outcome 2 area of study 1 Flashcards
what is legal aid
a government agency that provides free legal advice to the community and low cost or no cost legal representation to people who can’t afford a lawyer
what is community legal centre (CLC)
an indépendant organisation that provides free legal services to people who are unable to pay for those services. some are generalist CLCs and some are specialist CLCs.
what are the roles of VLA
- provide legal aid to accused people
- control and administer the legal aid fund
- in cooperation with government bodies and departments, meet the needs of the community for legal aid
- make recommendations for law reform’
- design and implement educational programs to promote understanding by the public of their rights, powers,privileges and duties under laws
- research legal aid issues
role of CLC
- provide people with information, legal advice and minor assistance
- duty lawyer assistance
- legal casework services including representation and assistance
CLC focus on ppl who need legal aid because of their personal circumstances eg disabled or mental health issues
what are committal proceedings?
the processes and hearings that take place in the Magistrates court for indictable offences. they take place when an accused has been charged with one or more indictable offence and the accused has pleaded not guilty
what is the purpose of committal proceedings
- to see whether a charge for an indictable offence is appropriate to be heard and determined summarily
- to decide if there is enough evidence to support a conviction for the offence charged
- to find out whether the accused plans to plead guilty or not guilty
- to make sure there is a free trial
what are plea negotiations
a pre trial discussion that takes place between the prosecution and the accused, aimed at resolving the case by agreeing on an outcome to the criminal charges laid
what are sentence indications
a statement made by a judge to an accused about the sentence they could face if they plead guilty to an offence
purpose of plea negotiations
- to resolve a criminal case by ensuring a plea of guilty to a charge that adequately reflects the crime that was committed
- to achieve a prompt resolution to a criminal case without the cost, time, stress, trauma and inconvenience of a criminal trial
What are sentence indications
A statement made by a judge to an accused about the sentence they could face if they plead guilty to an offence
What’s the purpose of sentence indications
- provide the accused with some clarifying about the likely sentence that will be imposed
- save cost, time, resources, stress and inconvenience of having a contested trial that may result in a higher sentence
