❓ Hon Alison Xamon asks about Legal Aid assistance provided to Indonesians in WA prisons for people smuggling since 2006. The Attorney General provides detailed information on legal aid applications, representation, pro bono offers, and translation services.
AnsweredQoN 5035Legislative Council
QuestionView source ↗
I refer to the Indonesians in custody in Western Australian adult prisons for so called ‘people smuggling’ offences, and I ask -
(1) How many Indonesians in custody in Western Australian adult prisons for so called ‘people smuggling’ offences since 2006 have received assistance from Legal Aid?
(2) How many Indonesians in custody in Western Australian adult prisons for so called ‘people smuggling’ offences since 2006 have applied for, but not received assistance from Legal Aid?
(3) On average, how many lawyers are assigned to, speak to or act for each of the detainees referred to in (1)?
(4) Has Legal Aid been offered services by any non-Legal Aid lawyers to act
pro bono
for the detainees referred to in (1)?
(5) If yes to (4), how many offers of assistance have been received?
(6) Has Legal Aid utilised the
pro bono
services of non-Legal Aid lawyers referred to in (4) and (5)?
(7) If no to (6), why not?
(8) What translation and interpretation services, if any, are provided for meetings between the detainees referred to in (1) and their lawyer(s) and legal counsel?
(1) How many Indonesians in custody in Western Australian adult prisons for so called ‘people smuggling’ offences since 2006 have received assistance from Legal Aid?
(2) How many Indonesians in custody in Western Australian adult prisons for so called ‘people smuggling’ offences since 2006 have applied for, but not received assistance from Legal Aid?
(3) On average, how many lawyers are assigned to, speak to or act for each of the detainees referred to in (1)?
(4) Has Legal Aid been offered services by any non-Legal Aid lawyers to act
pro bono
for the detainees referred to in (1)?
(5) If yes to (4), how many offers of assistance have been received?
(6) Has Legal Aid utilised the
pro bono
services of non-Legal Aid lawyers referred to in (4) and (5)?
(7) If no to (6), why not?
(8) What translation and interpretation services, if any, are provided for meetings between the detainees referred to in (1) and their lawyer(s) and legal counsel?
AnswerView source ↗
Answered
5 March 2012
Responded by
Parliamentary Secretary representing the Attorney General
Response time
104 days
In responding to this Question, the Member's attention is drawn to the fact that people smuggling is an offence under Commonwealth law and that these matters are considered by Western Australian courts, exercising Commonwealth jurisdiction. The legal representation provided to people charged with these offences, through Legal AidWA, falls within those areas of Legal AidWA's service delivery which are funded by the Commonwealth Government.
Answers to the Member's specific Questions are provided below:
(1) 200 individuals have applied for legal aid for people smuggling charges since 2006. Of that number, there were 187 Indonesians, 1 Iranian, 1 Iraqi, 1 Japanese, 1 Papua New Guinean, 7 Sri Lankan and 2 with their nationality not stated. All of these individuals remanded in custody received assistance by Legal Aid.
(2) No person charged with people smuggling has been refused legal aid.
(3) Ordinarily 1 practitioner is assigned per client. However, there may be occasions where a client is initially seen by Legal Aid's prison visiting service prior to or at the time of applying for legal aid. There have been 35 cases where a client who has been assigned a lawyer has had their case transferred to another lawyer. The majority of these transfers were necessary due to a conflict of interest arising. For example, a lawyer may discover he or she is acting for a co-accused or the client may change their plea. There were some cases where a lawyer ceased to act as a private practitioner and an assigned lawyer died resulting in a new practitioner being assigned. Of the 35 transfers, there have also been instances where an assigned practitioner has not had capacity to represent their client at a trial due to other commitments necessitating transfer to an alternative practitioner.
(4) There have been communications from an interested party suggesting that a pro bono lawyer might act for a client but none were directly offered by a non-Legal Aid lawyer. When the proposed pro bono lawyer was contacted, that lawyer undertook to act pursuant to a grant of legal aid and not act on a pro bono basis.
(5) None from a lawyer.
(6) None to date.
(7) Legal Aid has an inhouse Criminal Law practice and utilises the services of private practitioners who are on Legal Aid's panel of practitioners. As no pro-bono lawyer has offered to act for a client charged with people smuggling, Legal Aid has either provided an inhouse practitioner or provided funding for a private practitioner to represent the client.
(8) All meetings between inhouse practitioners or practitioners acting pursuant to a grant of legal aid are conducted with the assistance of an interpreter from ONCALL Interpreters and Translators or are provided with funding to enable a practitioner to pay for an interpreter. In addition, the courts provide interpreters where an accused person requires the assistance of one.
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Answers to the Member's specific Questions are provided below:
(1) 200 individuals have applied for legal aid for people smuggling charges since 2006. Of that number, there were 187 Indonesians, 1 Iranian, 1 Iraqi, 1 Japanese, 1 Papua New Guinean, 7 Sri Lankan and 2 with their nationality not stated. All of these individuals remanded in custody received assistance by Legal Aid.
(2) No person charged with people smuggling has been refused legal aid.
(3) Ordinarily 1 practitioner is assigned per client. However, there may be occasions where a client is initially seen by Legal Aid's prison visiting service prior to or at the time of applying for legal aid. There have been 35 cases where a client who has been assigned a lawyer has had their case transferred to another lawyer. The majority of these transfers were necessary due to a conflict of interest arising. For example, a lawyer may discover he or she is acting for a co-accused or the client may change their plea. There were some cases where a lawyer ceased to act as a private practitioner and an assigned lawyer died resulting in a new practitioner being assigned. Of the 35 transfers, there have also been instances where an assigned practitioner has not had capacity to represent their client at a trial due to other commitments necessitating transfer to an alternative practitioner.
(4) There have been communications from an interested party suggesting that a pro bono lawyer might act for a client but none were directly offered by a non-Legal Aid lawyer. When the proposed pro bono lawyer was contacted, that lawyer undertook to act pursuant to a grant of legal aid and not act on a pro bono basis.
(5) None from a lawyer.
(6) None to date.
(7) Legal Aid has an inhouse Criminal Law practice and utilises the services of private practitioners who are on Legal Aid's panel of practitioners. As no pro-bono lawyer has offered to act for a client charged with people smuggling, Legal Aid has either provided an inhouse practitioner or provided funding for a private practitioner to represent the client.
(8) All meetings between inhouse practitioners or practitioners acting pursuant to a grant of legal aid are conducted with the assistance of an interpreter from ONCALL Interpreters and Translators or are provided with funding to enable a practitioner to pay for an interpreter. In addition, the courts provide interpreters where an accused person requires the assistance of one.
Notice: This document is created or edited using unregistered or evaluation copy of rtLib valid for testing or development purposes only. To use it for productive or any other purposes please register it. You may purchase the license on
http://www.rtlib.com
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