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General population legal needs surveys provide the most complete picture of legal need in the community, as not everyone who experiences a legal problem has contact with the justice system.

Legal needs surveys can provide:

Legal Australia-Wide Survey (LAW Survey)

The Foundation’s Legal Australia-Wide Survey (LAW Survey) published in 2012 provided the first comprehensive quantitative assessment across Australia of an extensive range of legal needs on a representative sample of the population. It examined the nature of legal problems, the pathways to their resolution, and the demographic groups that struggle with the weight of their legal problems.

Legal Australia-Wide Survey: Legal need in Australia

Christine Coumarelos,

Deborah Macourt,

Julie People,

Hugh McDonald,

Zhigang Wei,

Reiny Iriana,

Stephanie Ramsey, | 2012

The Legal Australia-Wide Survey (LAW Survey) provides the first comprehensive quantitative assessment across Australia of an extensive range of legal needs on a representative sample of the population. It examines…

LAW survey,

Legal needs,

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Legal Australia-Wide Survey: Legal need in New South Wales

Christine Coumarelos,

Deborah Macourt,

Julie People,

Hugh McDonald,

Zhigang Wei,

Reiny Iriana,

Stephanie Ramse, | 2012

The Legal Australia-Wide Survey (LAW Survey) provides the first comprehensive quantitative assessment across Australia of an extensive range of legal needs on a representative sample of the population. It examines…

LAW survey,

Legal need surveys,

Legal needs,

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Legal Australia-Wide Survey: Legal need in Queensland

Christine Coumarelos,

Deborah Macourt,

Julie People,

Hugh McDonald,

Zhigang Wei,

Reiny Iriana,

Stephanie Ramsey, | 2012

The Legal Australia-Wide Survey (LAW Survey) provides the first comprehensive quantitative assessment across Australia of an extensive range of legal needs on a representative sample of the population. It examines…

LAW survey,

Legal need surveys,

Legal needs,

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Legal Australia-Wide Survey: Legal need in the Northern Territory

Christine Coumarelos,

Deborah Macourt,

Julie People,

Hugh McDonald,

Zhigang Wei,

Reiny Iriana,

Stephanie Ramsey, | 2012

The Legal Australia-Wide Survey (LAW Survey) provides the first comprehensive quantitative assessment across Australia of an extensive range of legal needs on a representative sample of the population. It examines…

LAW survey,

Legal need surveys,

Legal needs,

View report Download PDF Cite this report

Legal Australia-Wide Survey: Legal need in Victoria

Christine Coumarelos,

Deborah Macourt,

Julie People,

Hugh McDonald,

Zhigang Wei,

Reiny Iriana,

Stephanie Ramsey, | 2012

The Legal Australia-Wide Survey (LAW Survey) provides the first comprehensive quantitative assessment across Australia of an extensive range of legal needs on a representative sample of the population. It examines…

LAW survey,

Legal need surveys,

Legal needs,

View report Download PDF Cite this report

Legal Australia-Wide Survey: Legal need in Tasmania

Christine Coumarelos,

Deborah Macourt,

Julie People,

Hugh McDonald,

Zhigang Wei,

Reiny Iriana,

Stephanie Ramsey, | 2012

The Legal Australia-Wide Survey (LAW Survey) provides the first comprehensive quantitative assessment across Australia of an extensive range of legal needs on a representative sample of the population. It examines…

LAW survey,

Legal need surveys,

Legal needs,

View report Download PDF Cite this report

Legal Australia-Wide Survey: Legal need in Western Australia

Christine Coumarelos,

Deborah Macourt,

Julie People,

Hugh McDonald,

Zhigang Wei,

Reiny Iriana,

Stephanie Ramsey, | 2012

The Legal Australia-Wide Survey (LAW Survey) provides the first comprehensive quantitative assessment across Australia of an extensive range of legal needs on a representative sample of the population. It examines…

