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On the edge of justice: the legal needs of people with a mental illness in NSW

, 2006 This study examines the legal and access to justice issues experienced by people with a mental illness. The methodology comprised a literature review, focus group discussions with key stakeholders, in-depth interviews with 81 legal and non-legal service providers, and 30 semi-structured interviews with people who have a mental illness. The report concluded that people with a mental illness experience a number of legal issues with potentially serious personal and financial consequences, and face many barriers in having these legal issues addressed....

Ch 6. Non-legal support

I’m not just an Aboriginal health worker; I am a social worker; I am a psychologist; housing officer, Centrelink officer, legal officer, core support, you name it. I am also a community development officer, a community capacity building officer, a prevention and promotions officer. You name the job, I am doing it.

Data for this and other studies indicate that when people have a legal problem, they tend to turn to friends or family, social workers, health workers, church-based organisations and other non-legal service providers for information and advice.² Consultations with service providers and participants for this study indicated that this was also often true for people with a mental illness.

Oh, with the pension, with more like legal [problems] and … bureaucracy, I’d go and talk to my caseworker.

[If you did have a problem with housing, where could you go for help with that?] Initially I would talk to [my caseworker] about it, which I have done already. If that did not work I think I would have to go straight to Foster House and see someone there.

⁴

[If you did have a problem with your pension at work, where could you go for help?] First of all it all depends on what type of a problem it is. For some problems I would probably go to a social worker. Other problems, to the federal disability office centre.

⁵

[So you came to the [youth] centre when you got caught?] Yeah, that’s right. They can help you out here.

⁶

People with a mental illness access a number of non-legal services, ranging from mental health workers, youth and social workers, financial counsellors, church groups, tenant advocates and other housing workers, to government departments (such as the NSW Police, Centrelink, DOH, the OPG and the OPC). People with a mental illness may access non-legal services for a variety of reasons, including mental health treatment, financial assistance, housing assistance, other welfare assistance and recreation. People may approach a service voluntarily or be referred by another service provider. Others may be involuntarily taken by the police to hospital for mental health assessment where they come into contact with other service providers (such as social workers). People with a mental illness may also turn to other support networks including their carers and family and friends for assistance with their legal problems.

Consultations for this study and other studies indicate, however, that some people with a mental illness do not access non-legal assistance. This can be due to a range of reasons, including a lack of awareness of services, a lack of available services and fear of stigma.⁷

The type of assistance provided by non-legal service providers to a client with a mental illness, who has a legal problem, will vary according to the role of the service, their level of resources, the client’s problem and the level of support required by that particular client.⁸

This chapter will look at the ways in which non-legal services assist people with a mental illness with their legal problems. This chapter will also look at the barriers that people with a mental illness face in accessing non-legal assistance and the support that non-legal service providers need to assist their clients with legal issues.

The role of non-legal service providers in assisting clients with a legal problem

Consultations for this study suggest that non-legal services provide the following types of assistance to people with a mental illness:

identification of a legal issue and the provision of preliminary legal information
referral to legal service providers
support for a client when they seek legal assistance
advocacy
education, training and awareness raising about mental illness.

Identifying legal issues and the provision of preliminary legal information

The only reason we are acting for him is that he has been linked in with us through a youth service that we have very good contact with. So he has accessed a service that is able to identify this as a legal problem and send him over to us and we are able to assist him, otherwise he would just be falling through the net.

⁹

Consultations for this study indicate that non-legal service providers play an important role in identifying legal issues for their clients and providing their clients with preliminary information about a legal issue and the process of resolving it.¹⁰ This is important as lack of awareness of legal rights was raised as a barrier to accessing legal assistance in Chapter 4. For example, a solicitor commented that youth workers play an important role in identifying whether one of their clients may have a potential claim for victims compensation:

Usually it is something, in my experience, that comes up through youth workers.

¹¹

One participant interviewed for this study was told by a community worker that she may be eligible for victims compensation.¹²

Stakeholders and participants also reported that non-legal service providers can play an important role in the provision of legal information, both on an individual and group level to people with a mental illness.¹³ For example, a social worker commented that when a person is hospitalised they tend to have access to social workers, and that once someone is placed on a compulsory treatment order they are usually allocated a case manager from a community health centre or mental health team. These non-legal service providers can become an important source of information about the legal system.¹⁴

An example of where non-legal workers had provided legal information on a group level was given by a mental health worker from Maroubra Mental Health Centre. This person talked about how Maroubra Mental Health Centre had organised a legal education day for Aboriginal women in partnership with WLS:

They [WLS] came down with all this printed stuff in layman’s terms [about AVOs and wills] … They were fantastic, I have nothing but high praise for them

¹⁵

Referral

It was suggested in consultations that people with a mental illness may not be aware of available legal services.¹⁶ Non-legal workers therefore play an important role in assisting clients with a legal problem by referring them to a legal service provider.¹⁷ This is supported by Genn et al. who found:

General practitioners, religious organisations, social workers or local authority information desks may not be viewed as traditional purveyors of legal services, but their potential role in directing the public to fruitful avenues for problem resolution must be recognised

¹⁸

Service providers were of the opinion that if clients were in contact with non-legal services they had a better chance of finding out about legal services and being referred on.¹⁹

If you think in your mind now about all the clients that you have currently with mental health issues, mine are all referrals. They are not walking into the centre; they are coming from youth centres.

