Tuesday, 21 March 2023

South-East Monash Legal Service

Gary MAAS (Narre Warren South) (13:04): I recently had the honour of attending the South-East Monash Legal Service 50th anniversary celebration, which commemorated and recognised the invaluable work that the service provides to those in my electorate of Narre Warren South and throughout the wider south-east. The South-East Monash Legal Service, formerly known as the Springvale Monash Legal Service, provides invaluable legal support and resources to individuals and community groups who are trying to access and navigate the legal system, which at times can be quite complicated and stressful for them.

This community legal centre also provides Monash University law students a platform to explore legal practice through a social justice lens as well as get credit towards their course. It has seen many an eminent lawyer, the odd parliamentarian, judges, senior public servants and even a radio breakfast host pass through its ranks as they learned the ropes in their formative years, many of whom attended the celebration last week. South-East Monash Legal Service continues to strongly advise and advocate for systematic changes and improvements to the legal system to enable greater access, fairness and support. I would like to take this opportunity to thank executive director Kristen Wallwork and her dedicated team at the service not only for a fantastic night but for all the hard work that they do for our community.