LEGAL AID COMMISSION (ACT)
Objectives
The Legal Aid Commission (the Commission), established by the Legal Aid Act 1977 (the Act), provides legal assistance in accordance with the Act.  The assistance may be provided by private legal practitioners or the Commission’s own officers.  The Commission also represents regional residents whose legal proceedings take place in the ACT.
The main objective of the Commission is to maximise access to justice in the ACT by providing legal services to disadvantaged members of the community.
As well as legal representation, the Commission provides other services such as duty lawyers, advice, community education and input on law reform.
2007‑08 Priorities
Strategic and operational issues to be pursued in 2007‑08 include:
•	negotiating a new ACT/Australian Government funding agreement;
•	expanding duty lawyer services at the ACT Magistrates Court to support the new Criminal Listing procedures;
•	reviewing and developing legal aid services in civil law matters;
•	undertaking a feasibility study into a Prisoners Legal Advice service at the new ACT prison; and
•	developing procedures for electronic application lodgement, eligibility assessment and funds transfer to meet existing and developing requirements of clients and legal practitioners.

Estimated Employment Level 
	2006-07
Est.  Outcome	2007-08
Budget	
Staffing  (FTE)	54	56	

Output Classes
	Total Cost1	Government Payment for Outputs	
	2006‑07
Est. Outcome
$’000	2007‑08
Budget
$’000	2006‑07
Est. Outcome
$’000	2007‑08
Budget
$’000	
Output Class 1:
Payments to Legal Practitioners	8,930	9,284	3,068	3,199	
Output 1.1:
Payments to Private Legal Practitioners	3,840	3,992	1,319	1,376	
Note:
1.	Total cost includes depreciation of $0.049 million in 2006‑07 and depreciation of $0.050 million in 2007‑08.
Output Description
Payments to private practitioners are made on the basis of pre‑determined commitment levels set at the time of the granting of aid.  Any amendments to the pre-determined amounts are done on a case-by-case assessment.  This output is an indicator of the level of legal aid work being referred to, and performed by, private practitioners during the year.

	Total Cost	Government Payment for Outputs	
	2006‑07
Est. Outcome
$’000	2007‑08
Budget
$’000 	2006‑07
Est. Outcome
$’000 	2007‑08
Budget
$’000 	
Output 1.2: 
In-house Legal Payments					
	5,090	5,292	1,749	1,823	
Output Description
The Commission provides numerous legal services to the community through salaried legal practitioners.  The basis of service provision is the same as in Output 1.1.  This output is an indication of the cost of work being undertaken by the Commission’s salaried legal practitioners.

Strategic Indicators
Strategic Indicator 1
Target Group Access to Legal Aid Services
The Legal Aid Commission’s main objective is to maximise access to justice in the ACT by providing legal services to members of the community unable to afford the cost of appropriate legal representation.  Performance relative to this objective is monitored by measuring grants of legal assistance to Legal Aid Commission target groups.

Table 1 
Percentage of Legal Aid Commission grants of legal assistance to target groups
	2006‑07 Est. Outcome	2007‑08 Budget	2008-09 Projection	2009-10 Projection	2010-11 Projection	
						
Total Grants of Legal Assistance	2,550	2,550	2,600	2,650	2,650	
						
Percentage of grants of legal assistance provided to target group1						
 - Recipients of Australian Government benefits	76%	76%	76%	77%	77%	
 - Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander	6%	7%	7%	7%	7%	
 - Female	58%	58%	58%	58%	58%	
Note:
1.	Percentages will not sum to 100 as not all groups are included and because some clients will fall into two or three groups.

Accountability Indicators

	2006‑07
Targets	2006‑07
Est. Outcome	2007‑08
Targets	
Output Class 1: Payments to Legal Practitioners	
Output 1.1: Payments to Private Legal Practitioners	
				
a.	Grants Made	1,400	1,451	1,420	

	2006‑07
Targets	2006‑07
Est. Outcome	2007‑08
Targets	
Output 1.2: In-house Legal Payments	
				
a.	Grants Made	1,100	1,099	1,130	

Changes To Appropriation
Changes to Appropriation - Departmental						
 	2006-07	2007-08	2008-09	2009-10	2010-11	
Government Payment for Outputs	Est. Out.	Budget	Estimate	Estimate	Estimate	
 	$'000	$'000	$'000	$'000	$'000	
						
2006-07 Budget	3,385	3,547	3,713	3,844	3,844	
						
2007-08 Budget Policy Adjustments 						
Wage Outcomes	29	96	166	205	207	
						
2007-08 Budget Technical Adjustments						
Revised Indexation Parameters	 - 	4	4	4	57	
Australian Government Funding now paid directly to Legal Aid	(346)	(432)	(520)	(571)	(489)	
Decreased Notional Superannuation Contribution Rates	 - 	(16)	(16)	(16)	(16)	
						
2007-08 Budget	3,068	3,199	3,347	3,466	3,603	

Commonwealth Grants 
The major Commonwealth payments for which Legal Aid Commission (ACT) has responsibility for are: 
			
