

A copy of the nationwide roster for this period can be found on our website below:

justice.govt.nz/about/lawyers-and-service-providers/legal-aid-lawyers/pdla/(external link)

If you have been rostered on to the nationwide roster for this period, please make sure you have checked your rostered shifts and have read the guidelines and information on the page above.

If you have any questions or are no longer available for one of your rostered shifts, please contact duty.lawyer@justice.govt.nz as soon as possible.

Message from the Legal Services Commissioner

14/12/2023- End of year 2023 Message from the Legal Services Commissioner below:

Kia ora,

I want to thank you for the invaluable contribution you have made in providing and improving access to justice this year.

Whilst I acknowledge there have been challenges, I’m pleased with the progress we have made on key initiatives.   

We have seen a number of positive changes in Legal Aid this year with the:

  • increase in eligibility criteria which has seen an increase grants for family and civil Legal Aid
  • increased repayment thresholds have meant 15,900 people have received lower repayment requirements, and over 9,250 people have not had to pay the $50 user charge
  • increase to Duty Lawyer rates and introduction of minimum payments
  • launch of the revised Duty Lawyer policy for CPIP (currently under pilot in Hamilton, Christchurch and Hutt Valley)
  • roll out of the revised audit policy of which we have received positive feedback from you
  • launch of the Criminal fixed fee finder(external link) tool to provide clarity on the various Criminal Fixed Fee Schedules
  • review of the Duty Lawyer Service, which is almost concluded, the report is due early 2024.

Operationally, processing applications in a timely manner has continued to be a strong focus for us as well as ensuring you are being paid as quickly as possible. I’m happy to say that over 95% of invoices are being paid within 10 days.

As we head into the festive season, I hope you are all able to enjoy some downtime with friends and whanau, Legal Aid will only be closed on the stat days for any of you who need to get in touch over that period.

Ngā mihi,

Tracey Baguely

Legal Services Commissioner

Police Detention Legal Assistance (PDLA) Provider Roster and Guidelines for the Holiday Roster Period

30/11/2023 - The nationwide PDLA roster for the period of 15 December 2023 to 8 January 2024 has now been finalised. A copy of the finalised version of the PDLA nationwide holiday roster for this period can be found on our website’s PDLA page below:

Police Detention Legal Assistance | New Zealand Ministry of Justice(external link)

You will also be able to find on the page above:

  • PDLA nationwide holiday roster guidelines. This document contains guidelines and information for PDLA providers on the nationwide roster for how the PDLA service will operate over the holiday period. The document sets out the responsibilities of roster lawyers. If you are rostered onto the PDLA service over the holiday period, please make sure you have read these guidelines before the nationwide roster period starts on 15 December 2023.

  • Information on the Regional contact lists of PDLA providers. This document contains a contact list of PDLA providers broken down by region. This is to be used by PDLA providers on the nationwide roster to refer cases on to another lawyer as necessary (e.g., where attendance is required in person). More information on when it may be necessary to use the regional contact list can be found in the ‘PDLA nationwide holiday roster guidelines’ document. A copy of the Regional List will be emailed to the PDLA lawyers on the roster.

  • Invoice forms for the PDLA service during the holiday roster period. The invoice form found on the page has been created for you to use for the duration of the holiday period to charge for your rostered shifts.

Please note that if you have been assigned to a roster you must be available to take calls for the full duration of your rostered shift.

If you become unavailable for one of your rostered shifts, you must contact duty.lawyer@justice.govt.nz immediately so that a replacement to cover your rostered shift can be organised.

If you have any questions these can continue to be sent to duty.lawyer@justice.govt.nz

Cut-off date for invoices reminder

30/11/2023 - As we approach the end of the year, Legal Aid would like to ensure that it processes all provider invoices as seamlessly as possible. Please ensure that you submit all invoices as early as possible prior to the Christmas break to avoid disappointment.

Friday 1 December 2023 will be the cut-off date for payment of invoices prior to the holiday season. Invoices received after this date, may be processed and paid, but we will not be able to guarantee this.

Thank you for your cooperation in this matter.

Legal aid payments published

28/11/2023 - The Ministry of Justice has published information on legal aid payments to firms in the 2022/23 financial year.

The data shows payments to 1365 firms whose legal aid providers undertook work on a range of cases in the criminal, civil and family courts and a number of specialist courts and tribunals.

In 2022/23, the Ministry spent $256 million on legal aid, which is an increase of $45 million when compared to 2021/22. Following the removal of COVID-19 restrictions, spending has returned to the same level as previous years. The increase to legal aid hourly rates from 1 July 2022 has also increased this spending.

At the end of 2022/23, there were 2396 private lawyers approved to provide legal aid services, working for firms or independently.

You can view the report on the page Legal aid payments to firms(external link).

Platform Change to PDLA Rosters

23/11/2023 - From Thursday 30 November 2023, future PDLA rosters will be published on the Ministry website.

Changing the platform where the rosters are published will allow the Ministry to better maintain the roster. Much of the roster functions will remain unchanged and we don’t expect there to be any operational changes for PDLA lawyers.

To access the PDLA roster on the Ministry website from 30 November, you can use this new URL link: justice.govt.nz/about/lawyers-and-service-providers/legal-aid-lawyers/police-detention-legal-assistance-roster

The pre-existing URL link to the PDLA roster will redirect you to the new website page automatically.

We have developed the factsheet linked below regarding the change that may be helpful for PDLA lawyers.

PDLA Roster Factsheet [DOCX, 164 KB]

Please contact duty.lawyer@justice.govt.nz if you have any questions.

Expressions of interest sought for Legal Aid Provider Selection Committee members - reminder

23/11/2023 - The Ministry of Justice is currently looking to appoint new members to the following Legal Aid Provider Selection Committees, who will consider applications for approval of lawyers to provide legal aid services -

  • five new members for its Waitangi Tribunal and Māori Land Court Selection Committee
  • three new members for its Refugee and Protected Persons Selection Committee
  • and three new members for its Mental Health Selection Committee. 

The New Zealand Law Society Te Kāhui Ture o Aotearoa is now seeking expressions of interest for these positions and will put forward nominations to the Ministry. A person specification for selection committee members is available here: Person specification form - Legal Aid Selection Committee [PDF, 48 KB]

Lawyers who wish to apply should complete and submit the expression of interest form [PDF, 126 KB] by Friday 1 December. For further information, please contact Amanda Frank, Senior Advisor Law Reform and Advocacy at amanda.frank@lawsociety.org.nz

Cut-off date for invoices reminder

23/11/2023 - As we approach the end of the year, Legal Aid would like to ensure that it processes all provider invoices as seamlessly as possible. Please ensure that you submit all invoices as early as possible prior to the Christmas break to avoid disappointment.

Friday 1 December 2023 will be the cut-off date for payment of invoices prior to the holiday season. Invoices received after this date, may be processed and paid, but we will not be able to guarantee this.

Thank you for your cooperation in this matter.

Criminal legal aid assignments published

16/11/2023 - The Ministry of Justice has published information on criminal legal aid assignments for the period 1 July 2022 – 30 June 2023.

The assignment reports show all criminal legal aid assignments made for the period. It includes preferred, reassignments and rotational assignments. The report is broken down by Provider Approval Level (PAL)

This report should not be used to compare rotational assignments between providers.

You can view the report on the page Criminal legal aid assignments - information & criminal case reports(external link).

Cut-off date for invoices reminder

16/11/2023 - As we approach the end of the year, Legal Aid would like to ensure that it processes all provider invoices as seamlessly as possible. Please ensure that you submit all invoices as early as possible prior to the Christmas break to avoid disappointment.

Friday 1 December 2023 will be the cut-off date for payment of invoices prior to the holiday season. Invoices received after this date, may be processed and paid, but we will not be able to guarantee this.

Thank you for your cooperation in this matter.

Reminder - Christmas and New Year availability

16/11/2023 - If you have leave planned over the holidays, please let us know if you:

  • will be away for more than 5 working days
  • are unavailable between Xmas and the New Year (27-29 December 2023 inclusive)
  • are unavailable between 3-5 January 2024

This will ensure that you don’t get disturbed unnecessarily during your break and allows us to identify any areas where provider coverage may be limited.

Please confirm your unavailability dates by email to legalaidprovider@justice.govt.nz no later than Friday 24th November 2023

Cut-off date for invoices reminder

9/11/2023 - As we approach the end of the year, Legal Aid would like to ensure that it processes all provider invoices as seamlessly as possible. Please ensure that you submit all invoices as early as possible prior to the Christmas break to avoid disappointment.

Friday 1 December 2023 will be the cut-off date for payment of invoices prior to the holiday season. Invoices received after this date, may be processed and paid, but we will not be able to guarantee this.

Thank you for your cooperation in this matter.

Survey inviting PDLA lawyers to take part in the roster for the PDLA service over the holiday period set to close on 17 November 2023

9/11/2023 - Legal Aid Services (LAS) released information in an article on What’s new for legal aid lawyers(external link) on our intention to implement a nationwide roster for the Police Detention Legal Assistance (PDLA) service from 15 December 2023 to 8 January 2024.

LAS is currently running a survey aimed to give PDLA providers an opportunity to indicate whether they would like to be part of this roster, and if so, what dates they would be available to be rostered on.

If you have not completed the survey yet, and would like to be included in the nationwide roster over the holiday period, please make sure you complete the survey below:

Expression of interest for nationwide PDLA holiday roster 2023/24 - Ministry of Justice - Citizen Space(external link)

All legal aid providers with PDLA approval, regardless of their PAL level, will have the opportunity to be included in the upcoming roster. Further details on how the roster will operate are included in the survey above.
The survey will close on 17/11/2023. PDLA providers who do not complete the survey by this date will be unable to be included on the holiday period roster.

If you have any further questions about this, please contact duty.lawyer@justice.govt.nz.

Expressions of interest sought for Legal Aid Provider Selection Committee members

9/11/2023 - The Ministry of Justice is currently looking to appoint new members to the following Legal Aid Provider Selection Committees, who will consider applications for approval of lawyers to provide legal aid services -

  • five new members for its Waitangi Tribunal and Māori Land Court Selection Committee
  • three new members for its Refugee and Protected Persons Selection Committee
  • and three new members for its Mental Health Selection Committee. 

The New Zealand Law Society Te Kāhui Ture o Aotearoa is now seeking expressions of interest for these positions and will put forward nominations to the Ministry. A person specification for selection committee members is available here: Person specification form - Legal Aid Selection Committee [PDF, 48 KB]

Lawyers who wish to apply should complete and submit the expression of interest form [PDF, 126 KB] by Friday 1 December. For further information, please contact Amanda Frank, Senior Advisor Law Reform and Advocacy at amanda.frank@lawsociety.org.nz

Duty Lawyer Review – Have Your Say

9/11/2023 - The Legal Services Commissioner has engaged KPMG to undertake an independent review of the duty lawyer service.

The review team will visit a selection of sites to observe the duty lawyer service in action and to interview the various stakeholders engaged with the duty lawyer service. However, the team also want to give lawyers and court managers from across New Zealand the opportunity to express their views on issues relating to the review.

The survey of 5-6 questions, depending on your role, is easy to complete and each question provides space for you to provide your own comments.

Responses to this survey will be anonymous. No identifiable data, or your location will be collected.

You can access the survey here Duty Lawyer Review - Ministry of Justice - Citizen Space(external link).

Or you may contact the review directly you would prefer to give your feedback by email dutylawyerreview@justice.govt.nz

The survey will be closed after 24 November 2023.

Cut-off date for submitting application to provide legal aid services

2/11/2023 - With the end of 2023 fast approaching, the Legal Aid Providers Team are wrapping up more than just gifts!

If you are considering applying for any further Legal Aid approvals before the new year, please note the following key dates:

  • Final applications of the year due to Legal Aid Providers Team: 30 November
  • Final Selection Committee of the year: 21 December
  • First Select Committee of next year: 16 January

Applications received after 30 November will go to a Selection Committee in the new year.

We will endeavor to consider the applications received by the cut-off date prior to Christmas shutdown. However, there is likely to be a delay during this time due to the shutdown period and reduced Selection Committee member availability. We thank you for your patience.

If you have any queries, please don’t hesitate to contact us at legalaidprovider@justice.govt.nz

Reminder - Christmas and New Year availability 

30/10/2023 If you have leave planned over the holidays, please let us know if you:

  • will be away for more than 5 working days
  • are unavailable between Xmas and the New Year (27-29 December 2023 inclusive)
  • are unavailable between 3-5 January 2024

This will ensure that you don’t get disturbed unnecessarily during your break and allows us to identify any areas where provider coverage may be limited.

