The Homeless Persons' Legal Clinic (HPLC) provides free legal advice and assistance to people experiencing or at risk of homelessness, at a number of community agencies across Queensland.
- HPLC locations
- HPLC success
- How the HPLC works
- Lawyers supporting the HPLC
- Continuing Legal Education
- Coordination of the HPLC
- Other HPLCs in Australia
HPLC locations
The HPLC currently operates at the following agencies and times:
| Brisbane Youth Service 42 McLachlan Street, Fortitude Valley Phone: 3252 3750 |
Monday (by appointment) |
1.00pm to 3.00pm |
| Bric Housing 593 Boundary Street, Spring Hill |
Monday (residents only) |
1.30pm to 3.30pm |
| Brisbane Homelessness Service Centre 62 Peel Street, South Brisbane Phone: 3036 4444 |
Tuesday (by appointment and drop-in) |
9.30am to 11.00am |
| New Farm Neighbourhood Centre 967 Brunswick Street, New Farm Phone: 3358 5600 |
Tuesday (by appointment) |
10.00am to 11.00am |
| Pindari
Men's Hostel 28 Quarry Street, Spring Hill |
Tuesday (residents only)
|
9.30am to 10.30am | Kyabra Phone Clinic Phone: 3373 9499 |
Tuesday (by appointment) |
2.00pm to 4.00pm | South Townsville Drop In Centre Corner of Morehead and Morey Streets, South Townsville Phone: 4772 2339 | Wednesday (drop-in) |
11.00am to 12.30pm |
| The Basement, Toowoomba 10 Neil Street, Toowoomba Phone: 4638 2399 |
Wednesday (drop-in) |
11.00am to 1pm |
| Café One 256 Wickham Street, Fortitude Valley |
Thursday (drop-in) |
9.00am to 11.00am |
| Roma House 535 Wickham Terrace, Spring Hill |
Thursday (residents only) |
9.30am to 11.00am |
| Pindari
Women's Hostel 28 Quarry Street, Spring Hill Phone: 3832 6073 |
Fortnightly Friday (residents only) |
10am to 11.30am |
| 4AAA Kiosk Boundary Street Community Park, 155A Boundary Street, West End |
Fortnightly Friday (drop-in) |
12.30pm to 1.30pm |
| Anglican Women's Hostel Phone: 3514 4503 |
Fixed by appointment (residents only) |
Various times |
HPLC success
Since it began in December 2002, the HPLC has provided a targeted, necessary and meaningful contribution to the community by:
- assisting over 4000 Queenslanders experiencing homelessness;
- providing over 2.6 million dollars worth of pro bono legal services and support to some of Queensland's most vulnerable people every year; and
- contributing thousands of hours of pro bono legal work through casework, community legal education and research for and on behalf of people experiencing homelessness.
How the HPLC works
Given the complex range of pressures and issues confronting homeless people (including financial, social, psychological, medical, health issues and sometimes multiple legal issues), civil law problems often go unaddressed unless services are appropriately located and delivered. On this basis, the HPLC operates at places where homeless people access other essential services, such as accomodation and case-management.
Volunteer lawyers provide advice in most areas of law and assist clients on an ongoing basis as required. Volunteers also provide assisted referrals if there is another agency better suited to meeting the needs of a particular client.
The HPLC uses an innovative tool called the "Legal Health Check" to investigate the totality of legal problems that a homeless person may have.
The HPLC actively seeks to identify gaps in the delivery of front-line legal services to homeless people and examine practical development issues.
The HPLC was evaluated in February 2012. Read the report here:
Lawyers supporting the HPLC
The HPLC operates in partnership with a number of law firms, sole practitioners and community legal centres, working collaboratively to deliver targeted legal services to Queenslanders experiencing or at risk of homelessness.
Brisbane law firms
- Allens
- Ashurst
- Clayton Utz
- Herbert Smith Freehills
- King & Wood Mallesons
- McCullough Robertson
- Minter Ellison
- MurphySchmidt
- Holding Redlich
- HWL Ebsworth
- Dibbs Barker
Toowoomba lawyers
- Catherine Cheek - Clewett Lawyers
- Andrew Braithwaite - Hede Byrne & Hall
- Kathy Walker - Walker Lawyers
- Craig Burgess - USQ
- Ken Parry - MacDonald Law Toowoomba
- Paul Green - Kennedy Spanner Lawyers
Townsville lawyers
- Crosby Brosnan & Creen
- Connolly Suthers
- Boulton Cleary Kern
- Chris Mills
- Townsville Community Legal Service
Continuing Legal Education
HPLC staff and volunteer lawyers are offered regular continuing legal education sessions in many areas of law, including debt, fines and tenancy, and in relation to practical legal skills. The HPLC also provides training to caseworkers in legal basics.
Coordination of the HPLC
QPILCH coordinates the HPLC with funding kindly provided by the Queensland Department of Communities, Child Safety and Disability Services and the Australian Government Attorney-General's Department.
