A new pro bono framework by Bay of Plenty law firm, Holland Beckett, hopes to fill in where legal aid falls short.

Data from the Ministry of Justice found that in 2024, 24,295 applications for family, civil and Waitangi Tribunal legal aid grants were made in one year in New Zealand.

The biggest challenge is finding a legal aid provider prepared to do the work, Holland Beckett partner Tim Conder said.

“They might qualify for legal aid, but they won’t be able to find a lawyer to do the work,” Conder said.

In extreme cases, lawyers must fly from Tauranga to Nelson because no legal aid is available, he said.

Holland Beckett partner, lawyer Tim Conder. Photo / Tom Eley

“As a legal profession, we need to take some steps to push back and make sure that we have a system that remains accessible and available to people.”

Part of the lack of available legal aid is that the charge-out rate has not shifted for 25 years, Conder said.

The highest rate on legal aid is $178 an hour, but if that had kept pace with inflation, it would be over $300, he said.

“If you want to do legal work on legal aid, you must find a lawyer prepared to work at those rates.”

Many legal services have abandoned legal aid, creating a gap where people who need legitimate legal advice and assistance cannot access it, Conder said.

Condor said criminal legal aid remained strong, but the situation for civil legal aid was dire.

In 1982, during the R.V. Lawson Privy Council decision, Lawson appealed his conviction due to not having proper legal representation.

It was agreed that denying legal aid in serious criminal cases can invalidate a conviction because it breaches the right to a fair trial, according to the Privy Council decision.

“The reality is that most criminal defendants in New Zealand will get legal aid,” Conder said.

Te Ara Ture director Sabrina Muck.

The pro bono framework was created from collaboration sessions between major law firms that started in July 2023 and formally evolved into a dedicated framework group in 2024.

One of the framework group’s concerns is that it is very centred around large firms.

“Holland Beckett is the only member firm that regularly does private client work – where there is the biggest gap in access to justice,” Conder said.

Participating law firms will aim for a voluntary pro bono target of at least 25 hours of legal work per fulltime lawyer each year, Te Ara Ture director Sabrina Muck said in an email.

The law firms will report against this target annually in an anonymous and de-identified format.

The pro bono framework grew from a collaborative approach between Te Ara Ture and law firms that started in Auckland in August 2023.

Six legal firms are participating in the framework, including Gilbert Walker, Simpson Grierson, DLA Piper, Russel McVeagh, Luke Cunningham Clere and Holland Beckett.