Please confirm your unavailability dates by email to legalaidprovider@justice.govt.nz no later than Friday 24th November 2023. 

What does it cost to run a legal practice in 2023? Complete the Law Society’s Costs of Practice Survey  

19/10/2023 - Law Society's Cost of Practice Survey

The New Zealand Law Society Te Kāhui Ture o Aotearoa has launched a Costs of Practice Survey with KPMG, to understand the costs of running a legal practice in 2023. The survey also asks a series of more specific questions about a recent legal aid file for those lawyers who provide legal aid services.

The survey should take between 30 – 45 minutes to complete, and the results will be made available to the whole profession. 

Each practice or lawyer who provides legal aid services only needs to complete the survey once. The survey has been sent to all sole practitioners, barristers, and firm administrators, and it closes 15 November 2023.

If your practice has not received an email containing a link to the survey, you can contact consultation@lawsociety.org.nz.

PDLA Nationwide Holiday Roster 2023

19/10/2023 - From 6pm Friday 15 December 2023 until 6am Monday 8 January 2024 a national roster will be in practice to replace all regional PDLA rosters.

Since 2020, Legal Aid Services (LAS) have implemented a temporary nationwide roster for the Police Detention Legal Assistance (PDLA) service over the Christmas/New Year holiday period. This was implemented to provide timely access to justice throughout this period where it may be more difficult to facilitate PDLA contact due to leave and unavailability.

Historically there has been positive feedback on the use of the roster over the Christmas/New Year period.

This year, LAS intends to implement a nationwide roster from 15 December 2023 to 8 January 2024. This will run in a similar manner to the previous years, with PDLA lawyers being paid a flat hourly rate to deliver the service during rostered shifts.

LAS is running a survey aimed to give PDLA providers the opportunity to indicate whether they would like to be included on this year’s roster. Providers who are interested will be given the opportunity to indicate what dates they would be available to be rostered on by completing the survey below:

Expression of interest for nationwide PDLA holiday roster 2023/24 - Ministry of Justice - Citizen Space(external link)

All legal aid providers with PDLA approval, regardless of their PAL, will have the opportunity to be included in the upcoming roster. Further details on how the roster will operate are included in the survey above.

The survey will close on 17/11/2023. PDLA providers who do not complete the survey by this date will be unable to be included on the holiday period roster.

If you have any further questions about this, please contact duty.lawyer@justice.govt.nz 

New Hearing Preparation Fee for Extended Parole Board Matters added to the Parole Fee Schedule

05/10/2023 - A separate hearing preparation fee has been added to the Parole fee schedule (schedule J) for cases where the individual is subject to an indeterminate sentence.  

A new hearing preparation fee has been added to Schedule J: Fee schedule for Parole for offenders serving indeterminate sentences with parole matters before the Extended Parole Board.

This fee is higher than the standard parole hearing preparation fee and has been added in recognition of the additional work and complexity involved in parole matters for offenders serving life sentences or preventive detention before the Extended Parole Board.

The new fixed fee ‘parole hearing preparation – Extended Parole Board’ will be available for preparation for parole matters considered by the Extended Board for the amount of $1200 and will replace the standard $700 fee currently claimable in these cases.

Schedule J in the criminal fixed fee schedule has been updated and is available via the link below:

justice.govt.nz/about/lawyers-and-service-providers/legal-aid-lawyers/proceeding-steps-and-fixed-fee-schedules/(external link)  

This new fee will be available for new grants of legal aid made from 9 October 2023, and where preparation work has been completed on or after this date on parole cases granted prior to 9 October 2023.

For new grants of aid, providers should inform Legal Aid Services if parole will be considered by the Extended Board when applying, so that the appropriate fee can be added to the grants schedule at the time of granting. 

The PDF version of the invoice form (form 27a) for parole has been updated and is available at the link below:

justice.govt.nz/about/lawyers-and-service-providers/legal-aid-lawyers/forms/pdf-legal-aid-forms/(external link)

Form 27a has not yet been updated in the word package, however this will be updated in the near future. In the meantime, if you are using the form in the word package, you can manually enter the new fee where needed until the word package is updated.

Updated Guidance for Legal Aid Selection Committees

05/10/2023 - Legal Aid Selection Committees provide recommendations to the Secretary for Justice about lawyers’ applications for legal aid approvals.

As part of their role, the Committee members are required to apply the Legal Services (Quality Assurance) Regulations 2011.

We have updated the Guidance for Selection Committee members which can be found here(external link). While the Guidance is primarily a resource for the Committee members, it discusses the approval requirements for each area of law, as well discussing the applicable Regulations(external link).

Please note that those applying for legal aid approvals should still refer to the Step-by-step guide(external link) on the Ministry’s website. The Step-by-step guide covers much of the same content as the Guidance and is written with applicants in mind.  

If you have any questions about the updated Guidance, or the application process, please contact Legal Aid Providers at legalaidprovider@justicegovt.nz

Legal Aid Lawyer Finder update

21/09/2023 - Members of the public looking for legal aid representation can find qualified providers using the Legal Aid Lawyer Finder.

The Finder includes contact details and information about approvals for all legal aid providers.

The Ministry has made the Finder easier to locate on the website, as well as updating the user interface and the accompanying guidance for users.

You can find the revised Finder here(external link).

If you have any questions about the finder or if you want to update your contact details, you can contact Legal Aid Providers at legalaidprovider@justice.govt.nz.

Limited Audit Results 2022-2023

21/09/2023 - The 2022-2023 limited audit programme has now been completed.

The audit programme involved an assessment of approximately 1,225 files from 245 providers. These audits spanned the criminal, family, civil and mental health jurisdictions. Going forward, we are aiming to assess around 2,250 files from 450 providers each year.

Each audited provider received an overall rating of ‘meets expectations’ or ‘does not meet expectations’. The limited audit involved an assessment of each provider’s compliance with their file-keeping and invoicing obligations.

It was great to see that 91% of the audited providers met expectations.

File-keeping obligations

We identified some common issues during the audit.  The main file-keeping issues involved failures to:

  • complete time records
  • keep records of the advice provided
  • send regular reporting letters
  • send s 24(external link) notices to the court and other parties (family and civil).

The Ministry has created a set of file-keeping resources designed to help providers meet their obligations. You can find the resources here(external link). Additional information about legal aid providers’ file-keeping obligations can be found in the Practice Standards(external link) and the Provider Contract(external link).

Invoicing obligations

Common invoicing issues found among criminal files, involved inaccurate claims of:

  • Case Management Memorandum (CMM)/Case Review Hearing - preparation
  • Applications and variations (opposed/unopposed) – preparation of submission(s)
  • Preliminary work – when additional charges are added.

The criminal fixed fee finder(external link) tool has been created to provide clarity of any fixed fees criminal providers may claim.

While common invoicing issues identified among family files, involved inaccurate claims of:

  • hearing and conference preparation fees
  • Specialist Reports
  • Memorandum of Consent
  • Interlocutories – document preparation.

If you have any questions about fixed fees or disbursements, please contact the Legal Aid Office for assistance.

Thank you to those who participated in the 2022-2023 limited audit programme, for your cooperation and ongoing contribution to the legal aid scheme.

If you have any questions about the limited audit results, please contact the Legal Aid Providers team at legalaidaudits@justice.govt.nz or give us a call on 04 466 0666.

Legal aid criminal fixed fees support resource online now

7/09/2023 - The Ministry of Justice has created a new learning tool to help legal aid lawyers and their administrative support staff to better understand how to claim criminal fixed fees. 

The new support resource clarifies the criminal fixed fee schedule and provides guidance on which fees can be claimed and when.

While using the tool, you can select fees and then see the total cost for your invoice on the final screen. The tool can be used as a learning resource or in conjunction with the word package templates(external link).

The fixed fee finder(external link) is available the Ministry of Justice website.

Criminal Process Improvement Programme - Duty Lawyer Operational Policy

24/08/2023 - The Criminal Process Improvement Programme (CPIP) is a judicially led justice-sector initiative to improve timely access to justice in New Zealand’s biggest and busiest criminal court, the District Court. A wide programme of work seeks to establish best practice in criminal procedure that reduces the growing time it takes to resolve cases and outstanding workload.

Backlogs and pressure on court time are hard on all court participants waiting for an outcome. COVID-19 pandemic restrictions made the delays worse.

A previous CPIP pilot of a duty lawyer policy at three District Courts (Hamilton, Christchurch, and Hutt Valley) that was designed to help address the growing problem of backlog and delays was suspended in October 2022 because it could appear to create inappropriate incentives for duty lawyers.

Since then, a revised policy has been developed, on which feedback was sought from a working group consisting of members of the legal profession. The revised policy was amended substantially in response to the feedback and the working group has indicated its support to progress with testing the revised policy through a pilot.

The revised policy will be piloted at the same three District Courts (Hamilton, Christchurch, and Hutt Valley). The pilots will start at Hamilton on 4 September 2023 at Christchurch on 11 September and at Hutt Valley on 18 September 2023. The pilots will run for a minimum of 6 months and will be evaluated, with feedback sought from key stakeholders before final decisions are made on rolling the policy out to other locations. The CPIP team will carefully monitor the pilots on an ongoing basis to assess its impact on defendants, lawyers, and the criminal justice process, and we will share the results of that monitoring with the working group as the pilot proceeds.

Revised Duty Lawyer Operational Policy at the CPIP pilot sites

The Duty Lawyer Operational Policy seeks in appropriate cases to facilitate the urgent assignment of a lawyer who can represent the defendant at their first appearance, with a view to supporting timely case progression and reducing the number of events required.

It will allow for the urgent assignment of cases where the maximum penalty is from 6 months to 10 years (and it is not a Crown prosecution) to a duty lawyer or another available lawyer:

  • where the case can be progressed to plea or disposal on the day
  • to apply for bail that is opposed.

The changes will be driven by these key features of the Duty Lawyer Operational Policy and legal aid assignment policies at the pilot sites:

  • Where a matter can be progressed to plea, disposal, or an application for opposed bail, a duty lawyer may assist a defendant who may qualify to apply for urgent legal aid.
  • Urgent legal aid assignments will be made to either a lawyer who has notified Legal Aid Services on the day that they are available to receive an urgent assignment or a duty lawyer who the duty lawyer supervisor has advised can be released depending on the business of the day.
  • Urgent assignments of these matters at the pilot courts will not count for purposes of Legal Aid Service’s rotating assignment allocation model. This means they won’t reduce the assigned lawyer’s priority for receiving another assignment, unlike normal rotational assignments would.

More information on the changes will be available for lawyers at the pilot courts at information sessions prior to the pilots starting and on the Ministry’s website here: https://www.justice.govt.nz/about/lawyers-and-service-providers/cpip/.

FLAS Audit Results

24/08/2023 - The 2022-2023 Family Legal Advice Service (FLAS) audit programme has now been completed.  FLAS provides initial advice and information to parties in dispute over arrangements involving the care of their children. 

The audit programme involved an assessment of 220 files from across 44 providers which represents 25% of active FLAS providers.  Going forward, we will be looking to assess a similar number of providers in each year’s audit programme.

Each audited provider received an overall audit compliance percentage score, and it was great to see that almost half received an audit score of 90 percent or higher.  Further, nearly 80% of the audited providers received an audit score which met the expectations of the FLAS audit. 

Common issues which contributed to lower audit scores related to incomplete funding declaration forms and inconsistent recording of information in RMS. 

Providers delivering FLAS are reminded of their obligation to comply with all aspects of the FLAS Operational Policy, with specific audit findings provided to those included in the audit programme.

If you have any questions about the FLAS audit results, please contact the Legal Aid Providers team at legalaidprovider@justice.govt.nz.

High Court and District Court Jury Trial Guidelines to apply from 21 August 2023

22/08/2023 - The judiciary has reviewed the court operating protocols in light of the removal of the remaining COVID-19 health restrictions, effective from 21 August 2023.

These following guidelines apply subject to any directions given by the presiding judge in a particular case. The presiding judge may direct that requirements set out in these guidelines do not apply in a particular case if the judge is satisfied that it is in the interests of justice to do so.

