LEGAL AID COMMISSION (ACT)
Objectives
The Legal Aid Commission (ACT) (the Commission), established by the Legal Aid Act 1977 (the Act), provides a range of legal aid services in accordance with the Act.  
Legal aid services include legal information, legal advice and minor assistance, duty lawyer services, grants of legal assistance (legally assisted cases), and community legal education.
The objective of the Commission is to maximise access to justice in the ACT by providing legal aid services through its staff, and through private legal practitioners paid by the Commission.  Commission services are available to residents of the ACT and others who are involved in legal transactions or proceedings in the ACT.
2008-09 Priorities
Strategic and operational priorities to be pursued in 2008‑09 include:
•	negotiating a new ACT/Commonwealth Government funding agreement;
•	improving the coordination of legal aid services with other community services in the ACT;
•	developing outreach services to improve access for vulnerable and marginalised people to legal advice and assistance;
•	reviewing and developing legal aid services in civil law matters;
•	establishing a Prisoners’ Legal Service at the new ACT prison; 
•	delivering a range of community legal education programs targeted to priority areas of need; and
•	improving the range of electronic applications and data exchange systems available to clients, partners and other stakeholders.
Estimated Employment Level
2007-08
Budget			2007-08
Est. Outcome	2008-09
Budget	
56		  Staffing  (FTE)	52	53	

Strategic Indicators
The Commission’s strategic plan for 2008‑2012 is designed to improve the range, quality and targeting of legal aid services in the ACT.  This will be achieved by pursuing strategic goals aligned with the Commission’s Mission statement.
The Strategic Indicators for the Commission in the 2008‑09 Budget are:

Strategic Indicator 1
Legal Advice and Representation
To ensure that people are not prevented by disadvantage from obtaining the legal services they need to assert or defend their rights.  This goal will be achieved by: researching the nature and extent of unmet need for legal aid services in the ACT, and barriers to people obtaining legal help; improving methods of service delivery; expanding the provision of advice and assistance in priority areas of need in civil law through the Commission’s civil law practice and in collaboration with community legal centres; and improving the co-ordination of legal aid and other community services.

Strategic Indicator 2
Community Legal Education
To develop within the community an improved understanding of the law and legal system operating in the ACT.  To achieve this goal the Commission will target legal education programs to meet priority areas of need for legal education in the community.

Strategic Indicator 3
Law Reform
To promote the reform of laws that adversely affect those we assist.  To achieve this goal the Commission will monitor the impact of laws on disadvantaged members of the community and make submissions for reform of those laws where appropriate.

Output Classes
	Total Cost1
	Government Payment for Outputs	
	2007-08
Est. Outcome
$’000	2008-09
Budget
$’000	2007-08
Est. Outcome
$’000	2008-09
Budget
$’000	
Output Class 1:
Legal Aid Services2	9,129	9,250	3,199	3,519	
Output 1.1:
Legal Aid Services Provided by Private Legal Practitioners3	3,925	3,977	1,376	1,513	
Notes:
1.	Total cost includes depreciation of $0.050 million in 2007-08 and $0.091 million in 2008-09.
2.	This output class has been renamed and was previously reported as ‘Payments to Legal Practitioners’ in the 2007-08 Budget papers.  
3.	This output class has been renamed and was previously reported as ‘Payments to Private Legal Practitioners’ in the 2007-08 Budget papers.
Output Description
The Commission under arrangements with private legal practitioners provides Legal Aid Services to the community. This output includes payments to private practitioners and the cost to the Commission of administering the arrangements with the private legal practitioners.
Private practitioners are engaged by the Commission to provide legal aid services.  They are paid professional fees and disbursements on the basis of agreed scales, up to a commitment level determined by the Commission on an individual case basis.  