Name of Grant
	Activities Funded by Grant
 	2007‑08
Estimate
$’000	
			
Payment for Commonwealth Outputs	Provision of various Commonwealth related services	3,883	
			
Primary Dispute Resolution 	Provision of the Primary Dispute Resolution program	101	

Total
		
3,984	

Legal Aid Commission (ACT)	
Operating Statement	
  2006-07			  2006-07	   2007-08		  2008-09	  2009-10	  2010-11		
    Budget			Est.Outcome	   Budget	   Var	  Estimate	   Estimate	  Estimate		
    $'000			   $'000	   $'000	    %	   $'000	    $'000	   $'000		
		Income								
		Revenue								
3,385		Government Payment for Outputs	3,068	3,199	4	3,347	3,466	3,603		
331		User Charges - Non ACT Government	331	360	9	349	359	359		
3,269		Grants from the Commonwealth	3,887	3,984	2	4,084	4,186	4,290		
825		Interest	1,093	878	-20	878	878	878		
7,810		Total Revenue	8,379	8,421	1	8,658	8,889	9,130		
		Gains								
0		Total Gains	0	0	-	0	0	0		
7,810		Total Income	8,379	8,421	1	8,658	8,889	9,130		
		Expenses								
3,368		Employee Expenses	3,555	3,636	2	3,700	3,711	3,760		
546		Superannuation Expenses	671	577	-14	577	584	591		
4,598		Supplies and Services	4,585	4,951	8	4,204	4,395	4,580		
19		Depreciation and Amortisation	49	50	2	50	50	50		
0		Other Expenses	70	70	-	70	70	70		
8,531		Total Ordinary Expenses	8,930	9,284	4	8,601	8,810	9,051		
-721		Operating Result	-551	-863	-57	57	79	79		

Legal Aid Commission (ACT)	
Balance Sheet	
    Budget			Est.Outcome	   Planned		   Planned	   Planned	   Planned		
as at 30/6/07			as at 30/6/07	as at 30/6/08	   Var	as at 30/6/09	as at 30/6/10	as at 30/6/11		
   $'000			   $'000	    $'000	    %	    $'000	    $'000	    $'000		
		Current Assets								
1,557		Cash and Cash Equivalents	2,474	1,688	-32	1,774	1,852	1,930		
178		Receivables	448	449	..	450	451	452		
74		Other	118	118	-	118	118	118		
1,809		Total Current Assets	3,040	2,255	-26	2,342	2,421	2,500		
		Non Current Assets								
361		Receivables	183	183	-	183	183	183		
0		Property, Plant and Equipment	58	8	-86	0	0	0		
361		Total Non Current Assets	241	191	-21	183	183	183		
2,170		TOTAL ASSETS	3,281	2,446	-25	2,525	2,604	2,683		
		Current Liabilities								
567		Payables	681	681	-	681	681	681		
873		Employee Benefits	888	915	3	935	935	935		
1,440		Total Current Liabilities	1,569	1,596	2	1,616	1,616	1,616		
		Non Current Liabilities								
94		Employee Benefits	55	56	2	58	58	58		
94		Total Non Current Liabilities	55	56	2	58	58	58		
1,534		TOTAL LIABILITIES	1,624	1,652	2	1,674	1,674	1,674		
636		NET ASSETS	1,657	794	-52	851	930	1,009		
		REPRESENTED BY FUNDS EMPLOYED								
186		Accumulated Funds	1,207	344	-71	401	480	559		
450		Reserves	450	450	-	450	450	450		
636		TOTAL FUNDS EMPLOYED	1,657	794	-52	851	930	1,009		

Legal Aid Commission (ACT)	
Cash Flow Statement	
  2006-07			  2006-07	   2007-08		  2008-09	  2009-10	  2010-11		
    Budget			Est.Outcome	   Budget	   Var	  Estimate	   Estimate	  Estimate		
    $'000			   $'000	   $'000	    %	   $'000	    $'000	   $'000		
		CASH FLOWS FROM OPERATING ACTIVITIES								
		Receipts								
3,385		Cash from Government for Outputs	3,068	3,199	4	3,347	3,466	3,603		
331		User Charges	331	360	9	349	359	359		
825		Interest Received	1,093	878	-20	878	878	878		
3,269		Grants Received from the Commonwealth	3,887	3,984	2	4,084	4,186	4,290		
176		Other Revenue	176	176	-	176	176	176		
7,986		Operating Receipts	8,555	8,597	..	8,834	9,065	9,306		
		Payments								
3,801		Related to Employees	4,079	4,069	..	4,136	4,176	4,232		
4,711		Related to Supplies and Services	4,698	5,067	8	4,323	4,514	4,699		
177		Other	247	247	-	247	247	247		
8,689		Operating Payments	9,024	9,383	4	8,706	8,937	9,178		
-703		NET CASH INFLOW/(OUTFLOW) FROM OPERATING ACTIVITIES	-469	-786	-68	128	128	128		
		CASH FLOWS FROM INVESTING ACTIVITIES								
		Receipts								
703		Proceeds from Sale/Maturities of Investments	0	0	-	0	0	0		
703		Investing Receipts	0	0	-	0	0	0		
		Payments								
0		Purchase of Property, Plant and Equipment	0	0	-	42	50	50		
0		Investing Payments	0	0	-	42	50	50		
703		NET CASH INFLOW/(OUTFLOW) FROM INVESTING ACTIVITIES	0	0	-	-42	-50	-50		
0		NET INCREASE/(DECREASE) IN CASH HELD	-469	-786	-68	86	78	78		
194		CASH AT BEGINNING OF REPORTING PERIOD	2,943	2,474	-16	1,688	1,774	1,852		
194		CASH AT THE END OF THE REPORTING PERIOD	2,474	1,688	-32	1,774	1,852	1,930		