²⁰

[How are people referred to CCLC?] We tend to get them from other people. We have had them from community workers, who hand them across.

²¹

Two participants reported having been referred by a non-legal service provider to a lawyer:

I went to the resource centre and they told me that they don’t do this sort of thing, and they gave me a number and told me to see the Legal Aid guy.

²²

Exodus is probably the best of the lot. They have access to everything, all these different organisations from the law onwards, all these contacts. If you have a problem you go to the office, you tell them what your problem is at the reception, like “I’ve got a legal issue” and they say “Sit down, we’ll go and get our legal person for you”. From there, they refer you either to Legal Aid or somebody else who will tell you what your options are, and you take it from there.

²³

Two non-legal services providers commented that assistance to a client may also involve referral to another non-legal service provider who can assist a person with their legal problems (such as a debt problem) or a complaint handling body:

I also put them in contact with the Electricity and Water Ombudsman who is an independent body.

²⁴

We do referrals to Lifeline’s credit people and to the Salvation Army credit people.

²⁵

Recognising that disadvantaged consumers are more likely to contact a “shop-front agency” (such as Legal Aid or a community organisation) to make a complaint about a consumer issue, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has produced a referral guide for both legal and non-legal community centres on how to make a complaint on behalf of a vulnerable client (which includes people with a mental illness). The referral guide, which has been distributed to over 200 agencies across Australia and is available upon request, allows an agency to refer trade practices conduct that is affecting their clients (such as debt collection or telecommunications selling practices) to the ACCC for regulation and enforcement.²⁶

Supporting a client when they seek legal assistance

As discussed in Chapter 4, people with a mental illness face a number of barriers that may prevent them from being able to contact a legal service and make an appointment to see a lawyer. People with a mental illness may have difficulties keeping appointments or communicating, they may be overwhelmed and/or appear threatening and/or difficult, and they may be affected by the physical environment, which may contribute to feelings of ill-ease and/or agitation. This may be exacerbated by the side effects of medication, which can make a person feel sleepy and cloud their thinking.²⁷ In addition, legal service providers may not be aware of the effects of a mental illness and/or medication on a client and, as a result, may not be aware of their particular needs.

This may mean that, for those clients who require a higher level of support, simply giving them the telephone number of a lawyer is not enough. A lawyer may need to be contacted and an appointment made on their behalf.

I think it is incredibly easy just to refer them out. But I think with mental illness, or anyone that is seriously disadvantaged, that is not going to work because they won’t [take] the referral. So there needs to be more hand-holding. So that means possibly people being able to go between a number of resources and act as a central coordinator to assist that person instead of just a referral. They don’t just ring … [they] make sure they don’t fall through the cracks.

²⁸

In addition, people with a mental illness may benefit from someone attending an appointment with them to ensure that they actually get to the appointment, and once there, assist the client in overcoming anxiety and communication problems.²⁹ Consultations for this study suggest that this role depends on the objectives and resources of the non-legal agency (or support person), the capacity of the client and, in some respects, the relationship between the non-legal agency and the legal service provider.

A number of legal services (including CLCs, pro bono services and Legal Aid) interviewed for this study believed that legal services benefit greatly when a non-legal service provider assists a person with a mental illness to have contact with a lawyer.³⁰ First, having a non-legal worker involved can also help to ensure that the client actually makes it to their appointments.³¹ In addition, non-legal services can provide legal services with information about the client’s illness, the effects of medication, their general life circumstances (including how much support they have, what other services are involved) and what their current legal issue is. This information can assist legal service providers to make important judgments about how much support the person may require to remain in the process and how best to work with that particular client. This can be particularly important in cases where a client may not divulge themselves what is going on in their lives and in particular the fact that they have an illness.³²

I personally find it very useful when someone who suffers from a mental illness brings someone else with them. Not because I talk to the other person, but because [they] can put it in context. Sometimes people can’t explain their illness, or the effect of the illness, and it’s helpful to have people who can say “Well this is what the effect is”. If you have some other input, I find that helpful.

³³

The mental illness group won’t do things and won’t ring back. So it’s hard without someone who is a social worker saying: “Look you are not going to be able to just say ‘these are the practical steps that you take’, they are not going to do it”. You want someone to be able to tell you that this person needs more help than you would think. That’s the limitation; I have to make judgement calls on very limited information. The more information the better I can make a judgement call on what sort of help they need. Where it works best is where I get a call from the community worker, they go through it with me, they get handed over and I know I can talk to them again. It is extremely difficult to gauge the severity [of mental illness] over the phone. Where it has been successful is where I have had a community worker in the mix.

³⁴

I have clients who are very unwell. I acted for one last week [who said],“No my house is fine”. But the reality is that he is not an Australian citizen; he is not eligible for Centrelink; he has no access to money; he has been working up at ‘the wall’; he met somebody who is now funding him if he stays in his house with him, who is 66. So this young person will say to you “No, I live in a comfortable unit, it’s fine”. These sorts of clients are referred to us through youth workers generally, and [if] we have that conversation we get a fairly well-rounded view of what is happening.

³⁵

One pro bono solicitor commented that mental health professionals can also assist legal services in determining the most appropriate ways to work with a traumatised client.