	Total Cost	Government Payment for Outputs	
	2007-08
Est. Outcome
$’000	2008-09
Budget
$’000 	2007-08
Est. Outcome
$’000 	2008-09
Budget
$’000 	
Output 1.2: 
Legal Aid Services Provided by Commission Staff1					
	5,204	5,273	1,823	2,006	
Note:
1.	This output class has been renamed and was previously reported as ‘In-house Legal Payments’ in the 2007-08 Budget papers.  
Output Description
The Commission employs legal practitioners to provide Legal Aid services to the community. The Commission staff provide a full range of legal aid services to the community. This output includes the cost of these services which are calculated on the same basis as Output 1.1 except that the professional fees component is replaced by salaries and related costs.
Accountability Indicators

	2007-08
Targets	2007-08
Est. Outcome	2008-09
Targets	
Output Class 1: Legal Aid Services	
Output 1.1: Legal Aid Services Provided by Private Legal Practitioners	
				
a.	Total number of legal advice services provided in person.1,2	n/a	n/a	300	
b.	Total number of duty lawyer services provided1,3	n/a	n/a	480	
c.	Grants referred to Private Practitioners4,5	1,420	1,460	1,450	
Notes:
1.	New measures.
2.	Legal advice is specific advice of a legal nature concerning a person’s individual circumstances.  Minor assistance is provided in cases where advice given includes recommended action that the person may have difficulty taking on their own behalf.  
3.	Duty lawyer services are legal services provided by a legal practitioner at a court or tribunal to people who would otherwise be unrepresented.  Duty lawyer services consist of advising the person, and in appropriate circumstances appearing on their behalf, in relation to the proceeding or event.  
4.	This measure was previously reported as ‘Grants Made’ in the 2007-08 Budget papers.  The name has been changed to better reflect the actual output being measured.
5.	Grants of legal assistance are financial assistance to enable people (who would not otherwise be able to afford legal services) to obtain legal representation in legal proceedings, or in other legal matters of a substantial nature.  Grants of legal assistance are provided in criminal, family and general law matters.

	2007-08
Targets	2007-08
Est. Outcome	2008-09
Targets	
Output 1.2: Legal Aid Services Provided by Commission Staff	
				
a.	Total number of information and referral services provided1	n/a	n/a	18,000	
b.	Total number of legal advice and minor assistance services provided in person1,2	n/a	n/a	2,700	
c.	Total number of legal advice and minor assistance services provided by telephone1,2	n/a	n/a 	7,000	
d.	Total number of duty lawyer services provided1,3	n/a	n/a	2,720	
e.	Total number of people participating in community legal education activities1,4	n/a	n/a 	3,500	
f.	Grants referred to Commission staff5,6	1,130	1,190	1,200	
Notes:
1.	New measures.
2.	Legal advice is specific advice of a legal nature concerning a person’s individual circumstances.  Minor assistance is provided in cases where advice given includes recommended action that the person may have difficulty taking on their own behalf.  
3.	Duty lawyer services are legal services provided by a legal practitioner at a court or tribunal to people who would otherwise be unrepresented.  Duty lawyer services consist of advising the person, and in appropriate circumstances appearing on their behalf, in relation to the proceeding or event.  
4.	The Commission initiates and carries out educational programs designed to promote awareness and understanding of legal rights and responsibilities, and how the legal system works 
5.	This measure was previously reported as ‘Grants Made’ in the 2007-08 Budget papers.  The name has been changed to better reflect the actual output being measured.
6.	Grants of legal assistance are financial assistance to enable people (who would not otherwise be able to afford legal services) to obtain legal representation in legal proceedings, or in other legal matters of a substantial nature.  Grants of legal assistance are provided in criminal, family and general law matters.

Changes to Appropriation
Changes to Appropriation						
 	2007-08	2008-09	2009-10	2010-11	2011-12	
Government Payment for Outputs	Est. Out.	Budget	Estimate	Estimate	Estimate	
 	$'000	$'000	$'000	$'000	$'000	
						
2007-08 Budget	3,199	3,347	3,466	3,603	3,603	
						
2008-09 Budget Policy Adjustments 						
Prisoners’ Legal Service and Expanded Criminal Duty Lawyer Service	 - 	148	152	153	154	
Security, ICT and Business Continuity Upgrade	 - 	16	 - 	 - 	 - 	
						