LAW survey,

Legal need surveys,

Legal needs,

View report Download PDF Cite this report

Legal Australia-Wide Survey: Legal need in South Australia

Christine Coumarelos,

Deborah Macourt,

Julie People,

Hugh McDonald,

Zhigang Wei,

Reiny Iriana,

Stephanie Ramsey, | 2012

The Legal Australia-Wide Survey (LAW Survey) provides the first comprehensive quantitative assessment across Australia of an extensive range of legal needs on a representative sample of the population. It examines…

LAW survey,

Legal need surveys,

Legal needs,

View report Download PDF Cite this report

Legal Australia-Wide Survey: Legal need in the Australian Capital Territory

Christine Coumarelos,

Deborah Macourt,

Julie People,

Hugh McDonald,

Zhigang Wei,

Reiny Iriana,

Stephanie Ramsey, | 2012

The Legal Australia-Wide Survey (LAW Survey) provides the first comprehensive quantitative assessment across Australia of an extensive range of legal needs on a representative sample of the population. It examines…

LAW survey,

Legal need surveys,

Legal needs,

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Publications based on the LAW Survey

The complexities of child protection-related legal needs: Findings from the LAW Survey

The complexities of child protection-related legal needs: Findings from the LAW Survey

Catriona Mirrlees-Black,

Kate Davies, | 2025

Families who have involvement with the child protection system are likely to experience a complex range of co-occurring legal and non-legal issues.

Child protection,

Recent,

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Housing-related problems and enquiries to legal assistance services in NSW (Data insights in justice)

Delphine Bellerose,

Catriona Mirrlees-Black, | 2020

Understanding the characteristics of people who experience housing-related legal problems, such as their age, gender and Indigenous status, is important when planning legal assistance services. The LAW Survey and the…

Data,

Enquiries to legal assistance services,

Housing & homelessness,

LAW survey,

Legal assistance services,

Legal Issues,

Service data,

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Employment-related problems and enquiries to legal assistance services in NSW (Data insights in justice)

Sarah Randell,

Catriona Mirrlees-Black, | 2020

Understanding the characteristics of people who experience employment-related legal problems, such as their age, gender and Indigenous status, is important when planning legal assistance services. The LAW Survey and the…

Data,

Employment,

Enquiries to legal assistance services,

LAW survey,

Legal assistance services,

Service data,

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Uptake of legal self-help resources: what works, for whom and for what?, Justice issues 30

Hugh McDonald,

Suzie Forell,

Zhigang Wei, | 2019

This paper reports new analysis of the national dataset of the Legal Australia-Wide (LAW) Survey examining Australians’ use of self-help resources (SHRs) for legal problems. It includes previously unreported measures…

Community legal information,

LAW survey,

Legal needs surveys,

Other models of service delivery,

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Quantifying the legal and broader life impacts of domestic and family violence, Justice issues paper 32

Christine Coumarelos, | 2019

New analysis of the Legal Australia-Wide (LAW) Survey reveals that respondents who had experienced domestic and family violence (DFV) reported 20 legal problems on average in the preceding 12 months,…

Domestic Violence,

Family and domestic abuse,

LAW survey,

Legal needs,

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Fines: are disadvantaged people at a disadvantage? Justice issues paper 27

Zhigang Wei,

Hugh McDonald,

Christine Coumarelos, | 2018

Using LAW Survey data, this paper reveals that fines problems disproportionately affect disadvantaged people. The most disadvantaged were particularly vulnerable to fines problems, and the adverse consequences resulting from fines…

Client Groups,

Disadvantage | ATJ,

Fines,

LAW survey,

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Personal injury problems: new insights from the Legal Australia-Wide Survey, Justice issues paper 22

Christine Coumarelos,

Genevieve Grant,

Zhigang Wei, | 2017

This paper uses data from the LAW Survey to shed light on four different types of personal injury problems that are likely to be justiciable or have legal aspects -…

Injury,

LAW survey,

Legal needs,

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It’s personal: business ownership and the experience of legal problems, Justice issues paper 24

