May
29
awhile ago i went to court, and had an interview with a duty solicitor, he gave me advice on how to plead and what to say. but he also wrote down some of my details on a sheet of paper?, advice from a duty solicitors are free arent they?
Are you thinking about selling your home yourself? then
I assume from your other questions that you are in South Australia
In SA, the Duty Solicitor is usually a lawyer who is employed by the Legal Services Commission of South Australia. Sometimes, private lawyers will act as a Duty Solicitor, to fill in if a Legal Aid lawyer is not available in a particular court on that day.
The service that is provided is free, but the lawyer still has to comply with all of the ethical rules about advising or representing a client – he/she will keep notes of the charges, the allegations, and the advice given because that is the professional and ethical way to do the job
They will also keep your personal information for their statistical records, but that is done anonymously, so as not to breach legal professional privilege .
Yes – like most people these days they have to account for what they do. They would have taking your details so you can be recorded as a stat for the day. If not they could not justify whether or not duty solicitors were needed. If they can stand up and say we see 1 person a day or we see 30 a day that will make a difference to funding etc. However they need names to justify the numbers.
Yes, absolutely – the police find one for you and they get their money from legal aid sources. Remember its advice on what to do … its up to you to take it or not. Just remember not to tell him you did it if you plead not guilty he’d be "misleading the court" and could himself be done for perjury I think – not too sure though.
EDIT: I appreciate the below correction and would like to alter my answer suffice to say: You have the right to legal representation if you do not already have a solicitor the police are under legal obligation to put you in contact with one – they’re called "duty solicitors" at a police station and the police may be legally required to provide one if you’re a minor or if (a) getting the requested solicitor who you’ve requested takes too much time or (b) if you’re being kept incommunicado under the Terrorism Acts at the authority of a police officer of the rank of Superintendant or higher, in order to prevent any conspiritors evading justice
Oh and by the way regarding "… do not listen …" listen is the wrong verb. Unless one uses a screen reader that is.
Yes, they are paid from public funding (legal aid).
Please don’t listen to A.S, the police do not find you a solicitor, solicitors operate on a police station/Court rota to ensure that there is representation for people in the police station or at court, they have nothing to do with the police
I’m not sure which jurisdiction you are talking about but in QLD Australia, a duty solicitor is made available every day the court sits. You can obtain advice and in a plea of guilty they can represent you or offer advice on how to plea. If you are pleading not guilty get yourself a solicitor (at this point it will cost you).
Any advice given to you by the duty solicitor on the day is free and they can even assist you in obtaining legal aid, but the reason he wrote down your details is so that he/ she has a record of who they have spoken to and what advice was given.
I assume from your other questions that you are in South Australia
In SA, the Duty Solicitor is usually a lawyer who is employed by the Legal Services Commission of South Australia. Sometimes, private lawyers will act as a Duty Solicitor, to fill in if a Legal Aid lawyer is not available in a particular court on that day.
The service that is provided is free, but the lawyer still has to comply with all of the ethical rules about advising or representing a client – he/she will keep notes of the charges, the allegations, and the advice given because that is the professional and ethical way to do the job
They will also keep your personal information for their statistical records, but that is done anonymously, so as not to breach legal professional privilege .