2008-09 Budget Technical Adjustments						
Revised Indexation Parameters	 - 	8	8	9	78	
						
2008-09 Budget	3,199	3,519	3,626	3,765	3,835	

						
Changes to Appropriation 						
 	2007-08	2008-09	2009-10	2010-11	2011-12	
Capital Injections	Est. Out.	Budget	Estimate	Estimate	Estimate	
 	$'000	$'000	$'000	$'000	$'000	
						
2007-08 Budget	 - 	 - 	 - 	 - 	 - 	
						
2008-09 Budget Policy Adjustments 						
Prisoners’ Legal Service and Expanded Criminal Duty Lawyer Service	 - 	25	 - 	 - 	 - 	
Security, ICT and Business Continuity Upgrade	 - 	169	 - 	 - 	 - 	
						
2008-09 Budget	 - 	194	 - 	 - 	 - 	

2008-09 Capital Works Program
Departmental
 	Estimated	Estimated	2008-09	2009-10	2010-11	Expected 	
	Total	Expenditure	Financing	Financing	Financing	Completion 	
	Cost	Pre 2008-09				Date  	
 	$’000	$’000	$’000	$’000	$’000	 	
							
New Capital Works							
Security, ICT and Business Continuity Upgrade	169	-	169	-	-	Jun 2009	
							
Total New Capital Works	169	-	169	-	-	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 Total Departmental Capital Works	169   	-	169	-	-	 	
Commonwealth Grants
The major Commonwealth payments for which Legal Aid Commission (ACT) has responsibility for are:
Name of Grant
	Activities Funded by Grant
	2008-09 Estimate $’000	
Payment for Commonwealth Outputs	Provision of various Commonwealth related services	3,980	
Family Dispute Resolution1	Provision of the Family Dispute Resolution program	104	

Total
		
4,084	
Note:
1.	Family Dispute Resolution was previously known as Primary Dispute Resolution.

Legal Aid Commission (ACT)	
Operating Statement	
  2007-08			  2007-08	   2008-09		  2009-10	  2010-11	  2011-12		
    Budget			Est.Outcome	   Budget	   Var	  Estimate	   Estimate	  Estimate		
    $'000			   $'000	   $'000	    %	   $'000	    $'000	   $'000		
		Income								
		Revenue								
3,199		Government Payment for Outputs	3,199	3,519	10	3,626	3,765	3,835		
360		User Charges - Non ACT Government	265	250	-6	359	359	359		
3,984		Grants from the Commonwealth	3,984	4,084	3	4,186	4,290	4,395		
878		Interest	1,496	1,446	-3	878	878	878		
8,421		Total Revenue	8,944	9,299	4	9,049	9,292	9,467		
		Gains								
0		Total Gains	0	0	-	0	0	0		
8,421		Total Income	8,944	9,299	4	9,049	9,292	9,467		
		Expenses								
3,636		Employee Expenses	3,839	4,111	7	3,816	3,865	3,916		
577		Superannuation Expenses	606	651	7	602	610	619		
4,951		Supplies and Services	4,564	4,327	-5	4,432	4,618	4,733		
50		Depreciation and Amortisation	50	91	82	125	125	120		
70		Other Expenses	70	70	-	70	70	70		
9,284		Total Ordinary Expenses	9,129	9,250	1	9,045	9,288	9,458		
-863		Operating Result	-185	49	126	4	4	9		

