Free legal information for Queensland flood victims

Monday, January 10, 2011

Attorney-General and Minister for Industrial Relations
The Honourable Cameron Dick

The State Government and the legal profession are combining forces to provide free legal information to Queensland flood victims.

Attorney-General Cameron Dick said the Queensland Law Society (QLS), Legal Aid Queensland and other key legal organisations were working together to provide free legal information and preliminary legal advice to disadvantaged Queenslanders affected by floods.

“Previous natural disasters such as Cyclone Larry, the Ingham floods and last year’s flooding in south-west Queensland have shown that many people will experience a range of legal issues while trying to get back on their feet,” he said.

“These problems generally tend to include issues relating to insurance claims, accommodation, rental properties, employment, debt and even family law problems.

“The availability of free legal information and advice to those most in need will help people get back to some form of normality after these devastating floods as quickly as possible.

“We will be working with the Queensland Flood Recovery Taskforce and local disaster management committees to provide these advisory services, initially through places such as local recovery and evacuation centres.

“Information booths should be established at these centres shortly, once volunteer lawyers and Legal Aid staff can be arranged and co-ordinated.”

Mr Dick convened a meeting today involving the Queensland Law Society and Legal Aid Queensland, as well as other organisations involved in this initiative including the Queensland Public Interest Law Clearing House, the Queensland Association of Independent Legal Services, and the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Legal Service.

QLS president Bruce Doyle said the legal profession was keen to contribute to flood recovery efforts.

“We have many members living in flood-affected areas so this initiative is a small gesture from the profession to help these communities recover,” he said.

Legal Aid Queensland CEO Anthony Reilly said until information services were established at recovery and evacuation centres, people could contact Legal Aid Queensland on 1300 65 11 88 for the cost of a local call to get free legal information.

People affected by the flooding can contact Legal Aid Queensland or the Financial Ombudsman Service on 1800 337 444 for advice on managing their claim with their insurer.

Resources available to flood victims include Legal Aid Queensland’s fact sheet “Need help getting an insurance claim paid?”, which is available at www.legalaid.qld.gov.au .

ENDS

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