I have from time to time spoken to psychiatrists, if I am concerned about approaching [the client]. For example, you get the client’s file that tells you all about what happened to them in the past, and why they were removed [from their families]. You read through it, and you think, there is some horrific stuff in there about the client. You know that the client has a right to read that, but they are very vulnerable. So I have spoken to the psychiatrist about the best approach to taking the client through that

³⁶

In turn, this pro bono solicitor suggested that it was important for lawyers to be aware of support networks to which they could refer clients:

The lawyer needs to be aware of other support services, because these people do come with a number of problems. It’s not just the legal issue that they are dealing with … their whole life could be a complete mess, because of a particular thing that has happened, and they just need a lot of support. So I think having those back-up structures is really relevant, otherwise you can’t do it, you can’t provide the proper service to the client if you are just going to take a legalistic view

³⁷

Advocacy

Consultations for this study indicate that non-legal service providers also advocate on behalf of their clients with a mental illness to other services and to government departments such as Centrelink and DOH.³⁸ The role of advocacy generally “involves the caseworker directly engaging with other service providers on the client’s behalf”.³⁹

We usually do it for them actually; we’ll ring up on their behalf because they’re apprehensive and not knowledgeable of what to say. If the person at the other end said “Sorry, see you later”, they’d probably accept that. In most cases we would probably ring up for them … because we think we might have a better influence in being able to explain the situation.

⁴⁰

Consultations for this study indicate that non-legal service providers engage in advocacy in a variety of ways and to varying degrees depending on the complexity of the issue, the role of the service, the resources available to the service, the needs of the client and the individual worker’s background and experience. Advocacy undertaken by non-legal services ranged from calling Centrelink to sort out a payment problem, trying to negotiate with DOH, to advocating on behalf of a client to the police:

We help them before DOH; I have taken them, even in tears, to the [DOH] office, sat them down and said “Look I am the representative from St Vincent de Paul, you can observe that this client of mine is severely depressed and we are speaking on her behalf and this is what we are trying to achieve.”

⁴¹

The word just got around that I helped them with a Centrelink problem. So they come to me [and say] “I have got this problem with Centrelink” and I try and iron it out for them

⁴²

He was targeted by the police officer who arrested him and brought him in for an interview a number of times but not charged. Scott’s mental health caseworker actively advocated with police and legal services to assist.

⁴³

One participant made the following comment about the assistance provided by caseworkers to people with a mental illness to support them in sorting out their debt problems:

… someone will come in and they’ll have a thousand dollar phone bill, and they’re just falling to pieces because the creditors are coming after them. And they get it sorted here; they [the caseworker] can ring up and they can [organise for the client to] pay it in installments and organise how much they [client] can pay.

⁴⁴

Another mental health worker discussed the ways in which she had assisted a client who had had their child removed by DoCS:

We notified DoCS that we believe that the crisis situation has attenuated to the point where the child is safe

⁴⁵

In some specific cases, non-legal services will advocate on behalf of a mentally ill client at tribunal hearings. Caseworkers from the OPC and specialist tenancy workers will advocate on behalf of their clients with a landlord or real estate agent or appear on their behalf at the CTTT if the person is facing eviction.⁴⁶ In cases of discrimination, the OPC may take a complaint to HREOC, or attempt to resolve it directly with the “perpetrator”.⁴⁷

One mental health worker commented that she would also advocate on behalf of a client before the Mental Health Review Tribunal (MHRT) to keep them out of hospital:

If I have a client going before the MHRT … I will actually go in there and I will advocate for the client. If I feel that there is enough support out there in the community rather than them being in hospital, I will bring the family in and actually let them explain what we will put in place. We all know what our roles are and what needs to be done, in order to keep somebody out of hospital.

⁴⁸

A number of service providers reported that due to the presence of an advocate, the client had a more successful outcome.⁴⁹ For example:

[How much do you think it is because you are there to help the client as opposed to the client walking in themselves and seeking help?] I know for a fact that if the client was present by themselves they would achieve very little. Because of their depressive state because [they are] quite inarticulate, teary [and] helpless. The office staff do not know how to deal with them but if they have an advocate it can be done successfully

⁵⁰

The more effective complaints that I have dealt with, the complainant has actually been accompanied by a support person, and that is either through a community health organization or a charitable organisation

⁵¹

Education, training and awareness raising about mental illness

A couple of non-legal service providers reported conducting general community education about mental illness with community members, the courts and legal services. For example, a consumer advocate participated in an education forum with the local court to inform court staff and magistrates about the effects of mental illness and medication on the ability of a person with a mental illness to participate effectively in the court process.

Some of the things I take for granted now is that some of the people don’t understand [the] effects of medication. Like the fact that [people] get a dry mouth from their medication, or the agitation, [or] someone being heavily sedated and having a court hearing at 8 am the next morning, well they might not be able to get there so they end up with an extra charge. Or people might get up and walk out because they can’t sit still and once again they get in trouble. The magistrate was very pleased to hear that these were common mental health issues. [We] like to educate people on mental health issues

⁵²

In order to help combat and, indeed, prevent licensed boarding house residents from accruing debt with local shop keepers, one community worker spoke to local shop keepers to educate them about the effects of extending credit to some of the people in the area with mental illnesses.

We actually sat down with a number of the shopkeepers locally and said “Don’t extend credit, would you do that for an ordinary person? Then don’t do it for people with disabilities.