Legal Aid Commission (ACT)	
Balance Sheet	
    Budget			Est.Outcome	   Planned		   Planned	   Planned	   Planned		
as at 30/6/08			as at 30/6/08	as at 30/6/09	   Var	as at 30/6/10	as at 30/6/11	as at 30/6/12		
   $'000			   $'000	    $'000	    %	    $'000	    $'000	    $'000		
		Current Assets								
1,688		Cash and Cash Equivalents	2,648	2,598	-2	2,676	2,754	2,832		
449		Receivables	208	209	..	210	211	212		
118		Other	145	145	-	145	145	145		
2,255		Total Current Assets	3,001	2,952	-2	3,031	3,110	3,189		
		Non Current Assets								
183		Receivables	48	48	-	48	48	48		
8		Property, Plant and Equipment	36	350	872	275	200	130		
191		Total Non Current Assets	84	398	374	323	248	178		
2,446		TOTAL ASSETS	3,085	3,350	9	3,354	3,358	3,367		
		Current Liabilities								
681		Payables	493	493	-	493	493	493		
915		Employee Benefits	801	821	2	821	821	821		
0		Other Provisions	159	159	-	159	159	159		
1,596		Total Current Liabilities	1,453	1,473	1	1,473	1,473	1,473		
		Non Current Liabilities								
56		Employee Benefits	27	29	7	29	29	29		
56		Total Non Current Liabilities	27	29	7	29	29	29		
1,652		TOTAL LIABILITIES	1,480	1,502	1	1,502	1,502	1,502		
794		NET ASSETS	1,605	1,848	15	1,852	1,856	1,865		
		REPRESENTED BY FUNDS EMPLOYED								
344		Accumulated Funds	1,234	1,477	20	1,481	1,485	1,494		
450		Reserves	371	371	-	371	371	371		
794		TOTAL FUNDS EMPLOYED	1,605	1,848	15	1,852	1,856	1,865		

Legal Aid Commission (ACT)	
Cash Flow Statement	
  2007-08			  2007-08	   2008-09		  2009-10	  2010-11	  2011-12		
    Budget			Est.Outcome	   Budget	   Var	  Estimate	   Estimate	  Estimate		
    $'000			   $'000	   $'000	    %	   $'000	    $'000	   $'000		
		CASH FLOWS FROM OPERATING ACTIVITIES								
		Receipts								
3,199		Cash from Government for Outputs	3,199	3,519	10	3,626	3,765	3,835		
360		User Charges	265	250	-6	359	359	359		
878		Interest Received	1,496	1,446	-3	878	878	878		
3,984		Grants Received from the Commonwealth	3,984	4,084	3	4,186	4,290	4,395		
176		Other Revenue	176	176	-	176	176	176		
8,597		Operating Receipts	9,120	9,475	4	9,225	9,468	9,643		
		Payments								
4,069		Related to Employees	4,308	4,621	7	4,299	4,356	4,416		
5,067		Related to Supplies and Services	4,674	4,446	-5	4,551	4,737	4,852		
247		Other	247	247	-	247	247	247		
9,383		Operating Payments	9,229	9,314	1	9,097	9,340	9,515		
-786		NET CASH INFLOW/(OUTFLOW) FROM OPERATING ACTIVITIES	-109	161	248	128	128	128		
		CASH FLOWS FROM INVESTING ACTIVITIES								
		Payments								
0		Purchase of Property, Plant and Equipment	0	405	#	50	50	50		
0		Investing Payments	0	405	#	50	50	50		
0		NET CASH INFLOW/(OUTFLOW) FROM INVESTING ACTIVITIES	0	-405	#	-50	-50	-50		
		CASH FLOWS FROM FINANCING ACTIVITIES								
		Receipts								
0		Capital Injection from Government	0	194	#	0	0	0		
0		Financing Receipts	0	194	#	0	0	0		
0		NET CASH INFLOW/(OUTFLOW) FROM FINANCING ACTIVITIES	0	194	#	0	0	0		
-786		NET INCREASE/(DECREASE) IN CASH HELD	-109	-50	54	78	78	78		
2,474		CASH AT BEGINNING OF REPORTING PERIOD	2,757	2,648	-4	2,598	2,676	2,754		
1,688		CASH AT THE END OF THE REPORTING PERIOD	2,648	2,598	-2	2,676	2,754	2,832		