Positive COVID-19 Tests
• All court participants and other persons attending the trial must promptly advise the court registry if they test positive for COVID-19.
• If a juror or other court participant tests positive for COVID-19, the presiding Judge will determine whether it is appropriate for them to attend court. Whether and how the trial may be able to continue will be a matter for the presiding Judge to determine on a case-by-case basis.
Masks
• A person present is a jury trial is no longer required to wear a mask; however, they may choose to wear a KN95 or surgical mask. This is encouraged if they are feeling unwell.
Testing
• The presiding judge may direct that some or all of the jurors or other court participants involved in a jury trial are required to take a Rapid Antigen Test (RAT), if the judge is satisfied that it is reasonably necessary to do so in the interests of justice and to protect health and safety in the courts.
Jury Empanelling
• Summonsed jurors will be kept together for the minimum amount of time.

Updated Step-By-Step for Applicants

17/08/2023 - Legal Aid Services has updated the Step-By-Step Guide for new and existing providers applying for legal aid approvals.

The updated Guide is available on the Ministry of Justice website.

The Guide sets out the minimum criteria for each approval and explains how to complete an application for a lead, supervised or limited approval. 

The new Guide includes several small improvements, as well as new and expanded sections.

The changes include:

  • An updated explanation of the approval test
  • New guidance for limited approval applications
  • Clarification of the reference requirements
  • Information for Public Defence Service staff transitioning into private practice.

If you have any questions about the updated Guide or the approval process, please contact the Legal Aid Providers team at legalaidprovider@justice.govt.nz.

Changes to What’s New for Legal Aid Lawyers

03/08/2023 - A decision has been made to change two features of What’s New for Legal Aid Lawyers.

The name has been changed to “What’s New for Lawyers who provide Legal Aid” to better describe the mahi you do.

The subject line of the email will now contain the jurisdiction relevant to the article in brackets. This is to ensure that emails more relevant to specific jurisdictions are clearly flagged for attention. If it applies to all jurisdictions, this will be All.

Audio Visual and Remote Participation Survey

03/08/2023 - The Chief Justice, on 29th March 2023 launched the Digital Strategy(external link) for the Courts and Tribunals of Aotearoa New Zealand, which sets out the judiciary’s objective and guiding principles for use of technology in the courts.

As a result, the Digital office in the Ministry of Justice is conducting a review of the Audio Visual (AV) technology services used to access Justice, both internally within the Ministry and externally across the Justice sector.

The review aims to capture user’s needs, pain points and experiences relating to Justice AV technology and remote participation in Courts. The project team will then design requirements and experiences that align with the direction set out by the Digital Strategy.  

We would like to get your feedback on the service, being identified as a key area where feedback will be valuable to the review. Please see the link below to access a survey for you to give your feedback. The survey will be open till the 21st of August 2023.

We understand this is a busy time and your input into the AV review will be greatly appreciated.

Audio Visual and Remote Participation Survey(external link)

Adjusting the mileage rate in the Word Template Package

20/07/2023 - As of 19 May 2023, we updated the mileage rate to $0.95 per kilometre to align with the IRD rate.

The new mileage rate applies to all legal aid invoices received from 19 May 2023.  

If you receive an email returning your invoice for this reason, you can update the mileage rate using the instructions from the attached document and resubmit your invoice.

However, if you are wanting to claim mileage at the previous rate, you can indicate this in your email when submitting your invoice and these can be processed as claimed.

Resource - Updating the mileage rate [PDF, 243 KB]

Expressions of Interest: Defence Lawyers needed for Alcohol & Other Drug Treatment Courts (AODTC) Waitakere and Kirikiriroa

12/07/2023 - Tēnā koutou

Please see the below letter outlining an opportunity for experienced defence lawyers who are passionate about therapeutic approaches to justice to be part of the legal services team in our AODT courts (Waitakere and Kirikiriroa).

AODT Waitākere and Kirikiriroa EOI July 2023 [PDF, 232 KB]

Applications close on the 18 July 2023 by 5pm.

If you have any questions or want more information about these positions, please contact legalaidprovider@justice.govt.nz.

Duty Lawyer Service

11/07/2023 - Legal Services Commissioner announces rate increase and review for duty lawyers

Pay rates for duty lawyers will increase alongside a wider review of the duty lawyer service, Legal Services Commissioner Tracey Baguley has announced.

From 1 August duty lawyer’s hourly rates will rise from $88 to $103 on weekdays and from $108 to $126 on weekends.

The change to duty lawyer rates will create more consistency as lawyers will receive similar payments when working as duty lawyers as when they are working as legal aid lawyers.

In addition, the Legal Services Commissioner has announced a broad scope review of the duty lawyer service.

The review will evaluate the current state of the duty lawyer service and make recommendations on how it may more effectively and efficiently provide legal advice and assistance to defendants in the District Court.

“Duty lawyers play an important part of New Zealand's justice system and uphold the right of any unrepresented and/or vulnerable defendant to access a lawyer without delay,” says Tracey Baguley, Legal Services Commissioner.

“The increase to duty lawyer remuneration is in response to duty lawyers’ immediate concerns about pay rates, alongside a longer-term commitment to review the duty lawyer service”.

The review will be led externally and include an advisory group of key stakeholders including members of the profession and is expected to start in August 2023 and be completed by February 2024.

Final changes to legal aid lawyer quality assurance framework now complete

29/06/2023 - As a part of the Ministry of Justice project to update our legal aid quality assurance framework, we have made changes to how we audit legal aid lawyers. Our audit programme seeks to understand the quality of legal representation provided for legal aid clients and support legal aid lawyers to deliver services that meet the Ministry’s practice standards.

There are now two different types of audits – limited audit and full audit.  Limited audit was launched in 2022 and is a file-based check performed by Ministry staff.  We are now implementing “full audit”, which is an interview and file-based audit performed by experienced, current legal aid lawyers with audit training.

The updated audit policy and full audit methodology(external link) are available on our website, along with a fact sheet(external link) on what to expect during an audit. These will both be useful for both new and experienced legal aid lawyers.

From June 2023, if you are selected to participate in a full audit, you will meet your auditor for an interview, and have opportunity to learn from their experience and receive their support.

We have also developed a range of support resources(external link) for legal aid lawyers. Using these will help you prepare for audit.  All legal aid lawyers can expect to be audited at least once every five years. 

Updated Legal Aid Outcomes of Budget 2022

22/06/2023 - Budget 2022 investment for Legal Aid Services allowed the Ministry to implement a 15% increase in the legal aid eligibility thresholds and 16.5% to the debt repayment thresholds. These were to be followed by an annual increase of 1.9% to both thresholds for the next three years.

The first of these annual increases will take effect on 1 July 2023.

Please find a letter below from Tracey Baguley, Legal Services Commissioner, which provides further detail on these changes:

Letter to the profession [PDF, 153 KB]

Updated eligibility resource [PDF, 167 KB]

Legal Aid Services’ policies, including the grants handbook for providers will be updated prior to these changes coming into effect.

EOI – Family Court Associates

22/06/2023 - The Family Court Associates team are currently seeking Expressions of Interests from persons who hold a practising certificate as a barrister, or as a barrister and solicitor, for at least seven years, to join their team.

The opportunities available will initially be prioritised to Auckland and Christchurch and will either be part-time or full-time.

The full advertisement and information on how to apply is available here(external link).

Applications close on 7 July 2023.

Final opportunity to complete the Legal Aid Information Management Survey

06/06/2023 - The Ministry of Justice is conducting a survey to better understand the information security practises of its third-party providers.

The Ministry is seeking responses from all legal aid providers.

The survey is available at the following link(external link). The survey page also includes a helpful document with practical information security tips.

The survey is anonymous and confidential. It is about understanding how sensitive information is managed by the Ministry’s third-party service providers generally, rather than the practices of any specific legal aid provider or firm.

Only one provider from each firm should complete the survey. Providers working as sole practitioners or barristers should complete a survey each.

Any questions about the survey can be sent to the Ministry’s project team at TPIM.Review@justice.govt.nz.

We appreciate your support and participation.  

EOI – Team leader, Alcohol and Other Drug Treatment (AODT) Courts in Auckland, Waitākere and Hamilton

02/06/2023 - The Legal Aid provider team is looking for expressions of interests from experienced defence lawyers who are passionate about therapeutic approaches to justice, and who can commit to up to 20 hours per week, to lead the legal services team in one of three AODT Courts as a AODTC Team Leader/ Supervisor.

There are three opportunities available – Auckland, Waitākere and Hamilton.

Applications close on 12 June 2023.

If you have any questions or want more information about these positions, please contact legalaidprovider@justice.govt.nz.

Team Leader AODTC Expression of interest [PDF, 169 KB]

Team Leader AODTC job description [DOC, 131 KB]

Mileage rate increasing to $0.95 per km for invoices received from 19 May 2023 

18/05/2023 - We are updating our mileage rate to align with the IRD rate. The new rate is $0.95 per kilometre for all vehicles.

To allow the new rate to be claimed as soon as possible, it will apply to all legal aid invoices received from 19 May 2023.  However, to mitigate unnecessary administrative work, claims received after 19 May 2023 at the old rate can still be processed as claimed.

If you are using the Word template forms, please update the mileage rate. After the new rate has been recorded once, it will remember that going forward.

Legal Aid Information Management Survey

18/05/2023 - The Ministry of Justice is conducting a survey to better understand the information security practices of its third-party providers.

The Ministry is seeking responses from all legal aid providers.

The survey is available at the following link(external link). The survey page also includes a helpful document with practical information security tips.

Please ensure that you complete the survey by Friday the 9th of June.

The survey is anonymous and confidential. It is about understanding how sensitive information is managed by the Ministry’s third-party service providers generally, rather than the practices of any specific legal aid provider or firm.

Only one provider from each firm should complete the survey. Providers working as sole practitioners or barristers should complete a survey each.

Any questions about the survey can be sent to the Ministry’s project team at TPIM.Review@justice.govt.nz.

Thank you for your participation.

Scam email being sent to legal aid lawyers

11/05/2023 - We have been notified that some legal aid lawyers have received scam What’s New emails. The emails are asking legal aid lawyers to click on a “one-way” link. The email is also being sent directly on from a real What’s New article that was published in June 2022.

Please do not click on the link, instead report as a scam to your email provider and delete the email.

All emails sent from the Ministry of Justice will come from an email address ending in @justice.govt.

We are aware that the Ministry of Justice and other organisations have been subject to recent phishing attacks.

To inform members of the public of the scam, banners have been added to the Ministry external website.

New addition to travel exceptions list

04/05/2023 - Due to a shortage of available providers, Taumarunui District Court has been added to the travel exceptions list for Waikato lawyers on the Taumarunui duty lawyer roster for PAL 1 criminal matters.

This means a provider from the duty lawyer roster may be assigned and, subject to the disbursements policy, reasonable travel costs will be approved.

 The list has been updated in the grants handbook(external link).

New Quality Framework for interpreter services in courts and tribunals

04/05/2023 - The Ministry of Justice has published an Interpreter Services Quality Framework.

The framework provides national consistency for how interpreters are engaged and trained to work in courts. It covers all aspects of service delivery, from booking interpreters to how the service is monitored to ensure it is effective in increasing access to justice. The quality framework will increase support for interpreters working in courts and tribunals.

The Ministry has used feedback from lawyers, interpreters, the judiciary and others to strengthen and clarify the quality framework to help make the interpreter service better for everyone.

The new quality framework is available here(external link). Lawyers should be aware of their responsibilities to brief interpreters on a case and share relevant documents with them, which is covered in pages 41-42 of the framework.

We have also developed two factsheets on identifying when someone needs an interpreter and conducting proceedings involving interpreters which lawyers may find useful. These are available on the same page as the quality framework (link above). 

Second Reminder - EOI – Performance Review Committee members and chairperson

Seeking Expressions of Interest for positions within the Performance Review Committee.

27/04/2023 - The Performance Review Committee (PRC) plays a vital role in the maintenance of an efficient and ethical legal aid system, by providing advice to the Secretary for Justice on any matter relating to the performance of a legal aid provider. The PRC are looking to recruit additional members and a new chairperson. The Chair is responsible for ensuring this function can be properly carried out, and acts with secretarial support from the Ministry of Justice.

We are currently seeking Expressions of Interests from senior lawyers who would like to be considered for either, or both positions for a minimum term of two years.

Those appointed to be members of the committee will have:

  • demonstrated proficiency in one or more areas of law
  • a strong understanding of a lawyers’ professional obligations
  • an interest in legal ethics
  • experience in, or knowledge of, providing legal aid services or specified legal services
  • working knowledge of financial management in the State sector

We would expect the chairperson to meet the requirements above and have at least seven years’ legal experience. Please note the chairperson having knowledge of financial management in the State sector is desirable but not a necessity.