⁵³

Challenges facing non-legal service providers

The aim of this chapter has been to highlight the important role that non-legal agencies play in assisting people with a mental illness to identify a legal issue and contact a legal service provider and in helping them through the legal process. However, consultations for this study suggest that non-legal agencies face a number of challenges in assisting people with their legal issues. These include lack of legal knowledge and knowledge of referral networks amongst non-legal workers, lack of resources and availability of non-legal services, and the fact that people with a mental illness may not access a particular service. In addition, circumstances in which non-legal service providers may face a conflict of interest in assisting a client with a legal problem were also raised.

Lack of legal knowledge and knowledge of referral networks

While non-legal workers are not lawyers, the important role they play in assisting people with a mental illness through the legal system highlights the fact that in order for them to fulfil this role effectively, they need a basic degree of legal knowledge. A few service providers raised concerns that non-legal agencies do not always possess sufficient legal knowledge to effectively assist their clients.⁵⁴ For example, one solicitor commented that some non-legal service providers are not able to recognise a legal problem and/or they may not be able to give a client correct advice about a specific legal process:

Yeah, they won’t recognise a legal issue, and they will give the person wrong advice, and deal with it badly and not in the interest of the person

⁵⁵

One participant reported receiving incorrect advice from a non-legal service provider about their eligibility for the disability support pension. The participant said that this meant that for a couple of years they were unable to receive a benefit when they had actually been entitled to it.⁵⁶

One roundtable attendee felt that some particularly vulnerable clients, such as people who have agoraphobia and are confined to their home, may be especially reliant on those non-legal workers they come into contact with for assistance with a legal issue. They felt that it was particularly important that a worker could identify a legal issue and know where to seek help.⁵⁷

A CLC worker commented that a lack of legal knowledge can also prevent non-legal workers from knowing when to refer a client to a solicitor:

There are some youth services whose workers are not as well-trained [or] as well-organised and sometimes they make inappropriate referrals. Or either they just send anyone down here, who has even a whiff of a legal issue, even though it’s probably something they could sort out with some advocacy. Or they won’t refer people who have quite serious issues

⁵⁸

Similarly, a Scottish study found that non-legal agencies are not always able to identify that a client has a legal issue and may not know when to refer a client to a solicitor:

There were nevertheless concerns raised [largely by solicitors] that, in a very small minority of cases, the advisers at agencies were unable to recognise that a legal solution might exist. Some solicitors had also had experience of receiving referrals later than they would have preferred. This had on occasions resulted in restricting the options open to the solicitors to resolve the problem, e.g. in a case of eviction or debt.

⁵⁹

Consultations for this study indicated that a non-legal service provider’s knowledge of available legal services is also an important factor in how well the referral role works.⁶⁰ Roundtable attendees were of the opinion that non-legal service providers have varying levels of awareness about legal services they could refer their clients to.⁶¹ One solicitor suggested that a greater awareness of referral networks to specialist legal centres and financial counsellors would assist non-legal service providers in finding appropriate assistance for their clients.

I think educating community workers about the roles of the various specialist legal centres and the generalist ones … would be very valuable.

⁶²

The same CLC solicitor felt that community workers may not contact a legal service provider on behalf of a client because they are intimidated by solicitors.

I don’t hear from community workers enough. It takes a bit of oomph for them to find us. I try to get out in the community and let people know about us, but for whatever reason, it doesn’t translate into community workers ringing for help. I don’t know why that it is; maybe it is scary ringing up a group of solicitors. Once they meet you and they realise that you are a normal dude then they are happier. But they still have visions that we are hardnosed solicitors, but we are not like that at all. It’s something that I spend a lot of time trying to address through networking

⁶³

Lack of resourcing of non-legal agencies

These people we are in contact with don’t have one problem; they have a multitude of legal issues. They also have a multitude of other issues that are not specifically legal. But if there was more support and funding for appropriate medical services, then that would make our job a hell of a lot easier.

⁶⁴

Service providers reported that non-legal agencies are not always adequately funded to provide the level of assistance required by people with a mental illness. In particular, mental health services, which provide a great deal of assistance to people with a mental illness, face a general lack of resources across all sections of mental health service provision, including preventative services, outpatient services, emergency care, rehabilitation services and specialist services for people with dual diagnosis.⁶⁵ This is supported by the literature and by submissions to the current Senate inquiry into mental health care in Australia.⁶⁶ There is also evidence that other non-legal agencies that provide services to people with a mental illness are under-funded.⁶⁷

This chapter has highlighted the important role that non-legal service providers, particularly mental health workers, play in assisting people with a mental illness with their legal problems. The reported crisis in mental health care may mean that in many areas of NSW mental health services are simply not available to people who need them. Hence, people with a mental illness may not necessarily be accessing non-legal assistance. Where services do exist, they do not necessarily have the resources to assist clients with legal issues.

One regional mental health worker commented on the impact that limited resources in mental health care has had on the support role his service used to play in assisting clients with a mental illness in going to court:

We don’t do much actual physical support; we don’t have the time or the resources. When I first came here four years ago, staff would go all day to court, and be a support person, but they had to stop that because we don’t have the time or the resources

⁶⁸

It was suggested that a lack of resources may also mean that services are unable to provide a client with support in actually getting to and from a legal service.⁶⁹ As discussed in Chapter 4, actually getting to a legal service can be a serious problem for people with a mental illness. Two CLC solicitors also reported that, in their experience, it was not very common for a non-legal service provider to stay involved with a client once they had accessed a legal service.⁷⁰

They [caseworkers] just hand over. As far as I know they don’t do what financial counsellors and community legal centres do. They can’t run the case without resources, [so] they just want to hand over. That’s something that needs to be questioned because sometimes you want the community worker in the mix, particularly a social worker for someone with a mental illness. I think it is a good idea, but it just isn’t happening that way.

