Part 1 Application

Guideline 1 Basis of determination of grant of legal assistance

The Commission may make a grant of legal assistance for an application for assistance that

1. is for assistance for a Commonwealth Law Matter
2. is within a Commonwealth Legal Aid Priority and Eligibility Principle
3. meets any guidelines set out in these Legal Aid Guidelines for Commonwealth matters that are relevant to the application
4. meets the Means Test guideline in guideline 2 of this Part 1 (unless otherwise specified in these Guidelines)
5. meets the Merit Test in guideline 3 of this Part 1 (unless otherwise specified in these Guidelines)
   
   When determining whether a grant of legal assistance is to be made, the Commission should apply guideline 1(1)(a), (b), (c), (d) and (e) in that order
3. If an application for a grant of legal assistance meets the criteria in this guideline 1(1), the Commission must determine, in accordance with these Guidelines and after giving consideration to available Commonwealth Legal Aid money and competing Commonwealth legal aid priorities, whether a grant is to be made and, if so, the nature and extent of that grant
4. If, apart from this Part 1, there is no guideline relating specifically to a Commonwealth legal aid priority, the Commission may make a grant of legal assistance in the manner, and to the extent, it considers appropriate in that priority area.

Guideline 2 The Means Test

The Means Test to be applied by the Commission is the Means Test used by the Commission, at the date of the relevant application for assistance, for applications for assistance in State law matters.

Guideline 3 The Merit Test

The Merit Test to be applied by the Commission is the Merit Test used by the Commission, at the date of the relevant application for assistance, for applications for assistance in State law matters.

Guideline 4 Test cases

In considering whether to make a grant of legal assistance, the Commission may take into account whether funding is available from another Commonwealth scheme such as the Commonwealth Public Interest and Test Cases Scheme.