Family ProBono

Genuine Legal is a fixed fee law firm. We offer ProBono services. We do not receive grants or funding from the government and we do not do Legal Aid work in Family Law Matters. This is entirely our own way to give back to our community. We recognise that some people in need cannot receive Legal Aid even though they are in desperate need of help!
We can offer ProBono (free legal assistance and representation) in Queensland and New South Wales only.
  • OPTION #1
    We can accept your Family Law matter on a Pro Bono basis. ProBono is 100% free of charge.
    We offer work on a Pro Bono basis, meaning providing legal assistance to people in need for free. We may do work on your entire matter, from start to finish or only on a particular stage of your matter for free. The work might include all court documents drafting, court representation, correspondence with the other party and advice to you - depending on what you need and what is relevant to your case.
  • OPTION #2
    We offer Ongoing Free Legal Advisory Service for Self-Represented Litigants
    People who represent themselves in family proceedings without a lawyer (Self-represented Litigants) can be at a disadvantage because family law is complicated and court processes are sometimes difficult to understand.
    One of our goals is to help self-represented litigants by guiding them through the court system and assisting in the preparation of court document which is crucial, particularly at the start of a legal matter.
    We offer an Ongoing Free Legal Advisory service.
    Our Ongoing Free Legal Advisory Service does not include drafting documents, but we can review your documents and advise you as to any improvements we think can be made
    We can help you to develop your case theory i.e. what is your case about and what is relevant to your matter and the result which you are trying to achieve. We will explain to you the process in a simple and well-structured way.
    We do have eligibility criteria for ProBono.
  • OPTION #3
    Evening Advice Sessions with our Principal Solicitor or one of our Senior Solicitors
    Every day of the week from 5pm to 7pm we conduct evening advice sessions. There are no eligibility criteria for the Evening Advice Sessions. We offer this to everyone.

Eligibility Criteria

Merits Test
The matter must have ‘legal merit’. The matter has legal merit if it has prospects of success.
When assessing an application we will take the following into consideration:

- the factual and legal merits of the matter;
- whether the matter is likely to succeed if it goes to a court or tribunal e.g. are you likely to achieve the result which you seek;
- whether to the satisfaction of the firm, it is justified applying limited available ProBono resources to the matter.
Means Test
An applicant must meet the following criteria in order to be eligible for the ProBono assistance:

- The applicant is unable to obtain Legal Aid.
- The applicant meets the ‘means test’. The applicant meets the means test if the applicant is unable to pay for the legal services required to resolve the matter at the applicable fixed fee, even on a Payment Plan, required to resolve the matter. We focus on applicants who are experiencing hardship.
How long does this take?
We review all Applications for ProBono Assistance every Friday. Therefore, we can respond within a week. Complex matters might take a longer time and we may ask for further information but we will update you about the review process.
How It Works
1 step
1 step
Application
You submit an application
2 step
2 step
Your matter documents
We usually request documents in relation to your legal matter. The documents can be emailed to probono@genuinelegal.com.au
3 step
3 step
Assessment
We will assess your application, request any information which is required and advise about the outcome;
4 step
4 step
Our platform
We use an Application to communicate with clients where you can: message our team instantly, monitor the status of your matter, upload and download documents, save emails, approve our work, ask about your accounts, receive direct support, give instructions, get advice.
5 step
5 step
Your lawer
We will allocate and introduce a Solicitor and a Paralegal to act for in your matter