⁷¹

Two legal service providers commented that if mental health and community services are under resourced they may not be able to act as advocates on behalf of a client.⁷²

Lastly, as discussed in Chapter 4, the lack of availability of mental health care and support for people with a mental illness means that it is more difficult for them to stabilise the effects of their illness. Consultations for this study indicate that this may make people with a mental illness less able to access legal assistance and less able to participate effectively in the legal system.⁷³

People not accessing services

The majority of Australians with a DSM-IV anxiety, mood or substance related disorder had not utilised health services during the survey year

⁷⁴

It is also evident that people with a mental illness may not be accessing non-legal services, particularly mental health services for a number of reasons. A CLC worker from WLS commented that people with a mental illness may not be accessing mental health services because of the stigma of being identified as mentally ill. This is supported by the recent work of Kamieniecki, Cullen and Szirom.⁷⁵ A study into the barriers young people with dual diagnosis (mental illness and drug and alcohol issues) face in accessing mental health services found that stigma was a particular issue for young people and acted as a barrier to them accessing services:

The stigma that is frequently associated with mental health conditions was also reported as a significant barrier to service access, insofar as young people were extremely reluctant to access mental health services for fear of being labelled a “mental case”

⁷⁶

A legal service provider consulted for this study commented:

There are some [young people] that are not linked with any services. They might have had contact with other services, but they don’t want to be involved because all these youth workers are telling them “You’ve got to go and get an assessment or you have to take your medication”. [They say] “Who are they? I don’t want to do that!”

⁷⁷

A few service providers indicated that clients with a mental illness from a NESB don’t tend to access mental health services because of language difficulties, lack of awareness of services and cultural factors relating to stigma.⁷⁸ This is supported by both the Burdekin Report and the more recent Not for Service report.⁷⁹

Roundtable attendees felt that some families were reluctant to seek help from child support organisations for fear of having their children removed.⁸⁰ They argued that this fear prevents families from accessing drop-in centres and therefore from receiving the support they may need to maintain custody.⁸¹ This is supported by Nicholson:

The stigma of mental illness ultimately translates for parents into the fear of custody loss particularly because of the assumptions made by society at large about individuals with mental illness. Fear of losing custody can keep parents from acknowledging problems and requesting services

⁸²

Conflict of interest

Whilst the majority of service providers and participants interviewed for this study talked about the supportive role non-legal services played in assisting people with a mental illness with their legal problem, two important studies into the mental health system discuss situations where these service providers are involved in the denial of legal or human rights and/or the obstruction of a client’s access to legal recourse.

In the 1993 Burdekin Report, HREOC stated that people who had been the victims of sexual assault in hospital reported not being able to pursue the matter because staff claimed that they were delusional as a result of their mental illness.⁸³ This was also true in cases of more general abuse.⁸⁴ The more recent Not for Service study reported widespread concern about the continuing exposure of people with a mental illness to abuse in mental health services and their lack of access to complaints procedures.⁸⁵

In addition, as mentioned in Chapter 3 of this report, people with a mental illness may be afraid of complaining about conditions in boarding houses because they fear being either subjected to more abuse or evicted.⁸⁶ HREOC reported concerns regarding the private sector providing housing for people with psychiatric disabilities:

This can lead to a conflict of interest in some cases where a profit-making business has the day-to-day responsibility for a vulnerable group of people

⁸⁷

Non-legal services may face a conflict of interest when clients who are dependent on them call their services into question. One participant interviewed for this study alleged that they had received incorrect advice regarding their eligibility for the disability support pension. They had subsequently attempted to change caseworkers but felt that they were obstructed in this by their existing caseworker.⁸⁸

Supporting non-legal agencies

[It depends on] whether or not their youth service provider is linked in and understanding of their legal needs through the system. So again, legal education of the youth workers is fundamental in that sense.

⁸⁹

Stakeholders made a couple of suggestions to improve the ability of non-legal service providers to provide support to clients with a mental illness who have a legal problem. A few non-legal service providers commented that if they were going to help their clients with legal problems, then they needed to be able to access legal information and advice.⁹⁰ A couple of non-legal service providers commented that they would like access to a centralised call centre that provides legal information and advice:⁹¹

I think that they should have a legal call centre that can offer quick advice, like a hotline. Where you can ring and say “I have this person, and this has happened, and that happened, can you either direct me to where I need to go, or is there another way of dealing with it other than through the court system.”

⁹

Two non-legal service providers and one roundtable attendee suggested that it would be useful to be able to access a service that could provide information about legal referral networks so that they can better support their clients who have legal problems.⁹³

Several stakeholders also stressed the importance of building relationships between non-legal and legal service providers.⁹⁴ Such a relationship may mean that non-legal services are more comfortable calling a legal service to ask about potential legal issues. For example, Maroubra Mental Health Centre and Shopfront work together to assist disadvantaged young people. The availability of a service like Shopfront allows social workers and counsellors from Maroubra to have access to information about legal issues and the legal process. It also allows Shopfront solicitors to benefit from support provided by Maroubra Mental Health Centre to the client, through the legal process.