Legal Aid Commission (ACT)	
Statement of Changes in Equity	
    Budget			Est.Outcome	   Planned		   Planned	   Planned	   Planned		
as at 30/6/07			as at 30/6/07	as at 30/6/08	   Var	as at 30/6/09	as at 30/6/10	as at 30/6/11		
   $'000			   $'000	    $'000	    %	    $'000	    $'000	    $'000		
1,357		Opening Balance	2,208	1,657	-25	794	851	930		
		Accumulated Funds								
-721		Operating Result for the Period	-551	-863	-57	57	79	79		
		Reserves								
-721		Total Income And Expense For The Period	-551	-863	-57	57	79	79		
		Transactions Involving Equity Holders Affecting Accumulated Funds								
636		Closing Balance	1,657	794	-52	851	930	1,009		
Notes to the Budget Statements
Significant variations are as follows:
Operating Statement
•	government payment for outputs:  
–	the decrease of $0.317 million in the 2006‑07 estimated outcome  from the original budget is mainly due to re-allocation of income received directly from the Australian Government; and 
–	the increase of $0.131 million in the 2007‑08 Budget from the 2006‑07 estimated outcome is due to indexation and the new clerical certified agreement.
•	user charges - non ACT Government:  the increase of $0.029 million in the 2007‑08 Budget from the 2006‑07 estimated outcome is due to an increase in client contributions, recovered costs and indexation.
•	grants from the Commonwealth:  the increase of $0.618 million in the 2006‑07 estimated outcome from original budget is due to re-allocation of income received directly from the Australian Government previously, received through Government Payments for Outputs and higher than anticipated grant levels.
•	interest:  
–	the increase of $0.268 million in the 2006‑07 estimated outcome from the original budget is due to cash and investment balances being higher than expected; and 
–	the decrease of $0.215 million in the 2007‑08 Budget from the 2006‑07 estimated outcome is due to expected reduction in cash balances due to an increase in the provision of services.
•	employee expenses:  the increase of $0.187 million in the 2006‑07 estimated outcome from the original budget is mainly due to payments made on retirement and resignation of executive staff.
•	superannuation expenses:  the increase of $0.125 million in the 2006‑07 estimated outcome from the original budget, and the decrease of $0.094 million in the 2007‑08 Budget from the 2006‑07 estimated outcome are due to changes in nominal contribution rates.
•	supplies and services:  the increase of $0.366 million in the 2007‑08 Budget from the 2006‑07 estimated outcome is mainly due to indexation and expenditure relating to an expected increase in service provision.
Balance Sheet
•	cash: 
–	the increase of $0.917 million in the 2006‑07 estimated outcome from the original budget is mainly due to higher than expected grants from the Commonwealth and higher interest revenues; and 
–	the decrease of $0.786 million in the 2007‑08 Budget from the 2006‑07 estimated outcome is mainly due to higher employee expenses and legal services.
•	current receivables:  the increase of $0.270 million in the 2006‑07 estimated outcome from the original budget is a result of reclassification of receivables.
•	other current assets:  the increase of $0.044 million in the 2006‑07 estimated outcome from the original budget is due to an increase in prepaid expenses.
•	non-current receivables:  the decrease of $0.178 million in the 2006‑07 estimated outcome from the original budget is due to bad debts written off.
•	property, plant and equipment:  
–	the increase of $0.058 million in the 2006‑07 estimated outcome from the original budget is due to the purchase of equipment during the year; and 
–	the decrease of $0.050 million in the 2007‑08 budget from the 2006‑07 estimated outcome is due to most items being depreciated in full.
•	current payables:  the increase of $0.114 million in the 2006‑07 estimated outcome from the original budget is due to the increase in private practitioner payment scales.
•	employee benefits non-current:  the decrease of $0.039 million in the 2006‑07 estimated outcome from the original budget is due to the retirement and resignation of executive staff with long service and the ACT Accounting Policy requirement to classify all annual leave and unconditional long service leave as current employee benefits.  The change in policy is attributable to advice received regarding the interpretation of the Australian Accounting Standards.