Legal Services Commission of South Australia
A short factsheet on SA's legal aid body: its establishing Act, purpose, funding structure, and its distinct name compared with other states' Legal Aid Commissions.
Learning outcomes
- State the Legal Services Commission of South Australia's establishing Act and funding structure.
- Explain the Commission's dual role: general legal information/advice/education for all South Australians, and representation focused on criminal and family law for those most in need.
- Recognise that SA's body is named the Legal Services Commission, not a 'Legal Aid Commission' as in NSW and WA, despite performing a comparable function.
Act: Legal Services Commission Act 1977 (SA).1
Established: 1977.
Purpose: The Commission provides legal assistance to people throughout South Australia. It is jointly funded by the South Australian and Commonwealth governments. Its work has two layers: free legal information, advice and education for all South Australians, with a focus on prevention and early resolution of legal problems; and, for those most in need, legal representation — principally in criminal law and family law, including child support and child protection matters. It is the largest legal assistance service provider in South Australia.
Powers conferred under the Act
The Commission is a legal-assistance and service-delivery body, not a regulator. It is governed under the Act by a Commission board, and does not hold investigative, licensing or enforcement powers of the kind the regulatory bodies in this overlay set hold.
Is it a prosecuting authority?
No.
A different name for a familiar function
New South Wales and Western Australia each call their legal aid body a "Legal Aid Commission." South Australia's is the Legal Services Commission — a different name for a functionally comparable role. A student should not assume every jurisdiction uses the same name for its legal aid body, and should check the specific enabling Act when working across jurisdictions.
Self-check
- Have I named the Commission correctly as the Legal Services Commission of South Australia, not a "Legal Aid Commission," while recognising it performs a comparable function?
- Have I distinguished the Commission's service-delivery role from the Legal Profession Conduct Commissioner's discipline role — both touch the legal profession, but in different ways?
- Have I stated the Commission is jointly funded by State and Commonwealth governments, not solely one or the other?