Most of our clients are referred by youth services or mental health services. If we get a referral from one of these community centres we know it’s a serious referral, and they think they will need extra help through the process. We haven’t refused one yet, I don’t think.

⁹⁵

As part of their commitment to community legal education and as a way of raising their profile in the local community, both Marrickville and Kingsford Legal Centres run a program of legal workshops for community workers. Subjects covered include victim’s compensation, legal problem-solving and referral, social security, anti-discrimination laws, tenancy, powers of attorney and enduring guardianships, family law/domestic violence and employment. These workshops are in recognition of the need for relationship building between legal and non-legal service providers and of the latter’s need for legal education in order to better assist their clients with their legal problems.⁹⁶

Summary

Consultations for this and other studies indicate that people with a mental illness are likely to be in contact with a range of non-legal service providers for a variety of reasons, including mental health treatment, financial assistance, housing assistance, other welfare assistance and recreation. Consultations for this study also indicate that non-legal services are often the first point of call for disadvantaged people when they have a legal problem and that non-legal service providers often assist their clients with their legal problems and can be important pathways to legal services.

Non-legal services may support clients with a mental illness who have legal issues, first by assisting them to identify that they have a legal problem and by providing them with legal information. They may refer clients to solicitors and accompany them to appointments with solicitors. Non-legal services can assist legal service providers by communicating the client’s situation, including the client’s illness, the effects of medication, their general life circumstances (including how much support they have) and what their current legal issue is. Non-legal service providers may provide support to people through the legal process and also advocate on a client’s behalf to government departments such as Centrelink and DOH and in some cases, before tribunals.

This assistance can be very important in helping clients to overcome the barriers to accessing legal assistance that were raised in Chapter 4. However, consultations for this study suggest that non-legal workers may not always possess the legal knowledge and knowledge of legal assistance required in order to give a client information about a legal issue or refer them onto a lawyer. A few non-legal service providers suggested that it would be useful to be able to access legal advice and information as issues arise. Legal and non-legal service providers also suggested that relationships between non-legal and legal agencies could be further developed to improve gaps in knowledge.

Furthermore, non-legal agencies may not be equipped in terms of resources and availability of staff. The reported crisis in mental health care and constraints on resources may mean that non-legal agencies are not always able to provide support to clients with a mental illness who have a legal problem, or if they can it may need to be of a more limited nature (e.g. a referral to a legal service rather than accompanying the client to the appointment).

In addition, for a number of reasons, some people with a mental illness may not be accessing non-legal services. Again, lack of services as a result of the reported crisis in mental health care, lack of resources, lack of awareness of services and the stigma associated with having a mental illness may be preventing people with a mental illness from accessing non-legal services and agencies. This suggests that some people with a mental illness may be isolated from both legal assistance and non-legal assistance. This creates a major barrier to accessing justice for this group of particularly marginalised people, who could benefit greatly from some form of assistance with their legal problems.

¹ Consultation with Aboriginal mental health worker, Sydney, September 2004.

² Interviews nos. 2, 8, 9, 10, 11, 14, 15, 24 and 29 (interview no. 29 taken from the Foundations study into homeless people). See also Forell et al., No Home, No Justice?, p. 181, S Scott & C Sage, Gateways to the Law: An Exploratory Study of How Non-Profit Agencies Assist Clients with Legal Problems, Law and Justice Foundation of NSW, Sydney, 2001, p. 30, Coumarelos et al., Justice Made to Measure. However, it should be noted that participants interviewed for this study were contacted through non-legal agencies and were therefore already in touch with them.

³ Interview no. 14.

⁴ Interview no. 24.

⁵ Interview no. 9.

⁶ Interview no. 14.

⁷ Consultations with CLC workers, Shopfront, September 2004, barrister, Sydney, January 2005, national program manager, MMHA, July 2004, also roundtable consultation, 16 June 2004. See also G Kamieniecki, Prevalence of Psychological Distress and Psychiatric Disorders among Homeless Youth in Australia: A Comparative Review, Australian and New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry, vol. 35, no. 352, 2001, L Cullen, Out of the Picture, Szirom et al., Barriers to Service Provision For Young People, HREOC, Human Rights and Mental Illness, pp. 73040, Nicholson et al., Critical Issues For Parents With Mental Illness and Their Families, p. 15.

⁸ Some non-legal services do not see assistance with legal issues as part of their role, while at the other end of the spectrum the OPC and tenancy workers have specialised workers who will advocate on behalf of a client at the CTTT.

⁹ Consultation with the CLC workers, Shopfront, September 2004.

¹⁰ Consultations with caseworker, South Coast, NSW, November 2004, community worker, October 2004, consumer advocate, Sydney, August 2004, Aboriginal mental health worker, Sydney, September 2004, mental health worker, Western NSW, August 2004, interview nos. 14 and 18.

¹¹ Consultation with CLC workers, Shopfront, September 2004.

¹² Interview no. 18.

¹³ Consultations with caseworker, South Coast, NSW, November 2004, community worker, October 2004, consumer advocate, Sydney, August 2004, Aboriginal mental health worker, Sydney, September 2004, mental health worker, Western NSW, October 2004, solicitor in charge, MHAS, Legal Aid, December 2004, interview nos. 14 and 18.

¹⁴ Consultation with social worker, MHAS, Legal Aid, August 2004.