Likewise, it is not necessary that the successful applicants be approved legal aid providers.

The Legal Aid Performance Review Committee requires a quorum of three members, including the Chair, and members will be allocated to meetings based on the expertise required to conduct each meeting. For each meeting the Committee will be given documents to read that form the background to the referral.

The Committee meets as and when needed, and the time needed to prepare for and attend meetings varies case by case. The number of committee meetings will depend on the number of serious performance related issues the Ministry has to address where serious sanctions such as cancellation or modification of approval must be considered. In past years, the meetings have not been very regular. However, we are expecting to commence a new full audit process which may result in more PRC referrals than in previous years.

For enquiries or to apply please submit your CV, a valid Certificate of Standing, and a cover letter to legalaidprovider@justice.govt.nz by Sunday 7 May 2023.

Terms of Reference [PDF, 151 KB](external link)

Reminder - EOI – Performance Review Committee members and chairperson

Seeking Expressions of Interest for positions within the Performance Review Committee.

The Performance Review Committee (PRC) plays a vital role in the maintenance of an efficient and ethical legal aid system, by providing advice to the Secretary for Justice on any matter relating to the performance of a legal aid provider. The PRC are looking to recruit additional members and a new chairperson. The Chair is responsible for ensuring this function can be properly carried out, and acts with secretarial support from the Ministry of Justice.

We are currently seeking Expressions of Interests from senior lawyers who would like to be considered for either, or both positions for a minimum term of two years.

Those appointed to be members of the committee will have:

  • demonstrated proficiency in one or more areas of law
  • a strong understanding of a lawyers’ professional obligations
  • an interest in legal ethics
  • experience in, or knowledge of, providing legal aid services or specified legal services
  • working knowledge of financial management in the State sector

We would expect the chairperson to meet the requirements above and have at least seven years’ legal experience. Please note the chairperson having knowledge of financial management in the State sector is desirable but not a necessity.

Likewise, it is not necessary that the successful applicants be approved legal aid providers.

The Legal Aid Performance Review Committee requires a quorum of three members, including the Chair, and members will be allocated to meetings based on the expertise required to conduct each meeting. For each meeting the Committee will be given documents to read that form the background to the referral.

The Committee meets as and when needed, and the time needed to prepare for and attend meetings varies case by case. The number of committee meetings will depend on the number of serious performance related issues the Ministry has to address where serious sanctions such as cancellation or modification of approval must be considered. In past years, the meetings have not been very regular. However, we are expecting to commence a new full audit process which may result in more PRC referrals than in previous years.

For enquiries or to apply please submit your CV, a valid Certificate of Standing, and a cover letter to legalaidprovider@justice.govt.nz by Sunday 7 May 2023.

Terms of Reference [PDF, 151 KB]

EOI – Performance Review Committee members and chairperson

Seeking Expressions of Interest for positions within the Performance Review Committee.

The Performance Review Committee (PRC) plays a vital role in the maintenance of an efficient and ethical legal aid system, by providing advice to the Secretary for Justice on any matter relating to the performance of a legal aid provider. The PRC are looking to recruit additional members and a new chairperson. The Chair is responsible for ensuring this function can be properly carried out, and acts with secretarial support from the Ministry of Justice.

We are currently seeking Expressions of Interests from senior lawyers who would like to be considered for either, or both positions for a minimum term of two years.

Those appointed to be members of the committee will have:

  • demonstrated proficiency in one or more areas of law
  • a strong understanding of a lawyers’ professional obligations
  • an interest in legal ethics
  • experience in, or knowledge of, providing legal aid services or specified legal services
  • working knowledge of financial management in the State sector

We would expect the chairperson to meet the requirements above and have at least seven years’ legal experience. Please note the chairperson having knowledge of financial management in the State sector is desirable but not a necessity.

Likewise, it is not necessary that the successful applicants be approved legal aid providers.

The Legal Aid Performance Review Committee requires a quorum of three members, including the Chair, and members will be allocated to meetings based on the expertise required to conduct each meeting. For each meeting the Committee will be given documents to read that form the background to the referral.

The Committee meets as and when needed, and the time needed to prepare for and attend meetings varies case by case. The number of committee meetings will depend on the number of serious performance related issues the Ministry has to address where serious sanctions such as cancellation or modification of approval must be considered. In past years, the meetings have not been very regular. However, we are expecting to commence a new full audit process which may result in more PRC referrals than in previous years.

For enquiries or to apply please submit your CV, a valid Certificate of Standing, and a cover letter to legalaidprovider@justice.govt.nz by Sunday 7 May 2023.

Terms of Reference [PDF, 151 KB]

Legal aid invoice errors

06/04/2023 - If you notice an error in legal aid payments (such as a duplicate invoice payment or an overpayment), please contact the Legal Aid Grants team: Contact us | New Zealand Ministry of Justice(external link)

In the rare instance of an overpayment, Legal Aid Grants will issue a credit note which will be deducted from your future invoices.  Please do not return the payment to the Ministry of Justice as this needs to be processed by the Legal Aid Grants team to ensure that the legally aided client’s final repayment amount is correct.

Invoicing reminder

06/04/2023 - To enable timely processing of your invoices, please check that your invoice totals have been calculated accurately.

For those using the word template forms the invoice will calculate automatically if you use the built in macro. However:

  • if there has been a mileage rate change since you downloaded the forms, you will need to manually adjust this rate, once you have done this the form will remember the updated rate for future invoices.
  • If you manually adjust something after using the macro you need to remember to recalculate the total using the smiley in the toolbar.

The latest versions of our forms can be found here(external link). For more information on invoicing, please refer to pages 90 - 92 of the Grants Handbook(external link).

Duty Lawyer Minimum Payment Policy

27/03/2023 - A new duty lawyer minimum payment policy will be introduced from 3 April 2023. From this date, duty lawyers will now be able to claim a minimum payment of two hours on weekdays and a minimum payment of four hours on weekends and public holidays.

We are implementing this change to provide better support to duty lawyers working attendances where previously hours were not guaranteed, and to recognise the commitment duty lawyers make to ensure access to justice.

The minimum payment is only available to claim when the short attendance is caused by the court’s circumstance (i.e., short list, list cancellation) and will not be available if it is due to personal circumstances (i.e., sickness).

The Duty Lawyer Operational Policy will be updated on the 3rd of April to reflect this change. This can be viewed here. Duty lawyers | New Zealand Ministry of Justice(external link)

A letter from the Legal Services Commissioner and factsheet for duty lawyers has been included below:

Letter from the Legal Services Commissioner regarding Duty Lawyer minimum payment policy [PDF, 88 KB]

Duty Lawyer Minimum Payment Policy factsheet [PDF, 113 KB]

Increase to Travel - Accommodation and Meals Disbursement

02/03/2023 - We have undertaken a review of the meals and accommodation disbursement for legal aid cases. In considering the increase, we have aligned the disbursement to the current Ministry expenditure guidelines.

Previously the maximum amount that could be approved for overnight accommodation and meals was $226.05 (excl. GST). We have increased the maximum amount for overnight accommodation and meals to $266.96 (excl. GST). Where an overnight stay is not required, the rate for meals has increased to $100.00 (excl. GST) per day. You can read more about this disbursement on page 130 of the grant’s handbook which can be found here(external link).

The new maximum can be claimed on invoices received from 2 March 2023. Any invoices received prior to this date will be paid at the old rate.

While there are no plans to undertake a full market review of the disbursement rates at this time, we intend to review this disbursement annually and will provide any further updates via What’s New for Legal Aid Lawyers in due course.

Thank you for your continued cooperation.

Close off of hearing and waiting time back pay payments

02/03/2023 - If you are owed back pay and have not yet returned the spreadsheet sent to you on 7 November 2022, you need to return this prior to 31 March 2023. After this date, we will no longer be processing claims for back pay.

If you do not wish to claim any back pay you are due, no action is required.

If you have any questions regarding this process, please email them through to lsc@justice.govt.nz

Reminder - New District Court facility opening in Newmarket

02/03/2023 - Recently, the Ministry of Justice has taken up a two-year lease for a facility in Newmarket. It will be called the ‘Newmarket Court Hearing Centre’ and will primarily be used to hear cases from Manukau District Court’s family jurisdiction.

Information about the site:

  • The facility will be at Level 2, 414 Khyber Pass Road, Newmarket.

  • Hearings are scheduled to begin from 7 March 2023.

  • The site is accessible for people with physical impairments and has assistance options for people with hearing impairments.

  • The site can be accessed by public transport via the Newmarket train station and bus stops.

  • There are nearby large public carparks.

Hearings are currently scheduled to begin in Newmarket from 7 March 2023. Court participants will be advised if their case will be located at the Newmarket Court Hearing Centre.

For further information please contact: Jamie Haynes, Manager Justice Services, South Auckland at jamie.haynes@justice.govt.nz or Renuka Ram, Project Manager at renuka.ram@justice.govt.nz.

Temporary Adjustment for Duty Lawyer Minimum Hours Update

27/02/2023 - The two-hour minimum payment for Duty Lawyers described in What’s New on 14/2/23 is now only available for rostered duty lawyers in Tairāwhiti and Hawkes Bay only. This is effective immediately until further notice.
In all other regions the usual Duty Lawyer rates apply.

Additional Cyclone Gabrielle update for Tairāwhiti and Hawkes Bay - Additional payment to instruct another Provider

23/02/2023 - As per the Delegations Policy, providers may choose to instruct another provider to complete activities such as research, printing and preparing disclosure etc.

Where these activities have occurred, we will approve up to an additional 2 hours at your legal aid rate for the case without requiring an amendment to grant.

Your invoice should briefly describe the additional services and reference Cyclone Gabrielle.

Technical issues with Ministry website are resolved

23/03/2023 - The technical issues affecting the Ministry website are resolved and the PDF versions of legal aid forms are now available. 

If you continue to have issues downloading the PDF forms, please email NSDOpsSupport@justice.govt.nz

Thank you for your patience and co-operation.

New District Court facility opening in Newmarket

23/02/2023 - Recently, the Ministry of Justice has taken up a two-year lease for a facility in Newmarket. It will be called the ‘Newmarket Court Hearing Centre’ and will primarily be used to hear cases from Manukau District Court’s family jurisdiction.

Information about the site:

  • The facility will be at Level 2, 414 Khyber Pass Road, Newmarket.
  • Hearings are scheduled to begin from March / April 2023.
  • The site is accessible for people with physical impairments and has assistance options for people with hearing impairments.
  • The site can be accessed by public transport via the Newmarket train station and bus stops.
  • There are nearby large public carparks.

Hearings are currently scheduled to begin in Newmarket from March 2023. Court participants will be advised if their case will be located at the Newmarket Court Hearing Centre.

For further information please contact: Jamie Haynes, Manager Justice Services, South Auckland at jamie.haynes@justice.govt.nz or Renuka Ram, Project Manager at renuka.ram@justice.govt.nz.

New audit methodology for legal aid providers

23/02/2023 - As a part of the Ministry’s ongoing project to improve the experience for legal aid lawyers, we have released a selection of support resources.

The support resources consist of a selection of factsheets and templates. These are available on the Ministry website, and may prove helpful for new legal aid lawyers, or those with recent approvals to a new jurisdiction. The factsheets and/or templates may be sent out when expectations on an audit are not met, or opportunities for improvement are recognised during the audit.

The factsheets provide information on a number of topics, and the templates can be used to assist with file keeping. The templates can be printed and filled in by hand or edited online using the ‘edit a PDF’ function.

 Factsheets available:

  • What to expect from a legal aid audit
  • Interviewing clients
  • File keeping
  • Bail conditions
  • Working with victims and perpetrators of sexual violence and family violence
  • Providing Legal Aid to clients subject to Mental Health assessment or treatment

Templates available:

  • Client Acknowledgement
  • Communication Form
  • Conference Attendance Record
  • Court Appearance Record
  • Court Appearance Summary
  • General Time Record
  • Hearing Attendance Record
  • Pre-CMM File Analysis

The support resources are available here(external link).

Cyclone Gabrielle update for Tairāwhiti and Hawkes Bay

21/02/2023 - Tēnā koutou,

We appreciate that these are unprecedented times and that you are or may have to deal with different scenarios to ensure that access to Justice continues.

Please see our legal aid updates below.

Invoices

Invoices for providers in Tairāwhiti and Hawkes Bay are being prioritised for payment by our team, this includes Duty Lawyer payments.

