Valletta Legal’s Post

After decades of uncertainty, AUWCL Clinical Program helped Holocaust survivor Henry Pachnowski finally become a U.S. citizen. Henry's journey to citizenship was a testament to the resilience of the human spirit and the power of legal advocacy. Student attorneys worked tirelessly to overcome complex legal hurdles and secure justice for this deserving individual. Read more here: https://lnkd.in/eU5GnkM3 #ChampionWhatMatters #AUWCL #LawSchool #LegalAdvocacy #holocaustsuvivor Jayesh Rathod

Rights for Elders. We recognise that First Nations People are some of the most vulnerable and disadvantaged in Australia and, as a rights-based organisation, we are committed to ensuring that our legal, advocacy and information services meet the needs of Indigenous Australian communities. https://lnkd.in/ghgARmx5

Growing the next generation of immigration lawyers and policy makers!!

🌟 Introducing our 8 Principles for Community Lawyering in the UK 🌟 Our recent report on Community Lawyering draws on community voices to give insights into the gaps and challenges faced by community organisations in accessing legal support. In our report, we suggest an urgent need for alternative models of legal support for community organisations in the UK. #CommunityLawyering ➡ https://lnkd.in/eRGDnTRk Based on this research and conversations with grassroots leaders and community activists, we’ve developed a set of guiding principles for #CommunityLawyering that will improve the legal support offer for grassroots organisations led by and for minoritised communities. We apply these principles to our work and expect they will evolve based on feedback from the community organisations we work with. The 8 principles are: 1.  We share lived experiences with, or will develop a deep shared understanding of, our clients’ community contexts. 2.  We stand in solidarity with our clients’ work. 3.  We understand the systemic barriers that communities face in accessing legal support 4.  We try to proactively dismantle barriers to legal support by adopting an ‘access to justice’ approach in our legal practice. 5.  We embrace collaborative and reciprocal approaches to exchanging knowledge. 6.  We actively democratise and distribute access to legal knowledge. 7.  We advise on intersecting community and individual needs. 8.  We situate our work within wider movements for social justice. #CommunityLawyering #SocialJustice #LegalSupport #CommunityEngagement

The sector knows how committed Mark Dreyfus is to ensuring that the most vulnerable and marginalised people in our communities have access to legal assistance to pursue their rights. So what's the hold up? Djirra- Sharing stories, finding solutions together with every other legal assistance provider across the country, calls on the nation’s Attorney-Generals to demonstrate the same commitment and publish the Independent Review into the National Legal Assistance Partnership immediately. Specialist Aboriginal Family Violence Prevention and Legal Services like Djirra remain chronically underfunded while demand continues to grow. At Djirra, we had a 33% increase in demand for our services in just this last 12 months. The governments MUST provide for pay parity with Legal Aid and reallocate resources from mainstream legal services to Aboriginal Community Controlled Organisations to ensure our people have access to culturally safe legal and non-legal representation and support. Back our calls to release the report and implement the recommendations by emailing Attorney General Mark Dreyfus on mark.dreyfus.mp@aph.gov.au and the Attorney General in your State or Territory. #AboriginalWomensLivesMatter #WeHaveTheSolutions #CloseTheGap

Funds from the Massachusetts IOLTA Committee make a significant difference in the lives of real people and in our communities by supporting legal help for people across the Commonwealth who cannot afford an attorney. In partnership with the Massachusetts Legal Assistance Corporation, the Massachusetts Bar Foundation, and the Boston Bar Foundation of the Boston Bar Association, IOLTA grants increase the capacity of legal aid organizations to offer critical assistance to those who have few resources to address civil legal issues, including domestic violence, housing, immigration status, child advocacy, family law, discrimination, and health care. Learn more about the IOLTA program and where that money goes: http://ow.ly/Trtq50Jzpg5 #LegalAidChangesLives #JusticeForAll