Pascoe Pleasence,

Nigel Balmer, | 2017

This paper uses Legal Australia-Wide (LAW) Survey data to explore 2,611 nationally representative business owners’ experiences of legal problems. Independent of other factors, business owners were found to be more…

Business,

LAW survey,

Legal needs,

Small business,

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On the brink: how business owners experience business related and other legal problems article

On the brink: how business owners experience business related and other legal problems

Nigel Balmer,

Pascoe Pleasence, | 2017

New analysis of LAW Survey data has identified three distinct groups among business owners according to their likelihood of experiencing business-related and other types of legal problems ‒ ‘normal’, ‘highly…

Business,

LAW survey,

Legal needs,

Small business,

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From the frying pan to the fire: the impact of small businesses’ legal problems article

From the frying pan to the fire: the impact of small businesses’ legal problems

Nigel Balmer,

Pascoe Pleasence, | 2017

Among LAW Survey respondents, 2,611 people (13%) described themselves as business owners. These business owners reported 984 business-related legal problems, 65 per cent of which resulted in adverseconsequences (e.g. loss…

Business,

LAW survey,

Legal needs,

Small business,

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Article about meeting the greater legal needs of single parents

Meeting the greater legal needs of single parents

Maria Karras,

Reiny Iriana, | 2016

New analysis of LAW Survey data reveals that single parents whose children live with them, and single parents whose children live elsewhere, have the highest prevalence of legal problems among…

LAW survey,

Legal needs,

Other priority groups,

Single parents,

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How people solve legal problems: level of disadvantage and legal capability, Justice issues paper 23

Zhigang Hugh M. McDonald,

Wei, | 2016

The paper provides compelling new evidence from the Legal Australia-Wide (LAW) Survey demonstrating the lower legal capability of multiply disadvantaged people. The most disadvantaged respondents were found to be significantly…

Capability,

Client Groups,

Disadvantage,

Disadvantage | ATJ,

LAW survey,

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Law and disorders: illness/disability and the experience of everyday problems involving the law, Justice Issues 17.

Christine Coumarelos,

Pascoe Pleasence,

Zhigang Wei, | 2013

This paper draws on the LAW Survey data to examine the relationship between legal problem experience and different types of mental and physical illness/disability. The findings confirm the existence of…

Disability,

Health & ageing,

Health and Disability,

LAW survey,

Legal needs,

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Law and disorders: illness/disability and the experience of everyday problems involving the law, Updating Justice 22. [Working paper]

Christine Coumarelos,

Pascoe Pleasence,

Zhigang Wei, | 2013

New findings from the LAW Survey confirm a strong relationship between the experience of a broad range of everyday problems involving the law and long-term illness/disability. This relationship was generally…

Disability,

Health & ageing,

LAW survey,

Legal needs,

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Law and Justice Foundation Publication Thumbnail

Taking no action: unmet legal need in the Australian Capital Territory

Law and Justice Foundation of NSW, | 2012

The Legal Australia-Wide (LAW) Survey found that a sizeable proportion of people take no action to resolve their legal problems. This paper examines whether inaction in the Australian Capital Territory…
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Law and Justice Foundation Publication Thumbnail

Prevalence of legal problems in Queensland

Law and Justice Foundation of NSW, | 2012

This paper summarises findings from the Legal Australia-Wide (LAW) Survey concerning the prevalence oflegal problems in Queensland. Legal problems were widespread and often substantial. One-half of respondents reported experiencing at…

Legal needs,

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NSW Legal Need in Disadvantaged Areas: Older Legal Needs Surveys

The legal needs of people with different types of chronic illness or disability, Justice issues paper 11

Christine Coumarelos,

Zhigang Wei, | 2009

Consistent with overseas research, Justice made to measure: NSW Legal Needs Survey in disadvantaged areas reported that people with a chronic illness or disability are particularly vulnerable to experiencing legal…

