Aboriginal legal services frozen or at risk of shutting down in 17 communities across NSW and Queensland | Indigenous Australians
Four communities in Queensland have had their Aboriginal legal services frozen and more than a dozen communities in New South Wales are at risk of losing theirs, prompting calls for urgent funding from the commonwealth government to help First Nations clients.Karly Warner, the chair of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Legal Services national peak body NATSILS, said communities are now at risk of not being able to access culturally safe legal services and lead to a worsening crisis of Indigenous incarceration.“There is no point sugar-coating this situation – it could result in far worse outcomes for people and families,” said Warner, who is also the chief executive of Aboriginal Legal Services in New South Wales and ACT.“We know that when culturally safe legal support isn't available, the result is more…