Timeframe for claiming for payment for legal aid services

The Legal Services Regulations 2011 provide that claims for legal aid services must be submitted within six months. For fixed fee cases, the timeframe applies from completion of the services while for services delivered on an hourly basis it applies from the time the services were delivered. Claims that are submitted outside this timeframe because of disruption to providers’ administrative processes caused by the State of Emergency will not be declined for being outside the timeframe.  Providers submitting claims outside the timeframe should include an explanation for the delay.

Travel policy

While appearances are currently being held in different ways, an increasing amount of work is being done from home instead of usual places of business. 

It is acknowledged that this may require extra travel where appearances are still required, and that this travel is not covered by the current travel expense policy. In recognition of this we have introduced a temporary policy where providers working from home may claim expenses for travel between home and the Court, a place of detention or a Parole Board hearing venue where:    

·         the distance is greater than 50 kilometres, or

·         the return travel time is greater than one hour.

This will apply to Criminal (including Duty Lawyer), Family and Civil matters for the duration of the State of Emergency. If a provider has several legally aided cases in one day it is expected that only one claim for these travel expenses will be made unless multiple travel occurrences were necessary. 

The travel policies in the Grants Handbook on the Ministry's website have not been updated with this temporary change. The policies on travel disbursements continue to apply in all other respects.

Please note on your invoice that this travel is related to Cyclone Gabrielle.

Duty Lawyer Payments

When a duty lawyer is rostered to be available for the duty lawyer service, he or she may claim a minimum 2 hours, or the actual hours attended, if that is more than 2 hours.

We also understand that due to some hearings taking place via AVL, duty lawyers may be required to print disclosure or opposed bail paperwork.  

We are aware that there is currently nothing in the Duty Lawyer policy for disbursements, however, during this period, we will pay the standard $0.10 per page.

If you have any questions, please email them through to lsc@justice.govt.nz.

Technical issues with Ministry website

17/02/2023 - The Ministry website is currently undergoing some technical issues and some of the PDF versions of legal aid forms may not be available

We are working on a solution urgently and hope to have this in place soon.

If you urgently require a copy of a PDF form that is not available, please email NSDOpsSupport@justice.govt.nz

We apologize for any inconvenience caused.

Temporary Adjustment for Duty Lawyer Minimum Hours

14/02/2023 - Legal Aid Services is temporarily adjusting the minimum hours Duty Lawyers can claim for rostered shirts, due to the impacts of Cyclone Gabrielle.

If a duty lawyer is rostered to be available for the duty lawyer service, he or she may claim a minimum of 2 hours, or the actual hours attended, if that is more than 2 hours.

These changes will apply from Monday 13th February 2023 until further notice. Thank you for your continued co-operation. 

Invoicing requirements where there is a Specialist report

02/02/2023 - Please be reminded that a supporting GST receipt/invoice must be submitted with any invoice that has a third party disbursement (ie specialist report). If a supporting invoice is not submitted, we will be unable to make payment until we receive this.

If you have any questions regarding this process, please email them through to lsc@justice.govt.nz.

Reminder - Hearing and waiting time back pay

19/01/2023 - If you were owed backpay you should have received an email on 7 November 2022 with an attached spreadsheet, asking you to confirm the amount you are due to be back paid and return the spreadsheet to legalaidbackpay@justice.govt.nz.

If are owed back pay and have not yet returned the spreadsheet, can you please do so by 3 February 2023. After this date, we will no longer be accepting or processing claims for back pay.

If you do not wish to claim any back pay you are due, no action is required.

If you have any questions regarding this process, please email them through to lsc@justice.govt.nz.

Have your say on a draft quality framework for interpreter services in courts and tribunals

13/01/2023 - The Ministry of Justice is leading a project to enhance the current interpreter service to ensure it is delivered consistently throughout our courts and is supported by a quality framework. This work is important as interpreters play a fundamental role in ensuring justice is equally available to all court participants, regardless of the language they use.

We have developed a draft quality framework that introduces minimum qualifications required to become a court-appointed interpreter, and describes how the service should be delivered in courts and tribunals.

Our draft framework is available on our consultation hub https://consultations.justice.govt.nz/csi/court-appointed-interpreter-services-quality-frame(external link)/ and we are asking for your feedback to ensure it meets our stakeholders’ needs. The consultation period is from 13 January to 3 February 2023.

Once we have incorporated feedback and finalised the document, it will become a requirement for all those involved in using interpreter services in court proceedings to deliver these services in line with the quality framework.

Thank you in advance for your consideration of the draft framework.

Updated Legal Aid Outcomes of Budget 2022

5/01/2023- As part of the Budget 2022, in addition to the increase in hourly rates, the investment also allowed the Ministry to implement changes to key policy settings. These changes came into effect on Sunday 1 January 2023, and included: 

  • An increase to the legal aid eligibility thresholds by 15 per cent
  • An increase to the debt repayment thresholds by 16.5 per cent
  • The removal of interest on legal aid debt
  • The removal of the $50 user charge on civil and family legal aid cases

In addition to this, the eligibility and repayment thresholds will both increase by 1.9 percent over the next 3 years.

Word Template Package

The Word template package has now been updated to reflect these changes. This can now be downloaded with instructions from the Ministry website: Download Word Template Package

 Please be aware, moving forward from 1 January 2023, you must use the updated Word template package. All outdated forms received by Legal Aid Services will be returned to you for updating.

 Thank you for your patience and co-operation.

Updated Legal Aid Outcomes of Budget 2022

 15/12/2022 - As part of the Budget 2022, in addition to the increase in hourly rates, the investment has also allowed the Ministry to implement changes to key policy settings. These changes will take effect on Sunday 1 January 2023, and will include:

  • An increase to the legal aid eligibility thresholds of 15 percent
  • An increase to the debt repayment thresholds of 16.5 percent
  • Provide yearly 1.9 percent increases to both the eligibility and repayment thresholds for the next three years
  • The removal of interest on legal aid debt
  • The removal of the $50 user charge on civil and family legal aid cases. Please note, it will however continue to apply to grants assessed before this date, including interim grants (even if the grant has been upgraded to a full grant after 1 January 2023).

The Word template package will also be updated to reflect these changes. Moving forward you must use the updated Word template package from 1 January 2023 onwards. All outdated forms received by Legal Aid Services will be returned to you.

We will post a What's new for legal aid lawyers when this becomes available, including instructions on where and how to download it.

Please find below a letter from Tracey Baguley, Legal Services Commissioner, which provides further detail on these changes:

Letter from the Legal Services Commissioner  – Key Policy Settings [PDF, 101 KB]

LAS - Eligibility Resource [PDF, 459 KB]

Legal Aid Services’ policies, including the grants handbook for providers will be updated prior to these changes coming into effect.

Further updates on these changes will be shared via What's new for legal aid lawyers.

Thank you for your patience and co-operation.

Annual Report – Legal aid payments published

15/12/2022 - The Ministry of Justice has published information on legal aid payments to firms in the 2021/22 financial year.

Legal Services Commissioner Tracey Baguley says the data shows legal aid payments to 1,363 firms. These firms took on a range of cases from the criminal, civil and family courts as well as specialist courts and tribunals.

The Ministry spent $211 million on legal aid in 2021/22, which is a decrease of $13 million on the year before. The number of legal aid applications has decreased due to COVID-19 restricting court operations. The decrease in applications has largely been in criminal cases, consistent with lower inflows into the criminal jurisdiction as a whole during this period.

At the end of 2021/22, there were around 2420 private lawyers approved to provide legal aid services, working for firms or independently.

You can view the report on the page Legal aid payments to firms.

Post Implementation Review - Improving the Legal Aid Provider Experience – Survey reminder

15/12/2022 - Thank you to those who have already completed the survey on the changes to the legal aid provider contract and application process made in August 2020 – the responses received so far have been very useful.

The survey is available here:

https://consultations.justice.govt.nz/nsd/9fceca5d(external link)

If you gained a new approval after August 2020 and wish to provide your feedback, please make sure you complete the survey by 11:59pm, 16 December 2022.

FLAS audit results

15/12/2022 - The 2021-2022 Family Legal Advice Service (FLAS) audit programme has been completed. FLAS provides initial advice and information to parties in dispute over arrangements involving the care of their children, and the audit programme involved an assessment of over 800 files from across 180 providers.

Each audited provider received an overall audit compliance percentage score, and it was great to see that almost half received an audit score of 90 percent or higher. Common issues which contributed to lower audit scores related to the verification of client identity, the verification of financial eligibility and the completion of the Funding Declaration Form. Providers delivering FLAS have been reminded of their obligation to comply with all aspects of the FLAS Operational Policy, with specific audit findings provided to those included in the audit programme.

Post Implementation Review - Improving the Legal Aid Provider Experience 

In August 2020, the Ministry delivered changes to the legal aid provider contract and application process. The aim of these changes was to improve the provider experience with legal aid and ensure the application and contract processes are efficient and effective. The Ministry is now conducting a Post Implementation Review on the changes that were delivered.

If you have gained a new approval after August 2020, we are seeking your valuable feedback on the legal aid provider application and contract process. This information will be used to assess the success of the project and identify areas for further improvement.

What changes are we seeking feedback on?

  • The new legal aid provider application form and the supporting guidance for lawyers wanting to provide legal aid services. The previous application form was split into four parts over 22 forms and 90 pages. The new form was condensed into a single seven-page form.
  • The updated contract and approval process for legal aid providers. Previously, a lawyer’s legal aid contract expired every two years, and they were required to reapply for approval every three – five years to continue providing services. The contract and approvals no longer expire and the requirement to reapply for approval has been removed.

We will be holding a separate consultation process with members of the Selection Committee in early 2023, to seek feedback on the updated Selection Committee process and guidance.

How can I give my feedback?

The survey opens on 5 December 2022 and closes on 16 December 2022. You can access the survey through the Ministry’s Consultation Hub at the following link:

https://consultations.justice.govt.nz/nsd/9fceca5d(external link)

The Ministry encourages you to participate in the survey, to ensure we can accurately assess the success of the project.

Ministry of Justice to begin distributing Christchurch mental health rosters

24/11/2022 - Beginning December 2022, Ministry of Justice will be creating the mental health roster for Christchurch.

Beginning December 2022, Ministry of Justice will be creating the mental health roster for Christchurch.

24/11/2022 – Starting December 2022, Ministry of Justice (the Ministry) will create the roster for Christchurch mental health cases. The allocation of mental health cases will continue to be completed by Christchurch District Inspectors. The Ministry already creates the mental health roster for both Auckland and Wellington.

The roster will continue to operate on a weekly basis, however it will now be updated every four months. The roster will be published directly on the Ministry website to ensure that the rosters are accessible and readily available for both providers and District Inspectors. A separate contact list will be emailed to all Christchurch mental health providers and District Inspectors every four months as the roster is re-published.

To ensure an accurate roster and confirm availability, an email will be sent to all providers approximately five weeks prior to the expiry of the published roster with a link to a survey to complete. The survey will ask for their current contact details, and their availability for the next roster period. Providers will be given one week to complete the survey advising what week(s) they will be unavailable. If providers do not complete the survey, it will be assumed that they are available for the entire roster period. If a provider completes the survey and advises they are unavailable for a week they are scheduled, it will be swapped with another provider. Once the roster is finalised, if a provider is unavailable for their rostered week, they have authority to find their own replacement.

Should you have any questions about the roster, please email duty.lawyer@justice.govt.nz.

Police Detention Legal Assistance (PDLA) provider roster and guidelines for the holiday period

24/11/2022 - Police Detention Legal Assistance (PDLA) provider roster and guidelines for the holiday period.

The nationwide PDLA roster for the period of 16 December 2022 to 9 January 2023 has now been finalised. A copy of the roster can be found on our website’s roster page below:

Duty lawyers | New Zealand Ministry of Justice

You will be able to find on the page Police Detention Legal Assistance | New Zealand Ministry of Justice:

  • PDLA nationwide holiday roster guidelines
  • Information on the Regional contact lists of PDLA providers
  • Invoice forms for the PDLA service during the holiday roster period

The nationwide PDLA roster for the period of 16 December 2022 to 9 January 2023 has now been published.

The published PDLA nationwide holiday roster can be found at Duty lawyers | New Zealand Ministry of Justice:

Further information can be found at Police Detention Legal Assistance | New Zealand Ministry of Justice including:

  • PDLA nationwide holiday roster guidelines
    If you are rostered onto the PDLA service over the holiday period, please make sure you have read these guidelines before the nationwide roster period starts on 16 December 2022.
  • The regional contact list of PDLA providers
  • Invoice form for the PDLA service during the holiday roster period 

Please note that if you have been assigned to a roster you must be available to take calls for the full duration of your rostered shift.

