20.2 Legal costs amounts

The FAS will pay legal costs for a complex application. Complexity factors include where an application involves:

• character considerations
• special circumstances for not reporting to, or assisting, police
• a finding of not guilty in a court outcome in relation to the violent act supporting the application
• an applicant who is suffering from trauma
• an out of time application
• a significant number of related acts
• multiple related acts and multiple injuries
• a victim with complex injuries
• documentary evidence that the lawyer must source from third parties
• a notice of intention to refuse the application from the FAS
• a victim who may face barriers or structural inequalities or disadvantages in accessing the FAS without legal representation, which may include:
  • Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples
  • culturally and linguistically diverse communities
  • LGBTQIA+ communities
  • children and young people
  • older people
  • people who have recently arrived in Australia
  • refugees and asylum seekers
  • people with low education levels or have difficulty reading and writing
  • social exclusion (victims of crime that are marginalised or lack social support)
  • disability or health issues, including mental health issues
  • people experiencing substance dependence or homelessness
  • people in State custody or mental health facilities
  • people who have limited access to technology or require support to access technology.

Up to $338 for an associated application

Up to $1,128 for the lead application

The FAS will pay legal costs for an associated application. An associated application is an application connected to another lead application. This includes where a lawyer is representing:

• multiple family members of the same deceased primary victim, or
• multiple victims of the same incident or violent act.

Associated applications must also meet the complexity factors above.

The FAS will pay legal costs for a complex variation application. Complexity factors include where a variation involves:

• character considerations which are relevant to a variation application
• substantive variations of a VOCAT award
• documentary evidence that the lawyer must source from third parties to support the variation, and
• a victim who may face barriers seeking a variation application without legal representation.