This submission outlines the case for a strategic investment in legal services essential to supporting women who are victim-survivors of domestic, family, and sexual violence.
Whilst the National Access to Justice Partnership 2025-30 (NAJP) will provide a significant boost in Commonwealth funding for Women’s Legal Services nationally, there are still significant gaps in the capacity of service providers to meet the growing needs of women due to historic and chronic under-investment.
For example, in 2023-2024, Women’s Legal Services delivered legal assistance and non-legal support services to over 26,000 women nationwide. However, national data also shows that more than 1,000 women per week, or approximately 52,000 women per year, were turned away from our services.
The ability to close the divide between the demand for services and the capacity of service providers to meet it is complex, but includes:
- Escalating pressures within families due to the cost-of-living crisis
- The increasing rate and severity of natural disasters
- A rise in tech-facilitated violence
- Online misogyny
- Deficient funding in smaller jurisdictions
- Lack of pay parity for staff
- Legislated wage increases
As the national peak body for 13 specialist Women’s Legal Services in each state and territory across Australia, including two First Nations Women’s Legal Services, WLSA has carefully assessed investments which will make a sustained and meaningful difference to the ability of services providers to meet the needs of women needing support.
That is why we recommend:
- $52 million over five years to meet increasing demand for legal assistance from women in crisis, improve pay parity for Women’s Legal Service staff, and expand migration law expertise for women on temporary visas experiencing violence.
- $15 million over three years to expand the successful pilot program providing trauma-informed legal assistance for victim-survivors of sexual assault.
- $1.436 million over five years to support WLSA as a national peak body, ensuring a strong advocacy voice on law reform and policy issues affecting women.