The NSW Council for Civil Liberties (NSWCCL) is deeply concerned at the immediate threat to the rights and safety of children and families in the family court system, following a funding crisis forced upon Legal Aid NSW by the latest Federal Budget. 

The federal government has cut funding to Legal Aid NSW in real terms by failing to increase legal funding to match the increases in family law services and workloads. Legal Aid NSW yesterday announced that it has been forced to restrict eligibility for its family law representation services to people who had survived family violence or First Nations people (in addition to an assessment of their financial circumstances) in matters of parenting, property, contravention and enforcement, divorce, and drug testing.

These funding cuts mean vulnerable people in our community will not be able to access justice in a complex family law system and directly undermine the rule of law. It will increase the burden on a system already struggling to keep up with demand and further impact the availability of court resources. 

The cuts will also result in the elimination of funding for Independent Children’s Lawyers (ICLs) from final hearings where both parents have legal representation. The court is required to consider the wishes and views of children and a final hearing is the precise moment when a court determines what parenting orders are in a child’s best interests and what orders would protect children from harm. 

ICLs independently represent children in complex family law proceedings and are a valuable party to parenting proceedings. The funding being pulled from Legal Aid NSW and preventing ICLs to appear at trials will adversely impact the ability for children’s voices to be represented and potentially expose vulnerable parties and children to risks of harm.

Underresourcing Legal Aid NSW means there will be further delays in the system and put strain on the court’s resources. This increase in backlogs in the court drives up legal costs for the entire community, including legally represented parties.

The NSWCCL calls on the NSW Government to reverse Federal cuts in the New South Wales State Budget to be delivered in June 2026. Otherwise, NSW will face an unprecedented breakdown in access to justice.

The NSWCCL calls upon both the Commonwealth and State Attorneys-General to treat this development as an operational emergency and immediately re-negotiate a funding package to restore representation for children and vulnerable families.

Comments attributable to Timothy Roberts, NSWCCL President:

"It is an act of blatant hypocrisy to underfund family law services at Legal Aid at a time when the Commonwealth government has publicly acknowledged the devastating impact of family violence in our communities”.

“The Commonwealth government must urgently provide the required funding to Legal Aid NSW to ensure vulnerable families and children are not exposed to harm. Funding Legal Aid NSW fully and fairly better ensures access to justices and strengthens the rule of law”

“The removal of ICL’s for final hearings in NSW is an alarming recent consequence of chronic underfunding to Legal Aid NSW that increases the risk that children’s voices and wishes will not be appropriately represented.”

“Cuts like these place stress on the family law profession and the court system is a system that is already under-resourced.”

“Legal Aid NSW family lawyers and private family lawyers who assist vulnerable clients on legal aid grants are an essential part of the administration of justice. Without them, thousands of vulnerable members of the community would simply have no meaningful access or representation in the family law system.”

Contact Timothy Roberts for Media Interviews and Further Comments on [email protected]