NewsBriefs© # 077 - Roundtable Law College - ABN 54293240177 - Website: golaw.com.au
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IN THIS ISSUE – to view latest Newsbriefs or subscribe on-line
1. Getting a court to agree to a McKenzie Friend or non-lawyer advocate
2. Forms next courses – Sydney 25 June; Brisbane 9 July; Cairns 16 July
3. Roundtable Law College sponsors 2 new suicide prevention programs:
· SPVA – Suicide Prevention Volunteers Australia
· PEA 2005 – Pokies Education Australia – New Slogan: “No-Limit Pokies Turn Winners Into Losers”
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Special offer
Order new Qld or NSW student guide before 30th June 2005 - Click here to order!
· Receive 2 bonus audio CDs – total bonus value – save $60
· Plus deduct price of new student guide purchased during this offer from price of original purchaser attending a one day course prior to Jan 2006 (ie. one person / student guide purchased)
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1. Getting a court to agree to a McKenzie Friend or non-lawyer advocate
As a follow up to Newsbriefs # 76, some have attempted to get a court to agree to a McKenzie’s Friend, a non-lawyer advocate, or assistance from a judge and failed. This is surprising as others have had no problem whatsoever. While there is no guaranteed way to get a court to agree, there are certainly definite “do’s” and “don’ts” to consider in order to improve your prospects of a court agreeing to your using a non-lawyer representative or a MacKenzies Friend in court.
MacKenzie Friend “A person who is not legally represented may, if allowed by the Court, obtain the assistance in court of a MacKenzie friend. This person may give advice, take notes and assist the person in court. The Judge or Magistrate has the discretion whether or not to allow an unrepresented person the assistance of a MacKenzie friend.” http://elo.legalaid.qld.gov.au/asp/glossary/glossary.asp?gWord=M http://beta.austlii.edu.au/au/other/alrc/publications/issues/22/11.html
Special note: you will notice that I have deliberately provided a definition for a ‘MacKenzie Friend’ from Qld’s legal aid website glossary and austlii website for those reading who may be skeptical that Qld or Australian courts do not permit a MacKenzie Friend. By the way, one student said that a MacKenzie Friend in their matter in Qld was not allowed to be someone who was also to be a witness giving testimony under oath in a particular matter.
My personal list of “don’ts”:
1. Never invite a person to assist you who is angry; or continuously criticises courts tribunals and judges as being corrupt, unjust or biased; or who is ignorant of court forms, court rules and rule numbers; or who does not continuously look up the legal meaning of words; or who makes comments or suggestions which you know will get ‘right up the nose’ of a judge; or who makes comments for which they can provide no references to support their comments; or who are too emotional and would prefer to agree with you so not to upset you or hurt your feelings; or who just wants to fight and argue and is anti negation mediation compromise and settlement – in real life, those who have selected such people to help them have gone to jail, lost properties, lost businesses, or have ended up ‘throwing good money and time after bad’ spending years and years of their lives attempting to appeal decisions (and that’s the truth!);
2. Don’t file ‘far-fetched, outrageous, frivolous, vexatious or scandalous’ documents in court or tribunal, and then expect a court or tribunal to grant you leave to have a non-lawyer advocate or a MacKenzies Friend represent you;
3. Never ask ‘controversial’ people to assist you in court or tribunal (or even to sit in the public gallery when your case is in court) – it diminishes your prospects of gaining court approval for non-lawyer help in court;
4. Never ever ever tell a court that you have a right to non-lawyer help in court. It is likely to backfire;
5. Don’t presume that a court or tribunal will not allow you to have non-lawyer assistance in court – because the fact is courts and tribunals do allow it if you go about it sensibly;
My personal list of “do’s”:
1. Don’t surprise or upset the judge – respectfully use the words “I seek leave...” for the court to allow whoever to assist you in court – (Leave means “a request to the court to obtain permission to do something that otherwise would not be permissible.” www.lombardiperry.com/glossary.htm ) obviously they will be properly dressed – appropriate clean clothes – clean and tidy hair – men with long hair tied back off shoulders (suggestions only)
2. Put forward what you believe ‘a reasonable person’ would regard as being reasonable grounds for having non-lawyer assistance in court – speak for maximum of 15 seconds on your grounds for seeking leave - eg. I applied for legal aid and was knocked back, and cannot afford a lawyer – I need assistance to find documents during a proceeding, look up the meaning of words in a legal dictionary etc – I thought I would be able to represent myself, but was ambushed and surprised by my opponent with a last-minute affidavit which is really stressing me out because I’m having difficulty reading and absorbing and understanding what it means and how it will affect my case – my opponent has the benefit and advantage of and somehow can afford an experienced qualified advocate, so please allow me to have someone to help me in court too;
3. Once you have sort leave and given your reasons... then remain standing and stay silent – give the court or tribunal time to respond – don’t be tempted to say another word until judge speaks;
4. Consider asking the judge to assist you to advocate your case if your opponent has qualified legal advocates and you cannot afford and do not have any – give reasons similar to 2;
5. In major matters which are above a magistrate’s court, look in the Telstra phone book as the direct phone number to associates for district court judges and supreme court justices (in some states) are published to enable both parties to contact the associate at any stage – if you want a judge to advocate a case, phone the associate and tell them what you want and your reasons – ask them for their fax number or email number so that you can fax or email your request;
6. Give the judge options – eg. for the judge to advocate for you, or for the judge to allow a non-lawyer to represent you, or for a non-lawyer to act as a MacKenzies Friend and sit at the bar table next to you, or for the judge to order that full legal aid be provided to you, or for the judge to make enquiries for you in relation to having an experienced barrister and solicitor represent you pro-bono, or for the judge to adjourn matter to give the judge time to make pro bono enquiries for you;
But a final warning: No matter how much you pay for solicitors or barristers, or how competent a non-lawyer advocate or MacKenzie Friend is... the only way you can guarantee a win in a legal dispute is to settle wherever possible for the best and win-win fairest settlement possible out of court as soon as possible. And the college is not endorsing the idea that those dealing with serious legal issues should not engage and use the services of qualified solicitors or barristers – or that using a non-lawyer advocate or MacKenzie Friend is necessarily a good idea in any matter.
Have your say
“Did you know courts and tribunals (in some jurisdictions and matters) allow non-lawyer advocates or a MacKenzie Friend?”
Yes l Unsure l No l Comment on MacKenzie Friend article
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2. Events - use following links or log on golaw.com.au to access pdf & ppt files
· One day pdf course registration forms Sydney Sat 25 June – Brisbane Sat 9 July – Cairns Sat July 16
· One day course 6 min Powerpoint presentations – NSW – QLD
· Brisbane, Sydney & Cairns course bookings: admin@golaw.com.au
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3. Roundtable Law College sponsors 2 new suicide prevention programs
SPVA – Suicide Prevention Volunteers Australia
· Very positive feedback to this campaign focussed on unemployed people
· If you own or are a webmaster of a website, seriously consider allowing a jobseeker you are unable to employ to post an on-line resume on your website like this – it really boosts their self-esteem
PEA 2005 – Pokies Education Australia
· campaign already quietly launched in Qld, NSW, Victoria & South Australia
· Google is already prominently displaying PEA 2005 and Pokies Education Australia in top 10 searches
· New Slogan: “No-Limit Pokies Turn Winners Into Losers”
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Legal Notice. NewsBriefs is contains general information and opinions of non-lawyers which is not legal advice. You must seek qualified legal advice at your own cost before acting on any information in this publication.
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