If you become unavailable for one of your rostered shifts you must contact duty.lawyer@justice.govt.nz as soon as possible so a replacement can be organised.

If you have any questions these can be sent to duty.lawyer@justice.govt.nz.

Cut-off date for invoices

24/11/2022 - Please ensure to submit all invoices by 2 December so that payment is made prior to the holiday season.

As we approach the end of the year, Legal Aid would like to ensure that it processes all provider invoices as seamlessly as possible. Please ensure that you submit all invoices as early as possible prior to the Christmas break to avoid disappointment.

Friday 2 December will be the cut-off date for submitting invoices for payment prior to the holiday season. We will endeavour to pay the invoices received by the cut-off date prior to the Christmas shutdown. Invoices received after this date, may be processed and paid this year, but we are unable to guarantee this.

Thank you for your cooperation in this matter.

Legal aid invoice payment delays

21/11/2022 - Financial system upgrades are complete and invoice payments can now be made 

The update to the financial system the Ministry of Justice uses to pay invoices is now complete. 

Any invoice payments that were delayed because of the system outage caused by the update can now be made.

These will be paid as soon as possible.

We apologise for any convenience caused. 

Reminder - Hearing and waiting time back pay

17/11/2022 - As you will be aware, Legal Aid Services are back paying the difference between the hearing and waiting time rates paid and the new rates, where hearing and waiting time was completed between 1 July and 2 October 2022. If you were owed backpay you  should have received an email on 7 November 2022 with an attached spreadsheet, asking you to confirm the amount you are due to be back paid and return the spreadsheet to legalaidbackpay@justice.govt.nz.

We have staff dedicated to processing these payments as a priority. If you can return this spreadsheet to us by 18 November 2022, we will endeavour to action these payments by Christmas. Any spreadsheet returned after this date may not be actioned until the new year.

If you have any questions regarding this process, please email them through to lsc@justice.govt.nz.

Reminder - Christmas and New Year availability

17/11/2022 - Criminal Case Assignments

The end of the year is fast approaching, and we will presume that you are available for the entire festive season unless you tell us otherwise!

If you have leave planned over the holidays, please let us know if you:

  • will be away for more than 5 working days
  • are unavailable between Xmas and the New Year (28-30 December inclusive)
  • are unavailable between 4-6 January 2023 inclusive

This will ensure that you don’t get disturbed unnecessarily during your break and allows us to identify any areas where provider coverage may be limited.

Please confirm your unavailability dates by email to legalaidprovider@justice.govt.nz no later than Monday 28th November 2022.

Reminder - legal aid invoice payment delays

10/11/2022 - The financial system the Ministry of Justice uses to pay invoices will be updated from 15 – 21 November.

There will be a delay in legal aid invoice payments during this time.

These payments will be made as soon as possible once the updated system is online.

We apologise for any inconvenience caused.

Legal aid invoice payment delays

03/11/2022 - From 15 – 21 November, the Ministry of Justice will be updating the financial system used to pay invoices for legal aid providers.

As a result, there will be a delay in invoice payments as the payment runs on 16 and 18 November will not be taking place. 

The delayed payments will be made as soon as possible once the updated system is online.

During this outage, Legal Aid Services will still be able to assess any invoices received.

We apologise for any inconvenience caused.

Christmas and New Year availability

27/10/2022 - Criminal Case Assignments

The end of the year is fast approaching, and we will presume that you are available for the entire festive season unless you tell us otherwise!

If you have leave planned over the holidays, please let us know if you:

  • will be away for more than 5 working days
  • are unavailable between Xmas and the New Year (28-30 December inclusive)
  • are unavailable between 4-6 January 2023 inclusive

This will ensure that you don’t get disturbed unnecessarily during your break and allows us to identify any areas where provider coverage may be limited.

Please confirm your unavailability dates by email to  legalaidprovider@justice.govt.nz no later than Monday 28th November 2022.

Criminal legal aid assignments published

13/10/2022 - The Ministry of Justice has published information on criminal legal aid assignments for the period 1 July 2021 – 30 June 2022.

The assignment reports show all criminal legal aid assignments made for the period. It includes preferred, reassignments and rotational assignments. This report should not be used to compare rotational assignments between providers.

You can view the report on the page Criminal legal aid assignments - information & criminal case reports.

Implementation of a nationwide PDLA roster over the holiday period

13/10/2022 - Since 2020, Legal Aid Services (LAS) have implemented a temporary nationwide roster for the Police Detention Legal Assistance (PDLA) service over the Christmas/New Year holiday period. This was implemented to provide timely access to justice throughout this period where it may be more difficult to facilitate PDLA contact due to leave and unavailability.

Historically there has been positive feedback on the use of the roster over the Christmas/New Year period.

This year, LAS intends to implement a nationwide roster from 16 December 2022 to 9 January 2023. This will run in a similar manner to the previous years, with PDLA lawyers being paid a flat hourly rate to deliver the service during rostered shifts.

LAS is running a survey aimed to give PDLA providers the opportunity to indicate whether they would like to be included on this year’s roster. Providers who are interested will be given the opportunity to indicate what dates they would be available to be rostered on by completing the survey below:
https://consultations.justice.govt.nz/nsd/0da13402(external link)

All legal aid providers with PDLA approval, regardless of their PAL, will have the opportunity to be included in the upcoming roster. Further details on how the roster will operate are included in the survey above.

The survey will close on 10/11/2022. PDLA providers who do not complete the survey by this date will be unable to be included on the holiday period roster.

If you have any further questions about this, please contact RostersDL@justice.govt.nz.

Criminal Process Improvement Programme – Christchurch District Court

06/10/2022 - Bail and the Admin Stage/Duty Lawyer Scope

The Criminal Process Improvement Programme (CPIP), led by the Chief District Court Judge, Judge Heemi Taumaunu, is a justice-sector-wide effort to improve access to justice by establishing best practice in court processes, leading to more meaningful court events and less delay. CPIP’s improvements will also support the judiciary’s Te Ao Mārama vision for the court.

Workstreams 1 & 2 focus on reducing unnecessary delays in the bail process and the admin stage of the criminal prosecution process.  A pilot of changes to the duty lawyer policy, some changes to legal aid policies, and other changes in the criminal jurisdiction process is ongoing at Hamilton and Hutt Valley District Courts and will begin at Christchurch District Court on 3 October 2022.

The pilots will continue until a full evaluation has been completed. If the changes are successful, they may be implemented at other courts. You can read more about the changes here: Criminal Process Improvement Programme (CPIP) | New Zealand Ministry of Justice

Updated Legal Aid Outcomes of Budget 2022

29/09/2022 – As part of the Budget 2022 for Legal Aid Services (LAS), a 12 percent increase to hourly rates was confirmed, which came into effect 1 July 2022. LAS are pleased to advise that this increase will also apply to the series of fees available for hearing and wating time in the fixed fees schedules across all jurisdictions These increases will take effect on Monday 3 October 2022 but will apply to all waiting and hearing time claims from 1 July 2022.

Word Template Package
The Word template package has now been updated to reflect both the increased provider hourly rates and hearing and waiting time rates. As of 1 October 2022, this can be downloaded from the Ministry website: Download Word Template Package

This means the current workaround process required for submitting invoices using the Word template package is no longer required from 1 October 2022. If you are submitting an invoice that covers a period starting before 1 July 2022, please continue to split the hours completed before and after the hourly rate increase and include a date range. This will allow LAS to determine the correct rate to be paid.

Grant Schedules
As part of this release, the way hearing and waiting time is currently displayed in family and civil grant schedules will also change. The hearing time rate will no longer be displayed in the grant schedule and will be replaced by the word ‘actual’. The ‘total paid’ column will reflect a running total of the approved for hearing and waiting time on the grant.

The fixed fee schedules will also be updated with the increased rates and will be available on the Ministry of Justice website: Proceeding steps & fixed fee schedules

Back Pay
While we were unable to implement this any earlier, we will be back paying the difference between the rates paid and the new rates. Invoices received and paid for, where hearing and waiting time was completed between 1 July 2022 and 2 October 2022, will be processed for payment.

These payments will be treated as a priority

Further Updates
LAS policies, including the grants handbook for providers, will be updated prior to these changes coming into effect.

Please find below a letter from Tracey Baguley, Legal Services Commissioner, which provides further detail on these changes:

Letter from the Legal Services Commissioner – Hearing and Waiting Time Rates [PDF, 214 KB]

Any further updates on these changes will be shared via What's new for legal aid lawyers.

Thank you for your patience and cooperation.

Hearings scheduled for 26 September will be rescheduled due to public holiday

14/09/2022 - The Government has announced that a public holiday will be observed on 26 September 2022 to mark the passing of Queen Elizabeth II.

All court and tribunal events previously scheduled for 26 September 2022 will be rescheduled.

The court or tribunal will be in contact to advise you of the new hearing date and time.

Legal Aid do not currently have any information regarding new hearing date and time.

COVID-19 Protection Framework traffic light system – Update (13/09/2022)

13/09/2022 - As you will be aware, from 11:59pm on 12 September 2022, the COVID-19 protection framework and traffic light system is no longer in place. Therefor the following policies will no longer apply:

  • Legal Aid will no longer process invoices from providers where preparation for a hearing/trial was undertaken and the event was not able to go ahead. If this does occur in the future, an ATG will be required for legal aid to consider this.
  • The two hour minimum payment for duty lawyers can no longer be claimed and providers can no longer claim additional fees of up to 2 hours for liaising with clients, without an ATG.

However, the following policy will continue as it is applicable in multiple scenarios:

  • Legal Aid will continue to accept applications that have not been signed by your client, provided you sign the application and note the reason they are not able to sign it. For example – client in isolation, custody or remote participation.

Changes to legal aid eligibility for Protection of Personal and Property Rights applications

01/09/2022 - From 1 September 2022, the Legal Aid Services (LAS) policy towards granting legal aid for applications under the Protection of Personal and Property Rights Act 1988 (PPPR) is updating.

Legal aid will be available for PPPR applications under the ‘public interest’ test provided under s (10)(6)(e) of the Legal Services Act 2011, provided the applicant meets all the other eligibility criteria. 

Legal aid will only be available for applications appointing an enduring power of attorney that require a hearing before the Family Court.

Reminder - tell us what you think about communication assistance and interpreters

15/08/2022 - Kia ora

Thank you to those who have already given us feedback on the communication assistance and interpreter services – the responses to date have been really useful.

The survey will close on 18 August 2022 and is available here(external link).

If you have been involved in a case that used communication assistance or interpreters in the past 12 months, please take 5 minutes to complete the survey.

Thank you for your assistance.

New Legal Aid Provider Grants Handbook

11/08/2022 -  A revised and updated version of the Grants Handbook manual for legal aid providers is now available on the MOJ website: Grants handbook | New Zealand Ministry of Justice

The handbook has been updated to remove outdated information and to make minor edits to wording. There are no procedural or material changes to the handbook.

The grants handbook contains legal aid policies and procedures on:

  • applications
  • eligible applicants and proceedings
  • reassignments
  • invoicing/claims
  • debt management
  • reconsideration/reviews
  • disbursements
  • specific instructions on various areas of law.

Clarification of the election of jury trial process

04/08/2022 - An item posted 26/5/2022 notified you about changes to the election of jury trial process. The change meant a case could be upgraded to PAL2 when the Crown had assumed responsibility for the prosecution.

This change is rolled back, and further consultation will be undertaken. A case may be upgraded to PAL2 and Schedule D will apply when a defendant elects jury trial. Schedules B or C apply before the election.

The grants handbook has been updated to reflect this here: https://www.justice.govt.nz/about/lawyers-and-service-providers/legal-aid-lawyers/legal-aid-provider-manuals/grants-handbook/.

Where the assigned provider is not approved for cases requiring a PAL2 provider, the provider may apply for a limited approval to continue representing the client by contacting. You can find the application form for approval and step-by-step guide on the Ministry website here: Become a legal aid lawyer | New Zealand Ministry of Justice

Tell us what you think about communication assistance and interpreters

21/07/2022 - We are seeking your feedback on two important court services:

  1. Communication assistance
  2. Interpreters

The Ministry of Justice is running a short survey with the judiciary and legal professionals to get feedback on the communication assistance and interpreter services. We will use the information from the survey to monitor the quality of the service and inform ongoing improvement.