How can anti-racism civil society resist increasing restrictions and attacks that undermine our work across Europe? 💡⤵️ In a recent conversation with our network, Mila Paspalanova (United Nations Human Rights) and Mariam Camilla Rechchad (Systemic Justice) offered valuable insights: 📌 Strategic litigation must be community-driven. The team of Systemic Justice makes the law accessible to marginalised communities through the 'community-driven strategic litigation' model. By co-designing litigation strategies with the community, they aim to create lasting policy changes where they are most needed. 📌 Create strong local networks and leverage international mechanisms. In her experience developing protection mechanisms for human rights defenders across Latin America – where the aggressors are often the authorities – Mila Paspalanova found that strong self-organisation and leveraging UN mechanisms have paved the way for civil society to sustain itself. 📌 Legal action should go hand in hand with advocacy. Strategic legal action should be strengthened with grassroots advocacy. Building public support and leveraging international legal bodies are crucial to sustain long-term change and resist restrictive measures when under attack. #advocacy #civilsociety #community #antiracism

📢 Media Release: Historic $3.9 Billion National Access to Justice Partnership Announced Today, at the Standing Council of Attorneys-General (SCAG) meeting in Melbourne, a transformative agreement was reached to implement the new $3.9 billion National Access to Justice Partnership (NAJP). This landmark initiative delivers an $800 million increase in funding over five years (2025-26 onward) to strengthen the legal assistance sector and support the most vulnerable members of our community. 💡 Key Highlights of the NAJP: The largest Commonwealth investment in legal assistance to date. Increased funding to improve frontline services for those facing family, domestic, and sexual violence. 📊 Breakdown of Funding Increases: 1️⃣ $833 million for Community Legal Centres and Women’s Legal Services 74% increase (+$354 million). $558 million for Community Legal Centres. $276 million for Women’s Legal Services. 2️⃣ $367 million for Family Violence Prevention and Legal Services 112% increase (+$193 million). 3️⃣ $838 million for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Legal Services 64% increase (+$326 million). 4️⃣ $1.785 billion for Legal Aid Commissions 24% increase (+$342 million). This funding boost reflects a strong commitment to ensuring equitable access to justice for all Australians. By bolstering legal services, the NAJP will empower frontline organizations to better serve their communities, providing essential support to those who need it most. This is a monumental step toward a fairer, more accessible justice system. 💙 #AccessToJustice #LegalAssistance #CommunitySupport #JusticeMatters

"Keep interested in your own career, however humble, it is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time" Max Ehrmann in Desiderata. I am delighted to have shared insights and exchanged enriching perspectives with brilliant advocates at a sitdown with the Law Down Africa magazine.🌍 From diverse legal fields to deep industry insights, it was an engaging session that I cherished. Read our feature on this link ( https://lnkd.in/gH5zWz9X ), and let's continue this legal dialogue toward a brighter future of law and advocacy. #LawDownAfrica #LegalInsights #Advocacy"

Djirra and other Aboriginal Family Violence Prevention and Legal Services (FVPLS) rely heavily on government investment yet receive the LEAST funding of the four legal assistance providers in Australia. The National Legal Assistance Partnership (NLAP) – which sets out the funding for all legal assistance providers – will expire in June 2025, leaving our sector and our women with no long-term security. The Independent Review of the NLAP recommended an increase in FVPLS funding as a matter of urgency. We call on Federal, State and Territory governments to rapidly form a successor agreement to NLAP which includes commitments to: • Funding FVPLS based on the complexity and longevity of our assistance • Reallocating funding from mainstream legal services to FVPLS and Aboriginal legal services so Aboriginal people can access culturally safe legal assistance as their first option • Quarantined funding with indexation for FVPLSs • Longer term agreements of 5+ years • State-based women’s legal assistance forum We need certainty. We need funding. We need to do more to support Aboriginal women and children’s safety. Aboriginal women’s lives matter. #AboriginalWomensLivesMatter