¹⁵ Consultation with Aboriginal mental health worker, Sydney, September 2004.

¹⁶ Interview no. 8, consultations with caseworker, South Coast, NSW, November 2004, mental health worker, Sydney, September 2004, convener of the NCSMC, December 2004. See also Coumarelos et al., Justice Made to Measure. Awareness of legal services was raised by one roundtable attendee as a particular issue for people from a NESB: roundtable consultation, 16 June 2004. See also Worthington Di Marzio and Cultural Partners Australia, Access to Information about Government Services among Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Audiences, Victorian Department of Premier and Cabinet, Melbourne, 2001, <http://www.info.vic.gov.au/resources/cald_report.htm> (accessed March 2006).

¹⁷ Consultations with caseworker, South Coast, NSW, November 2004, CLC workers, Shopfront, September 2004, caseworker, Blue Mountains, July 2004, solicitor, CCLC, August 2004, investigation officers, NSW Ombudsman, September 2004, solicitor, regional CLC, September 2004, mental health worker, Sydney, September 2004, NSW Police inspector, South Coast NSW, November 2005.

¹⁸ Genn et al., Understanding Advice Seeking Behaviour, p. 35.

¹⁹ This is consistent with findings in Forell et al., No Home, No Justice?.

²⁰ Consultation with CLC workers, Shopfront, September 2004.

²¹ Consultation with solicitor, CCLC, August 2004, also consultation with investigation officer, NSW Ombudsman, September 2004.

²² Interview no. 18.

²³ Interview no. 25 (taken from the Foundations study into homeless people).

²⁴ Consultation with caseworker, South Coast, NSW, November 2004.

²⁵ Consultation with clinical psychologist, Sydney, July 2004.

²⁶ See Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, ACCC Referral Guide, <http://www.accc.gov.au/content/index.phtml/itemId/386270> (accessed April 2006).

²⁷ Consultations with caseworker, Blue Mountains, July 2004, CLC workers, KLC, August 2004, solicitor, CCLC, August 2004, pro bono solicitor, Sydney, September 2004, legal officer, Tenants Union, September 2004.

²⁸ Consultation with solicitor, CCLC, August 2004, also consultations with CLC worker, Western NSW, September 2004, caseworker, South Coast, NSW, November 2004, CLC workers, KLC, August 2004.

²⁹ Consultations with CLC workers, KLC, August 2004, Solicitor, CCLC, August 2004, CLC worker, Western NSW, September 2004, CLC workers, Shopfront, September 2004, pro bono solicitor, Sydney, September 2004, family law solicitor, October 2004. The importance of this role was also mentioned in CCLC NSW, Submission to the Senate Select Committee on Mental Health.

³⁰ Consultations with CLC workers, KLC, August 2004, solicitor, CCLC, August 2004, CLC worker, Western NSW, September 2004, CLC workers, Shopfront, September 2004, pro bono solicitor, Sydney, September 2004, family law solicitor, October 2004. The importance of this role was also mentioned in CCLC NSW, Submission to the Senate Select Committee on Mental Health.

³¹ Consultation with CLC workers, KLC, August 2004.

³² The importance of non-legal services providers and non-government organisations is highlighted in A Freeman, G Hunt, E Evenhuis, D Smith & J Malone, High Support Accommodation for People with Psychiatric DisabilitiesA Survey of High Support, Very High Support and Residential Rehabilitation Services in NSW and Assessment of the Needs and Satisfaction of Consumers Residing There, Aftercare, Sydney, 2003, p. 13.

³³ Consultation with CLC worker, Western NSW, September 2004.

³⁴ Consultation with solicitor, CCLC, August 2004.

³⁵ Consultation with CLC workers, Shopfront, September 2004.

³⁶ Consultation with pro bono solicitor, Sydney, September 2004.

³⁷ Consultation with pro bono solicitor, Sydney, September 2004.

³⁸ Consultations with caseworker, Blue Mountains, July 2004, mental health worker, Sydney, September 2004, investigation officers, NSW Ombudsman, September 2004, caseworker, South Coast, NSW, November 2004, community worker, Sydney, October 2004, OPG, August 2004, solicitor, OPC, September 2004, also interview nos. 10 and 14.

³⁹ Forell et al., No Home, No Justice?, p. 208.

⁴⁰ Consultation with caseworker, South Coast, NSW, November 2004.

⁴¹ Consultation with caseworker, Blue Mountains, July 2004.

⁴² Consultation with Aboriginal mental health worker, Sydney, September 2004, also interview no. 10.

⁴³ Case study provided by the OPG.

⁴⁴ Interview no. 14.

⁴⁵ Consultation with mental health worker, Sydney, September 2004.

⁴⁶ Consultation with solicitor, OPC, September 2004.

⁴⁷ Consultation with the OPG, August 2004.

⁴⁸ Consultation with mental health worker, Sydney, September 2004.

⁴⁹ Consultations with investigation officer, NSW Ombudsman, September 2004, Caseworker, Blue Mountains, July 2004, caseworker, South Coast, NSW, November 2004, barrister, Sydney, January 2005, mental health worker, Sydney, September 2004.

⁵⁰ Consultation with caseworker, Blue Mountains, July 2004.

⁵¹ Consultation with investigation officer, NSW Ombudsman, September 2004.

⁵² Consultation with consumer advocate, Sydney, August 2004.

⁵³ Consultation with community worker, Sydney, October 2004.

