Experiencing homelessness includes where a person is without conventional accommodation (e.g. sleeping in a park or a car), moving frequently between temporary accommodation (e.g. refuges/emergency housing or friends), or living in marginal accommodation on a medium- to long-term basis (e.g. rooming houses, transitional housing or caravan parks). 

At risk of homelessness includes where a person has circumstances (e.g. mental ill-health, age, financial hardship, or family violence) or a legal issue that makes it difficult to access or maintain secure accommodation.

Tenancy and housing 

Focusing on homelessness prevention, particularly: 

• Defending a notice to vacate (NTV) and Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (VCAT) eviction proceedings 
• Tenancies impacted by family violence 
• Defending compliance order applications 
• Defending landlord compensation/housing debt claims 
• Creation and transfer of a tenancy 

Fines and infringements 

Where 50% or more of the person’s fines are directly related to their homelessness, including: 

• Public transport fines 
• Being drunk in public 
• Begging 
• Littering 
• Unregistered vehicle or parking fines 

Consumer debts 

• Utilities and telco debts 
• Consumer credit issues with financial institutions 
• Payday-lender debts 
• Debt collectors chasing people for payment. 

Criminal law 

• Minor criminal matters in the Magistrates’ Court where the client is not eligible for assistance from Victoria Legal Aid. Generally, the client also needs to be receiving assistance from Homeless Law with a civil matter (e.g. fines, tenancy, debt). 

Victoria Legal Aid – A free statewide service that can assist eligible clients with matters including family law, criminal charges, tenancy, mental health tribunal, social security payments and guardianship or administration orders.  

Victorian Aboriginal Legal Service – a generalist legal service Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples in the following legal areas: criminal, discrimination, tenancy, fines, family law and family violence. 

Local community legal centres – Many community legal centres (CLCs) are generalist services which means they may provide advice or representation for a range of matters. They will provide services to people in their local catchment and have eligibility criteria. Find your client’s local community legal centre. 

Family violence & family law 

• Womens’ Legal service: Family violence, separation, divorce, property & custody. 
• Djirra: Intervention orders, family law, child protection, Victims of Crime compensation. For Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander peoples or people who have Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander children.  
• Law and advocacy centre for women: Predominantly a criminal law service for women but can assist with family violence intervention order matters in some circumstances, generally where they are representing the client with criminal matters. 

Mental health & disability 

• Mental Health Legal Centre: Legal services for Victorians experiencing mental health issues in the community, treatment facilities and prisons.  
• Vilamanta Disability Rights Legal Service: Disability related legal issues and National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) appeals. 
• Disability Discrimination Legal Service: Disability discrimination matters and sexual harassment of women with disabilities in the workplace. 
• AED Legal Centre: Advice and assistance for people with disability who experience discrimination in the areas of education or employment as well as representation to people seeking review of decisions about their NDIS plans. 

Refugee & migration 

• Refugee Legal: Advice and assistance for people seeking asylum, refugees and disadvantaged migrants. 
• Asylum Seeker Resource Centre:  Advice and assistance to people seeking asylum, including people in detention, who cannot afford a private lawyer and have no access to government-funded legal advice.

Consumer debt and credit 

• Consumer Action Law Centre: Advice and assistance with fair trading, credit and debt issues. They also have a dedicated Koori Help site. 

Employment 

• Jobwatch: Advice and assistance with employment rights. 
• Disability Discrimination Legal Service: Advice and assistance with disability discrimination matters and sexual harassment of women with disabilities in the workplace. 
• Justice Connect Access Program is a specialist legal team at Justice Connect that works with pro bono lawyers and barristers to help people with legal problems including disputes about work and employment.
• Young Workers Centre: Advice and assistance on employment law for those under 30. 

LGBTIQ+ 

• Fitzroy Legal Service: Q+Law provides a free state-wide safe entry point to accessing legal assistance for all individuals who identify as part of LGBTIQA+ communities.

Centrelink

• Social Security Right Victoria: Advice and assistance regarding Centrelink debts and payments including cancellation of payments. 

Sex work 

• Southside Justice Sex Worker Legal Program: Advice and assistance for sex workers. 

Elder Abuse 

• Seniors Rights Victoria: Seniors Rights Victoria provides information and support for those concerned about elder abuse. They have a community legal service and can represent older people experiencing elder abuse.
• Justice Connect Seniors Law: Justice Connect has a range of self help resources for older people, as a part of our Seniors Law program.

Tenancy and housing 

• Tenants’ Victoria: Advice and assistance for renters. 
• Anika Legal: Advice and assistance for renters with bond and compensation claims, repairs and rent arrears. 

Young people 

• Youth Law: Generalist legal service for those under 25 
  years old. 

Criminal law 

• Victoria Legal Aid: A free statewide service that can assist eligible clients with ongoing casework for some matters and duty lawyer (on the day of court) services. 
• Victorian Aboriginal Legal Service: A free statewide service that can assist Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples with ongoing criminal law assistance. 
• Law and advocacy centre for women: Predominantly a criminal law service for women but can assist with family violence intervention order matters in some circumstances, generally where they are representing the client with criminal matters. 
• Fitzroy Legal Service: Provides a variety of services, including ongoing criminal law assistance for eligible matters. 
• Inner Melbourne Community Legal: Provides a variety of services, including ongoing criminal law assistance for eligible matters. 

If your client is in crisis and needs somewhere to stay they should contact their local housing access point. 

If your client needs financial assistance for rent arrears see our list of brokerage options.

If your client is experiencing family violence and needs financial assistance, see our list of brokerage options.

Access Program is a specialist legal team at Justice Connect that works with pro bono lawyers and barristers to help people with legal problems including:

• home possession matters in the Supreme and County Courts
• bankruptcy and employment matters in the Federal Courts
• financial legal problems
• disputes about work and employment
• domestic building disputes, and
• disaster-related legal problems.

Individuals with legal problems can apply directly for help to Access Program via our online tool: Apply for help – Justice Connect

Support workers and community organisations can contact the Access Program to refer a person needing help, here: I need to refer someone – Refer to Justice Connect

Some other community legal centres have also made helpful resources for workers: 

• Barwon Community Legal Service’s Law for Community Workers online training modules cover topics such as legal system basics, legal issue spotting, conflicts of interest and effective referrals.
• Peninsula Community Legal Centre worker resources are targeted to workers supporting clients with legal issues arising from family violence.