VLAF CALD WORKING GROUP

Date 20 July 2009

Venue: Multicultural Hub

Present

Ross Barnett ( ECCV), Sophia Koutas ( VITS Language Link), Carol McNair( Footscray, CLC Interpreter Working Group), Monica Ferarri( VLA), Sam Lawry( VLA), Elana Galan( AMES), Vivianne Dias ( CMYI), Lauren Adanson( PILCH), Helen Yandell( SMLS), Simon Roberts( FKCLC), Dana Krause( VLA), Caitlin Tierney ( WMLIP), Rachna ( VLAF)

Apology

Carman Parson( VLA), Kerrie Soraghan( VLA), Katie Fraser( Footscray, CLC), Rosy Jolic ( VLA)

  1. Welcome

Rachna welcomed the members of the VLAF CALD Working Group

  1. VLAF – what it is about and what we want to achieve

VLAF is a consortium of legal assistance providers.

Member organisations

  • Aboriginal Family Violence Prevention and Legal Service Victoria
  • Federation of Community Legal Centres
  • Law Institute of Victoria
  • Public Interest Law Clearing House
  • The Victorian Bar
  • Victoria Law Foundation
  • Victoria Legal Aid
  • Victorian Aboriginal Legal Service

The forum aims to:

  • advocate for increased access to legal services for socially and economically disadvantaged people
  • continuously improve service delivery models by providers of legal assistance services to be responsive to unmet legal needs.
  1. Terms of Reference

The terms of reference - discussed and few changes made. We will revisit this document after a few months.

The overall aim of the working group is to improve legal services to culturally and linguistically diverse communities by engaging with the legal and non-legal services.

This will be achieved through:

  • lobbying for additional resources for provision for appropriate interpreting and translation language services
  • prioritising and improving access to migration services ( legal access)
  • identifying and facilitating a process of cross- agency interaction, through information sharing and identification of partnership opportunities
  • encouraging best practice in reaching CALD communities.

4. Legal Assistance Dialogue

Helen Yandell, Ross Barnett, Simon Roberts and Monica Ferrari discussed some of the issues arising for the participants at the Legal Assistance Dialogue. Details of the forum are available on the website;

Findings

The three main issues, which the forum considered VLAF should take forward, are:

  • Access to interpreters and translating services (increase resources, training and ensure that VLAF advocates the use of interpreter services for legal service delivery provision)
  • Access to migration law services (mainly by CLCs and Legal Aid). Discussion on the why DIAC does not include the cost of legal information provision for newly arrived communities and the possibility of VLAF’ s advocacy role on this issue.
  • Scoping exercise on looking at the services that currently exists for CALD communities and identifying the gaps (a larger project for VLAF to work on)

5.Interpreters and translation for CALD service delivery models

6.Migration Law – lack of access

  • Discussion on the issues related to interpreters and translations services.
  • Funding gaps for CLCs and VLA for translation of court documents.
  • Clients find it very difficult to fill in migration application forms
  • The CLE education sessions are very difficult to run for newly arrived groups when they speak many different languages.
  • Newly arrived communities should be provided information on their legal rights and responsibilities to support their settlement process
  • At the IHSS consultation forum no discussion on legal services.
  • The Out of Africa report developed by Footscray CLC is valuable report. If we develop a model to address issues for one community we can use the same model to adapt to other newly arrived communities.
  • DOJ has done some work on Victims of Crime and CALD communities. Learning from this project should be shared.
  • VITS also working on a project with DOJ and other government departments to evaluate the allocation of VITS money for different programs. Not sure if CLCs were involved.
  • Need to consider a strategy for information dissemination for newly arrived communities.
  • Engage with the LIV project and explore if we can collate some further information from the project on the kind of services out there for CALD communities and the gaps

ACTION

  • Respond to the discussion paper for IHSS emphasising on the importance of providing legal information, advice and support to newly arrived communities and reinstate the non fee paying migration agents in the sector.( Helen and Dana)
  • Write to Senator Evans and AGs - Robert McClelland for a meeting with this group to discuss the issues raised in relation to access to migration law for newly arrived communities Simon Roberts
  • Develop a proforma for gathering information on the services provided to CALD communities, the country of origin, language spoken, use of interpreters and unmet need. This information can be gathered along with the information which LIV will gather as part of their project

( Rachna)

  • Ross Barnett to provide contact for DOJ to Rachna
  • Lauren Anderson will email the group about the assistance which PILCH can provide in area of migration law.
  • List of probono lawyers list for the western region can be emailed to the other participants ( Simon Roberts)
  • Monica Ferrari to provide information about the resources and other information that will be developed at VLA in languages other than English.
  • YRIPP to explore training options with the newly arrived communities ( Vivianne)

7. Gaps of legal services for CALD communities

As discussed above we will use the proforma to identify the newly arrived communities and the gaps in service provision.

8. Resources and information sharing

Footscray CLC will launch the report at the conference to address the issues of newly arrived African communities driving without license and also third party insurance problem. Helen to organise students to work with Rachna to support this project.

Information about this working group will be put up on VLAF website.

9.Other items

Next meeting on the 25 August 2009 at 2.00pm . Venue (TBA)