The survey will take less than 5 minutes to complete and is available here: https://consultations.justice.govt.nz/csi/67c30f1a(external link)

(external link)Thank you in advance – your assistance is much appreciated. The survey will be open until 18 August 2022.

New audit methodology for Legal Aid Providers (Feedback)

14/07/2022 - We are seeking your feedback on a draft new methodology for legal aid provider full audits by 19 July 2022.

Please see the Ministry’s website(external link) for the draft documents and feedback form.

The proposed new audit methodology is a part of the Ministry’s ongoing project to improve the legal aid provider experience. We are building on the work we have already done to streamline processes for becoming a legal aid provider, better manage complaints, and conduct limited audits.

Compared to our current audit process, the updated methodology allows for:

  • the auditors and legal aid providers to discuss the selected cases and the approach taken when providing legal aid representation
  • a greater focus on the quality of legal aid representation
  • auditors to interview other stakeholders (such as lawyers being supervised by the provider) and observe the legal aid provider working with clients
  • the Ministry to make recommendations for improvement and/ or require that the provider undertakes corrective actions within a set timeframe where this is warranted.

Further updates on these changes will be shared via What’s New for Legal Aid Lawyers in due course.

New audit methodology for Legal Aid Providers

As part of the Ministry’s ongoing project to improve the legal aid provider experience, we are building on the work we have already done to streamline processes for becoming a legal aid provider, better manage complaints, and conduct limited audits.

The next stage of this work focuses on a new methodology for full audits of legal aid providers and we invite you to comment on the proposed new methodology to ensure the audit methodology is fit for purpose. 

Compared to our current audit process, the updated methodology allows for:

    • the auditors and legal aid providers to discuss the selected cases and the approach taken when providing legal aid representation
    • a greater focus on the quality of legal aid representation
    • auditors to interview other stakeholders (such as lawyers being supervised by the provider) and observe the legal aid provider working with clients
    • the Ministry to make recommendations for improvement and/ or require that the provider undertakes corrective actions within a set timeframe where this is warranted.

The draft full audit methodology and associated policy and draft audit report template are now available on the Ministry’s website(external link) for your consideration and feedback. The consultation process will run over a two-week period from 5 July until 19 July 2022.

Further updates on these changes will be shared via What’s New for Legal Aid Lawyers in due course. 

Increase in hourly rates

30/6/2022 - As part of the Budget 2022 for Legal Aid Services (LAS), non-fixed fee hourly rates for providers will increase from 1 July 2022. To ensure that invoices are paid promptly and at the correct rate, a change will be required for submitting invoices during this transition period.

If you have completed work on a grant before and after the rate change, you may choose to:

1. Submit one invoice with all hours completed at the new rate. To determine the appropriate rate, LAS require you to split your completed hours from before and after the rate change and specify the date range after the activity listed.

If you are using the Word template package, this will generate a higher total  than you would expect to be paid. LAS will accept these invoices and assess the correct total amount, with the work prior to 1 July 2022, calculated at the previous rate.

More information on how to change the hourly rate in the Word template package can be found here.

 2. Alternatively, if it would better suit your business, you can submit two invoices, one with work prior to 1 July 2022, and the other for work effective from 1 July 2022.

This process will only be required for invoices which cover a time period before and after the rate change. The Word template package will be updated later in the year to reflect all changes resulting from the Budget 2022.

Thank you for your patience and cooperation.

Hourly rates are changing on 1 July 2022

23/6/2022 - Per the letter below from Tracey Baguley, Legal Services Commissioner, the hourly rates are changing on 1 July 2022. We're currently working through what this means for invoicing and Word packages and we will provide further instruction next week.

Letter from the Legal Services Commissioner - Legal Aid Outcomes of Budget 2022 [PDF, 144 KB]

Mileage rate increasing to $0.83 per km for invoices received from 1 July 2022

23/6/2022 – We are updating our mileage rate to align with the IRD rate. The new rate is $0.83 per kilometre for all vehicles.

To allow the new rate to be claimed as soon as possible, it will apply to all legal aid invoices received from 1 July 2022. However, to mitigate unnecessary administrative work, claims received after 1 July 2022 at the old rate can still be processed as claimed.

If you are using the Word template forms, please update the mileage rate. After the new rate has been recorded once, it will remember that going forward.

Changes to Civil Legal aid for Warrant of commitment proceedings

10/6/2022 - Legal aid granting policy on assignment, prospects of success and the maximum grant for Civil Warrant of Commitment (WOC) proceedings has been updated.

Assignment
A provider must hold a lead provider civil general listing to receive an assignment for a WOC proceeding.  A lawyer can apply for a limited civil approval for WOC matters.  The provider will need to contact Legal Aid Providers at legalaidprovider@justice.govt.nz.

Prospects of success
For any subsequent WOC hearings, the participant does not need to demonstrate there is a change in circumstances since the first hearing. If the participant was not successful in defending the first application this bears no relevance to the prospects of success assessment for subsequent applications. The prospects of success assessment for each application is assessed on a case by case basis.

Funding for defending the first WOC application
The guideline hours for the first WOC hearing has increased from three (3) hours to an initial grant of ten (10) hours for preparation plus actual hearing time.

The provider can seek more than the standard 10 hours via the application form or Amendment to Grant (ATG).  Any request will be considered on a case by case basis. 

Funding for subsequent WOC applications
The guideline hours for any subsequent WOC hearing is three (3) hours for preparation.

The provider can seek more than the standard three hours via the Amendment to Grant (ATG).  Any request will be considered on a case by case basis. 

Outcome of Budget 2022 for Legal Aid

As part of Budget 2022 the Government has made an investment which will ensure continued access to justice by significantly strengthening the legal aid scheme. An investment of $148.7 million over the next four years will allow for changes to be made to legal aid settings regarding eligibility and repayments, and legal aid lawyer remuneration.

This investment will:

• Provide a one-off 12% increase to the hourly rates for legal aid lawyers. The increased hourly rates will only be available for grants of legal aid made after 1 July 2022, and for work completed after this date on legal aid cases granted prior to 1 July 2022.
• Increase the legal aid eligibility thresholds by 15% from 1 January 2023.
• Increase the debt repayment thresholds by 16.5% from 1 January 2023.
• Provide yearly 1.9% increases to both the eligibility and repayment thresholds for the next three years.
• Remove the $50 user charge on civil and family legal aid cases and remove the interest charge on legal aid debt from 1 January 2023.

Please find below a letter from Tracey Baguley, Legal Services Commissioner, which provides further detail on these changes:

Letter from the Legal Services Commissioner - Legal Aid Outcomes of Budget 2022 [PDF, 144 KB]

Legal Aid Services’ policies, including the grants handbook for providers will be updated prior to these changes coming into effect.

Further updates on these changes will be shared via What’s New for Legal Aid Lawyers in due course.

Criminal Process Improvement Programme – Hutt Valley District Court

The Criminal Process Improvement Programme (CPIP), led by the Chief District Court Judge, Judge Heemi Taumaunu, is a justice-sector-wide effort to improve access to justice by establishing best practice in court processes, leading to more meaningful court events and less delay. CPIP will also support the judiciary’s Te Ao Mārama vision for the court.

Workstreams 1 & 2 focus on reducing unnecessary delays in the bail process and the admin stage of the criminal prosecution process. A pilot of changes to the duty lawyer policy, some changes to legal aid policies, and other changes in the criminal jurisdiction process is ongoing at Hamilton District Court and will begin at Hutt Valley District Court on 13 June 2022. Based on the experience at Hamilton to date, some additional changes, including to payment amounts will apply at both sites from 13 June.

The pilots will continue for 3 – 6 months. There will be robust monitoring during the pilot and a full evaluation at their conclusion. If the changes are successful, they may be implemented at other courts. You can read more about the changes here.

Clarification of the election of jury trial process

26/5/2022 - If a client in a PAL1 case elects trial by jury and the Crown assumes responsibility for the prosecution, a provider may request that the grant be updated to reflect the election. The case remains a Police prosecution and the relevant PAL1 schedule applies until then. The case may be upgraded to PAL2 when the Crown has assumed responsibility.

The grants handbook has been updated to reflect this here.

Where the assigned provider is not approved for cases requiring a PAL2 provider, the provider may apply for a limited approval to continue representing the client by contacting legalaidprovider@justice.govt.nz. You can find the application form for approval and step-by-step guide on the Ministry website here: Become a legal aid lawyer | New Zealand Ministry of Justice

COVID-19 Protection Framework traffic light system – Update to item

21/04/2022 – Please be advised that the below item of 19/04/2022 has been updated to include the 2 hour payments for duty lawyers, as these may still be claimed at the Orange traffic light setting.

We apologise for any inconvenience caused.

COVID-19 Protection Framework traffic light system – Update (19/4/2022)

19/04/2022 - As you will be aware, all regions of Aotearoa/New Zealand moved to the Orange traffic light at 11:59pm on 13/04/2022.

As a reminder, for all regions at Orange the following policies will apply:

·        Legal Aid will accept any applications that haven’t been signed by your client. Please sign any forms on their behalf and state the reason for not being able to obtain the signature and note this when submitting the form.

·        Legal Aid will be processing invoices from providers where preparation for a hearing/trial was undertaken and the event was not able to go ahead due to the changes in COVID-19 Alert Levels. These invoices can be submitted as normal and will be paid if appropriate.

·        When a duty lawyer is rostered to be available for the duty lawyer service, he or she may claim a minimum of 2 hours, or the actual hours attended, if that is more than 2 hours. 

Thank you again for your continued cooperation.

Web2text system is currently experiencing issues receiving text message replies

11/4/2022 - The Ministry’s Web2text system is currently experiencing intermittent issues receiving replies to text messages. If you do not have a response from Legal Aid services after responding to a text message, please call 0800 2 LEGAL AID (0800 253 425).

Free Communication Assistance Forum for lawyers – 13 April 2022

07/4/2022 – Communication assistance is a key tool to help court participants who have communication difficulties to access justice. The New Zealand Law Society Continuing Legal Education is running a free full-day forum for lawyers about how communication assistance works.

The forum will cover in detail how lawyers can recognise flags that may indicate that a participant needs a communication assistant. This is a key skill for all lawyers as part of ensuring their clients have access to justice.

The forum will then cover the practical aspects of the Ministry’s Communication Assistance Quality Framework.

Register for the 13 April 2022 forum. The forum is available to attend in person in Auckland and via livestream.  The livestream will also be available after the event.

The RSU Confirmation of claim form is no longer required in support of an LA application for first refugee/protected person claim. 

07/4/2022 –  A copy of the RSU confirmation of claim form is no longer required in support of an application for legal aid, for a first refugee/protected person claim to the Refugee Status Unit (RSU). Instead, you must provide the following information either in the Family/Civil application form at Question 33 (Why should legal aid be granted?), or in a separate letter:

  1. Confirmation that the applicant has signalled their intention to seek recognition as a refugee/protected person with details of the date, place, and person to whom intention was signalled.
  2. The applicant’s citizenship, immigration status and travel history
  3. Details of applicant’s family members (names of wife/partner and children), age of children
  4. Any prior refugee status claims in another country
  5. What the applicant fears in their home country including:
    1. events/circumstances that produced this fear in the applicant.
    2. information about the applicant’s country which makes the fear credible
    3. why potential alternative protection in the applicant’s country is not available
  6. What convention grounds the applicant relies on in support of claim
  7. The legal aid provider’s assessment of the prospects of success of the claim.

Changes to the COVID-19 Protection Framework in the courts and tribunals

05/4/2022 – Please find below a letter from Carl Crafar, Chief Operating Officer, which outlines information on the changes to the COVID-19 Protection Framework in the courts and tribunals coming into effect on 5 April 2022. It covers:

  • Changes to entry requirements for court and tribunal buildings
  • What’s not changing while we’re under Red settings
  • Expanded Rapid Antigen Testing (RAT)
  • Shedding and what this means for court processes
  • Further changes and Orange settings

You can read this letter here [PDF, 723 KB].

We encourage all legal aid lawyers to read the information in this document.

Thank you for your continued assistance and cooperation.

Additional wait time can be claimed by legal aid providers required to get a RATs at court before a jury trial

24/3/2022 - At the direction of the Chief High Court Judge and the Chief District Court Judge, the jury trial bubble guidelines will be used for the conduct of jury trials in the High Court and District Court. More information on the new Jury Trial Bubble Guidelines can be found on Courts of New Zealand website(external link) and in the What’s New for legal aid lawyers article below.

