With support and funding from the Law Society Public Purposes Trust, the Barkly region’s four legal service providers are delighted to launch the “Access to Justice in the Barkly” Report, which identifies practical ways, despite scarce resources, to improve access to justice for Barkly communities.
Without the ability to prevent and solve legal problems, people incur greater financial and social hardship, and this can link to increased criminal activity and social disconnection. The Report, which builds on similar research conducted in 2003, identifies housing, discrimination, and debt as the three most common and pressing issues for which Barkly residents would benefit from legal assistance, and provides a valuable, practical and affordable road map to address these issues.
The Barkly Regional Council is the second largest regional council in Australia. Its dispersed communities suffer from high levels of disadvantage, including poor education, widespread poverty, high unemployment and limited access to a small number of services, spread over a large area.
As well as analysing data from a range of sources, a key element of this research was listening to locals both in Tennant Creek and seven other regional communities, to explore their lived experience of civil, family or criminal law issues. Participants told us about the barriers that had impeded them from attaining positive justice outcomes, and their perspectives on the best ways to surmount those barriers. Representatives from stakeholder organisations working in or with focus communities were also consulted.
UPCOMING WEBINAR
Friday 28th August 9.30am (ACT) 10am (AEST)
This webinar will feature a presentation with authors of the Access to the Justice in Barkly report;
Fiona Allison & Prof Christopher Cunneenfollowed by a Q&A Session
Join Zoom Meeting via https://us02web.zoom.us/j/83389991699
(Meeting ID: 833 8999 1699)Please email any questions you may have of the report to info@cawls.org.au by 3pm Thursday 27 August
LINKS TO REPORT AND FACT SHEETS
Allison, F. and Cunneen, C (2020) Access to Justice in the Barkly, Jumbunna Institute for Indigenous Education and Research, UTS, Sydney.
Click links below to access
The Full Report
Summary Report
Fact Sheet #1 – Overview
Fact Sheet #2 – Community Profiles
Fact Sheet #3 – Access to Justice in the Barkly Report Recommendations
MEDIA CONTACTS
Northern Territory Legal Aid Commission (NTLAC) – (08) 8962 4362 Kevin Banbury
Central Australian Women’s Legal Service (CAWLS) – (08) 8952 4055 Janet Taylor
Central Australian Aboriginal Family Legal Unit (CAAFLU) – (08) 8953 6355 Phynea Clarke
North Australian Aboriginal Justice Agency (NAAJA) – (08) 8982 5100 Priscilla Atkins
Jumbunna Research 