Legal Aid Commission (ACT)	
Statement of Changes in Equity	
    Budget			Est.Outcome	   Planned		   Planned	   Planned	   Planned		
as at 30/6/08			as at 30/6/08	as at 30/6/09	   Var	as at 30/6/10	as at 30/6/11	as at 30/6/12		
   $'000			   $'000	    $'000	    %	    $'000	    $'000	    $'000		
1,657		Opening Balance	1,790	1,605	-10	1,848	1,852	1,856		
		Accumulated Funds								
-863		Operating Result for the Period	-185	49	126	4	4	9		
		Reserves								
-863		Total Income And Expense For The Period	-185	49	126	4	4	9		
		Transactions Involving Equity Holders Affecting Accumulated Funds								
0		Capital Injections	0	194	#	0	0	0		
794		Closing Balance	1,605	1,848	15	1,852	1,856	1,865		
Notes to the Budget Statements
Significant variations are as follows:
Operating Statement
•	government payment for outputs:  the increase of $0.320 million in the 2008‑09 Budget from the 2007‑08 estimated outcome is due mainly to the establishment of a Prisoners’ Legal Service at the Alexander Maconochie Centre (AMC), expanding the existing duty lawyer service at the ACT Magistrates Court and indexation.
•	user charges - non ACT Government:  the decrease of $0.095 million in the 2007‑08 estimated outcome from the original budget is due to a decrease in client contributions and recoveries.
•	grants from the Commonwealth:  the increase of $0.1 million in the 2008‑09 Budget from the 2007‑08 estimated outcome is due to revised indexation parameters.
•	interest:  the increase of $0.618 million in the 2007‑08 estimated outcome from the original budget is due to statutory interest received from the Law Society of the ACT being higher than anticipated, combined with investment earnings being higher than expected.
•	employee and superannuation expenses:
–	the increase of $0.232 million in the 2007‑08 estimated outcome from the original budget is due to higher than anticipated costs of replacing staff on maternity, sick and long service leave, combined with higher than expected costs of recruiting new staff; and
–	the increase of $0.317 million in the 2008‑09 Budget from the 2007‑08 estimated outcome is mainly due to the establishment a Prisoners’ Legal Service at the AMC and expansion of the duty lawyer service at the ACT Magistrates Court, wage increases and the impact of services that are currently outsourced being brought back in-house.
•	supplies and services:
–	the decrease of $0.387 million in the 2007‑08 estimated outcome from the original budget is mainly due to a decrease in payments made to Private Practitioners; and
–	the decrease of $0.237 million in the 2008‑09 Budget from the 2007‑08 estimated outcome is mainly due to the impact of services that are currently outsourced being brought back in-house.
•	depreciation and amortisation:  the increase of $0.041 million in the 2008‑09 Budget from 2007‑08 estimated outcome is mainly due to a security upgrade and refurbishment of the Civic premises and the upgrade of ICT infrastructure.
Balance Sheet
•	cash and cash equivalents:  the increase of $0.960 million in the 2007‑08 estimated outcome from the original budget is mainly due to higher than expected interest revenues and a decrease in payments made to Private Practitioners.
•	current receivables:  the decrease of $0.241 million in the 2007‑08 estimated outcome from the original budget is mainly due to a decrease in GST receivables and ACT Government receivables.
•	non-current receivables:  the decrease of $0.135 million in the 2007‑08 estimated outcome from the original budget is due to a reduction in the level of client contributions, together with the impact of bad debts written off.
•	property, plant and equipment:  the increase of $0.314 million in the 2008‑09 Budget from the 2007‑08 estimated outcome is mainly due to the planned security upgrade and refurbishment and the upgrade of ICT infrastructure.
•	current payables:  the decrease of $0.188 million in the 2007‑08 estimated outcome from the original budget mainly reflects the decrease in payments being made to Private Practitioners.
•	current and non-current employee benefits:  the decrease of $0.143 million in the 2007‑08 estimated outcome from the original budget is due to a reduction in annual and long service leave provisions due to the departure of senior staff.
•	other provisions current:  the increase of $0.159 million in the 2007‑08 estimated outcome from the original budget is due a change in the methodology for estimating amounts payable to Private Practitioners.
Cash Flow Statement
The major variations in the Cash Flow Statement in the 2007‑08 estimated outcome from the original budget and in the 2008‑09 Budget from the 2007‑08 estimated outcome are explained within the notes to the Operating Statement above.
Statement of Changes in Equity
Variances in the statement are explained in the notes above.