As part of these new guidelines, all participants involved in jury trials, including counsel, will be required to take RATs every day for the first three days of the trial and every second day thereafter. Counsel may need to turn up to court 30 to 60 minutes prior to the start of the trial in order to get tested before the trial commences.

For jury trial cases, Legal Aid Service will approve up to 1 hour of wait time for each day of the jury trial that you have had to arrive at court early for a RATs test. This can be submitted on your invoice without needing an amendment to grant. Your invoice should briefly describe that the additional wait time is being claimed for RATs testing for a jury trial.

Rapid antigen testing – guidance for private lawyers

24/3/2022 - The increased use of Rapid Antigen Tests (RATs) forms part of Aotearoa New Zealand’s response to Omicron. The Ministry of Justice recognises this response, and has increased the use and availability of RATs across our sites.

If you are symptomatic, do not come on site. You can access free RATs if you have symptoms or are a household contact, by ordering online at https://requestrats.covid19.health.nz/(external link) or calling 0800 222 478. The tests can be picked up at your nearest collection centre. To find a collection centre near you, visit: www.healthpoint.co.nz(external link).

Access to the court
Judicial protocols during the COVID-19 protection framework advise that people attending court must:

  • show a vaccine pass
  • provide evidence of a negative COVID-19 test administered within 48 hours of attendance, or
  • provide evidence of a negative RAT administered within 24 hours of attendance.

Our court security staff allow the following as evidence of a negative self-administered RAT for building entry for all court participants, including lawyers:

  • Showing a negative RAT result within the last 24 hours on ‘My Covid Record’.
  • Showing a photograph, taken within the last 24 hours, of the negative test (showing the result panel and preferably at least part of the stick).
  • Bringing their negative test in with them (which can be disposed of at the court).  For health and safety reasons, this is not the preferred option. 

Please note, the judicial protocols and court entry requirements are subject to change as the COVID-19 protection framework is reviewed.

Duty lawyers
RATs are available for rostered duty lawyers, should they feel the need to use them. To request a RAT kit, contact your duty lawyer supervisor or local Court Manager / PPE contact in the Court Registry.

See this guidance document for when you should request RATs [PDF, 161 KB].

We suggest tests are completed off-site, before you come to work for the day. However, should you need to take a test on-site, biohazard bins will be available for safe disposal.

Find out more about Rapid antigen testing on the Ministry of Health website(external link).

Jury trial bubble guidelines
At the direction of the Chief High Court Judge and the Chief District Court Judge, the jury trial bubble guidelines will be used for the conduct of jury trials in the High Court and District Court.

The guidelines cover all participants in a jury trial. All court participants involved in a jury trial will be required to take RATs every day for the first three days of the trial and every second day thereafter.

More information can be found in the Jury Trial Bubble Guidelines on the Courts of New Zealand website(external link).

The Ministry of Justice through the court registries will provide RATs to all participants to support this process.

The Ministry is operating two primary models of surveillance testing for the jury bubble process:

  1. Medical provider onsite that oversees the RAT process: A medical provider will oversee testing. The participant will be taken into a room and given instruction on how to self-administer this test, on each day testing is required.
  2. Medical provider onsite day one, and self-administered RATs on each subsequent day: On day one of the trial, a medical provider will be there to oversee testing. Then, on subsequent testing days, participants will be provided with RATs to self-test at home before coming to court. Instructions will be provided on what to do if you test positive or negative, and how to self-administer tests.

Note that local variations to the testing process may apply.

What do you need to do?
If you are involved in a jury trial, you will be asked to undertake regular COVID-19 tests. Please arrive at court 30 to 60 minutes prior to the start of the trial to ensure this can be completed before the trial commences. If you have been provided with a RAT kit to test at home, instructions will be provided on what to do if you test positive or negative.

Counsel should communicate with witnesses to ensure they are aware of the requirement to take a test before attending court. 

Witnesses can use the onsite medical provider where this is available.

If an onsite provider is not available on the day the witness is to attend court, counsel should ensure a test provided by the registry is supplied to the witness. This is to enable them to self-test at home before coming to court.  Where this is not appropriate or possible (e.g. witness is hostile) then please let the court know.

Testing is voluntary. If a participant chooses not to test, the trial judge will be informed and will decide if any action should be taken.

Participants within the bubble
Below are the participant groups that make up the jury bubble. Those present in the public gallery are not part of the bubble:

  • Defendants
  • Court staff
  • Judicial officers
  • Counsel
  • Officer in Charge of the case
  • Interpreters
  • Empanelled jurors
  • Media
  • Witnesses
  • Communication Assistants
  • Corrections staff (if they haven’t already undergone their own surveillance testing)

Private bar lawyers and legal aid lawyers
If you are not a rostered duty lawyer or involved in a jury trial bubble or proceeding that requires RAT surveillance testing, you will not be able to access the Ministry’s supply of RATs. You can visit Unite against COVID-19 website(external link) to find information on when, where and how to get a COVID-19 test, including ordering RAT home testing kits.

Legal aid invoices submitted with a missing date range

04/03/2022 - Changes have been made to our processes for recording Legal Aid invoices. Previously, Legal Aid Services would use the provider's invoice date, if no date range for completed activities was indicated on their invoice. However, this process is not compliant with audit requirements. The date range is mandatory for providers to complete as these dates will confirm that work was completed within the appropriate timeframes as required under s98 of the Legal Services Act 2011.

Any invoices that do not have the required dates will be returned to the provider for them to complete and resubmit. The invoice forms have allocated space for activity dates to be documented.

We thank you for your assistance.

Opportunity to provide feedback on the Ministry’s Care of Children resources

03/03/2022 - The Ministry of Justice is working to improve the resources and information we provide for Care of Children matters (i.e. our website, pamphlets, posters, videos etc). Our aim is to make it easier for children, parents and whānau to navigate Care of Children matters, both in and out of court.

We would like to provide you with an opportunity to tell us what you think of our current Care of Children resources. This feedback will serve as a pulse check for how the Ministry is currently doing in providing essential information to people going through Care of Children matters.

We have created a survey designed for Family Lawyers, Lawyers for Child, Community Law Centre lawyers, Family Dispute Resolution providers and Parenting Through Separation providers. We would like to understand your views of the existing resources and your feedback will inform their refresh.

Please click here to complete this short survey.(external link)(external link)(external link)

 The survey will be open until midnight, Friday 18 March and will take no more than 10 minutes to complete. All survey responses are collected and held anonymously.

If you have any questions about the survey, or the project to improve the resources for Care of Children matters, send them to RICCProject@Justice.govt.nz. We would be happy to provide more information about the project or take any other feedback you might have.

Notification of unavailability

24/02/22- We appreciate that due to COVID-19 there are a number of reasons why you may be unable to accept assignments. If you are unavailable, please remember to notify us by emailing legalaidprovider@justice.govt.nz. This will allow us to ensure you are not disturbed unnecessarily while you are unavailable and means we can assign cases as quickly as possible to available providers. 

Thank you for your assistance.

Implementing the COVID-19 Protection Framework in the courts and tribunals

28/01/2022 - Please find below a letter from Carl Crafar, Chief Operating Officer, which outlines information on the implementation of the COVID-19 Protection Framework in the courts and tribunals, and what the framework means for lawyers and their client. It covers information for lawyers on the following:

  • Entry requirements for courts and tribunal buildings
  • Testing
  • Jury trials
  • A ‘Staggered appearances’ scheduling approach in the District Court
  • Remote appearances
  • Remote filing
  • Other health and safety measures in the courts and tribunals

You can view this letter here [PDF, 1.5 MB].

A fact sheet for jurors about the health and safety measures that will be in place referenced in this letter can be found on the page Jury Service

 

We encourage all legal aid lawyers to read through the information outlined in both of these documents.

We thank you for your assistance and cooperation during this time.

Survey for PDLA lawyers to provide feedback on nationwide holiday period roster

27/01/2022 - The Ministry of Justice implemented a nationwide roster for the PDLA service between 17 December 2021 to 10 January 2022. The purpose of this was to ensure there was timely access to justice throughout the holiday period.

During this period, PDLA lawyers were rostered on to six-hour shifts on one nationwide roster. During rostered shifts lawyers answered PDLA calls from all over Aotearoa and were paid a flat hourly rate to deliver the service.

The Ministry is currently running a survey to get feedback from PDLA lawyers on how they felt the roster worked. A link to the survey can be found below:

consultations.justice.govt.nz/osd/95cafb9c(external link)(external link)(external link)

If you are a PDLA lawyer who participated in the nationwide holiday roster for the service, we would appreciate your feedback. The survey closes at 11:59 pm on 13 February 2022.

COVID-19 Protection Framework traffic light system – Update (24/01/2022)

24/01/2022 - As you will be aware all regions of Aotearoa/New Zealand will move to the Red traffic light at 11:59pm on Sunday 23 January 2022. The policy as advised in the item of 2 December 2021 will now come into force.

As a reminder, for all regions at Red the following policies will apply:

  • Legal Aid will accept any applications that haven’t been signed by your client. Please sign any forms on their behalf and state the reason for not being able to obtain the signature and note this when submitting the form.
  • Providers who are working from home may claim expenses for travel between home and the Court, a place of detention or a Parole Board hearing venue where:
    • the distance is greater than 50 kilometres, or
    • the return travel time is greater than one hour.
  • This policy will only be available for one claim per day where an in-person appearance is required and will also apply to Duty Lawyers.
  • Legal Aid will be processing invoices from providers where preparation for a hearing/trial was undertaken and the event was not able to go ahead due to the changes in COVID-19 Alert Levels. These invoices can be submitted as normal and will be paid if appropriate.

Additional Fees due to COVID-19 Activities:

  • There may be additional services required because of the COVID-19 rules. For example, in family cases we understand you may have assisted with negotiation of care arrangements. In criminal cases, adjournments may have required additional communications with your client, the court and other agencies. This fee is repeatable and may be claimed more than once during the time the region remains at Red.
  • Where additional services have been provided to, or on behalf of your client, because of the lockdown we will approve up to 2 hours at your legal aid rate for the case without needing an amendment to grant.

Your invoice should briefly describe the additional services and reference the COVID-19 traffic light system. If claiming the fee more than once on the same grant, please briefly describe reasons the fee is required a further time/s.

Duty lawyer Payments:

  • When a duty lawyer is rostered to be available for the duty lawyer service, he or she may claim a minimum 2 hours, or the actual hours attended, if that is more than 2 hours.

We also understand that due to some hearings taken place via AVL, duty lawyers may be required to print disclosure or opposed bail paperwork. During this period, we will pay duty lawyers disbursements for printing at the standard rate of $0.10 per page.

Thank you again for your continued cooperation. 

Phone scam targeting lawyers

21/1/2022 – The Ministry has been made aware of a scam involving a caller claiming to be from the Ministry of Justice. The caller is contacting lawyers and is seeking payment over the phone for arrears on invoices. Legal aid staff will never seek payment over the phone for invoices. Should you receive one of these calls, do not provide any financial details to the caller and contact Legal Aid Services. 

Wellington Legal Aid office closed Monday 24 January 2022

21/1/2022 - The Wellington Legal Aid office will be closed on Monday 24 January 2022, for Wellington Anniversary day.

Please send all applications serviced by the Wellington region on this date to WGNCriminallegalaid@justice.govt.nz as usual. Please email all applications as the fax machine will not be accessible during this time.

The Auckland Legal Aid office will process urgent criminal applications for all areas of the country received on this date.

The Contact Centre will remain open from 8am – 5pm. If you have an urgent Legal Aid query on 24 January, you can call 0800 2 LEGAL AID (0800 253 425).

COVID-19 Protection Framework traffic light system – Update (14/4/2022)

 

As part of Budget 2022 the Government has made an investment which will strengthen the legal aid scheme.


If you have completed work on a grant before and after the rate change, you may choose to:

1.       Submit one invoice with all hours completed at the new rate. To determine the appropriate rate, LAS require you to split your completed hours from before and after the rate change and specify the date range after the activity listed.

If you are using the Word template package, this will generate a higher total than you would expect to be paid. LAS will accept these invoices and assess the correct total amount, with the work prior to 1 July 2022, calculated at the previous rate.

More information on how to change the hourly rate in the Word template package can be found here.

 

2.       Alternatively, if it would better suit your business, you can submit two invoices, one with work prior to 1 July 2022, and the other for work effective from 1 July 2022.

 

This process will only be required for invoices which cover a time period before and after the rate change. The Word template package will be updated later in the year to reflect all changes resulting from the Budget 2022.

Thank you for your patience and cooperation.

 

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