Disability,

Health and Disability,

Legal needs,

NSW Legal Need,

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NSW Legal Needs Survey in disadvantaged areas: Walgett, Justice issues paper 9

Reiny Iriana,

Anne Grunseit,

Christine Coumarelos,

Zhigang Wei, | 2008

Justice made to measure: NSW legal needs survey in disadvantaged areas (2006) is the report of a large-scale quantitative study of the legal needs of disadvantaged people in six local…

Disadvantage,

Legal needs,

NSW Legal Need,

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NSW Legal Needs Survey in disadvantaged areas: South Sydney, Justice issues paper 8

Anne Grunseit,

Reiny Iriana,

Christine Coumarelos,

Zhigang Wei, | 2008

Justice made to measure: NSW legal needs survey in disadvantaged areas (2006) is the report of a large-scale quantitative study of the legal needs of disadvantaged people in six local…

Disadvantage,

NSW Legal Need,

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NSW Legal Needs Survey in disadvantaged areas: Newcastle, Justice issues paper 7

Anne Grunseit,

Reiny Iriana,

Christine Coumarelos,

Zhigang Wei, | 2008

Justice made to measure: NSW legal needs survey in disadvantaged areas (2006) is the report of a large-scale quantitative study of the legal needs of disadvantaged people in six local…

Disadvantage,

Legal needs,

NSW Legal Need,

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NSW Legal Needs Survey in disadvantaged areas: Nambucca, Justice issues paper 6

Reiny Iriana,

Anne Grunseit,

Christine Coumarelos,

Zhigang Wei, | 2008

Justice made to measure: NSW legal needs survey in disadvantaged areas (2006) is the report of a large-scale quantitative study of the legal needs of disadvantaged people in six local…

Disadvantage,

Legal needs,

NSW Legal Need,

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NSW Legal Needs Survey in disadvantaged areas: Fairfield, Justice issues paper 5

Anne Grunseit,

Reiny Iriana,

Christine Coumarelos,

Zhigang Wei, | 2008

Justice made to measure: NSW legal needs survey in disadvantaged areas (2006) is the report of a large-scale quantitative study of the legal needs of disadvantaged people in six local…

Disadvantage,

Legal needs,

NSW Legal Need,

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NSW Legal Needs Survey in disadvantaged areas: Campbelltown, Justice issues paper 4

Reiny Iriana,

Anne Grunseit,

Christine Coumarelos,

Zhigang Wei, | 2008

Justice made to measure: NSW legal needs survey in disadvantaged areas (2006) is the report of a large-scale quantitative study of the legal needs of disadvantaged people in six local…

Disadvantage,

Legal needs,

NSW Legal Need,

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Justice made to measure: NSW legal needs survey in disadvantaged areas: summary report

Christine Coumarelos,

Zhigang Wei,

Albert Zhou, | 2006

The appropriate provision of legal services in any jurisdiction requires a thorough understanding of the legal issues people experience, people`s responses to these issues and the outcome of these issues….

Client Groups,

Disadvantage,

Disadvantage | ATJ,

Legal needs,

NSW Legal Need,

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Justice made to measure: NSW legal needs survey in disadvantaged areas

Christine Coumarelos,

Zhigang Wei,

Albert Zhou, | 2006

Six disadvantaged areas were surveyed by telephone interviews: three suburban areas within Sydney (Campbelltown, Fairfield, South Sydney), one major provincial centre (Newcastle) and two rural/remote areas (Nambucca and Walgett)

Client Groups,

Disadvantage,

Legal needs,

NSW Legal Need,

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Legal Needs Survey Resources

Conducting legal need surveys in the Australian context: challenges and options, Justice issues paper 31

Catriona Mirrlees-Black, | 2019

Australia’s first legal needs survey, the LAW Survey, was conducted in 2008. Much has changed in the last ten years, including major population growth and a digital transformation in service…

Legal need surveys,

Legal needs surveys,

Methodology,

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