⁵⁴ Consultation with CLC workers, Shopfront, September 2004, also roundtable consultation, 3 June 2004.

⁵⁵ Consultation with CLC workers, Shopfront, September 2004.

⁵⁶ Interview no. 3.

⁵⁷ Roundtable consultation, 3 June 2004.

⁵⁸ Consultation with CLC workers, Shopfront, September 2004.

⁵⁹ Carole Millar Research, Referrals Between Advice Agencies and Solicitors, Legal Studies Research Findings No 21, The Scottish Office Central Research Unit, Edinburgh, 1999, <http://www.scotland.gov.uk/cru/resfinds/lsf21-00.htm> (accessed March 2006).

⁶⁰ Consultations with CLC workers, Shopfront, September 2004, solicitor, CCLC, August 2004, clinical psychologist, July 2004, also interview no. 25 (taken from the Foundations study into homeless people).

⁶¹ Roundtable consultation, 3 June 2004.

⁶² Consultation with solicitor, CCLC, August 2004.

⁶³ Consultation with solicitor, CCLC, August 2004. A psychiatrist also observed that health workers can be intimidated by solicitors. This can be exacerbated by the difference in communication styles between the sectors. He suggested that the relationship between the two sectors may be assisted by joint conferences and other activities: consultation with psychiatrist, August 2004.

⁶⁴ Consultation with CLC workers, WLS, October 2004.

⁶⁵ Interview no. 25 (taken from the Foundations study into homeless people), roundtable consultation, 3 June 2005, also consultations with executive officer, Human Services CEOs Forum, March 2005, social worker, MHAS, August 2004. See also Szirom et al., Barriers to Service Provision for Young People, p. 7.

⁶⁶ Select Committee on Mental Health, Mental Health Services in NSW: Final Report, HREOC, Human Rights and Mental Illness, MHCA, Submission to the Senate Select Committee on Mental Health, CCLC NSW, Submission to the Senate Select Committee on Mental Health, WRC, Submission to the Senate Select Committee on Mental Health, Not for Service.

⁶⁷ NCOSS, Productivity Commission Report on Government Services: Health, NCOSS News, vol. 32, no. 2, March, 2005, pp. 89.

⁶⁸ Consultation with mental health worker, Western NSW, August 2004.

⁶⁹ Consultations with CLC workers, WLS, October 2004, solicitor, CCLC, August 2004.

⁷⁰ Consultations with CLC worker, Western NSW, September 2004, solicitor, CCLC, August 2004.

⁷¹ Consultation with solicitor, CCLC, August 2004.

⁷² Consultations with solicitor, regional CLC, September 2004, barrister, Sydney, January 2005.

⁷³ See Chapters 4 and 5.

⁷⁴ Kamieniecki, Prevalence of Psychological Distress and Psychiatric Disorders among Homeless Youth in Australia, see also Andrews et al., The Mental Health of Australians.

⁷⁵ Kamieniecki, Prevalence of Psychological Distress and Psychiatric Disorders among Homeless Youth in Australia, Cullen, Out of the Picture, Szirom et al., Barriers to Service Provision for Young People.

⁷⁶ Szirom et al., Barriers to Service Provision for Young People, p. 3.

⁷⁷ Consultation with CLC workers, Shopfront, September 2004.

⁷⁸ Consultations with barrister, Sydney, January 2005, national program manager, MMHA, July 2004, also roundtable consultation, 16 June 2004.

⁷⁹ HREOC, Human Rights and Mental Illness, pp. 73040, Not for Service, pp. 8, 243, 259.

⁸⁰ Roundtable consultation, 16 June 2004.

⁸¹ Roundtable consultation, 16 June 2004.

⁸² Nicholson et al., Critical Issues for Parents with Mental illness and Their Families, p. 15.

⁸³ HREOC, Human Rights of People with a Mental Illness, p. 273.

⁸⁴ HREOC, Human Rights of People with a Mental Illness, p. 271.

⁸⁵ Not for Service, p 143, also interview no. 2

⁸⁶ NSW Ombudsman, Report under Section 26 of the Ombudsman Act, paras 8.13 and 7.3.58, also consultation with community worker, Sydney, October 2004.

⁸⁷ HREOC, Human Rights of People with a Mental Illness, p. 360.

⁸⁸ Interview No. 3.

⁸⁹ Consultation with CLC workers, Shopfront, September 2004.

⁹⁰ Consultations with senior public servant, NSW Centre for Mental Health, March 2005, mental health worker, Sydney, September 2004, also roundtable consultation, 3 June 2004.

⁹¹ Consultations with mental health worker, Sydney, September 2004, psychiatrist, Sydney, August 2004.

⁹² Consultation with mental health worker, Sydney, September 2004.

⁹³ Consultations with mental health worker, Sydney, September 2004, official visitor, October 2004, also roundtable consultation, 3 June 2004. For example, to assist its workers in their referral role, Centrelink has developed a referral database containing both legal and non-legal services.

⁹⁴ Consultation with mediator, community justice centre, September 2004. Also roundtable consultation, 16 June 2004, consultations with CLC workers, Shopfront, September 2004, mental health worker, September 2004, solicitor, CCLC, August 2004.

⁹⁵ Consultation with CLC workers, Shopfront, September 2004.

⁹⁶ Consultation with CLC workers, Marrickville Legal Centre and KLC, January 2006.