Once investigated, if you claim is substantiated, you can apply for a write off. If you want to complain about the service you received from a legal aid lawyer, you should contact Legal Aid Complaints or the New Zealand Law Society (external link). You've received a good outcome from publicly funded representation.Ī write off isn't the right place to address a complaint about your lawyer. Some examples of reasons that don’t meet the criteria are as follows: Reason However, if you submit a write off application, we will make a decision based on everything you have provided. There are some reasons that don’t meet the criteria for a write off of legal aid debt. Reasons that don't meet the criteria for a write off You experienced mental health issues that increased the cost of the case or affected your ability to repay the debt You don't need to provide evidence as we will have a record of this on file For example, the other party caused unreasonable delays The other party increased the cost of the case. Everyone’s case is different, so you should provide your reasons and any supporting information. Other reasons (also called "just and equitable grounds")Ī “just and equitable ground” is any reason other than serious financial hardship that might justify a write off. You should include supporting information with your application, for example a bank statement from a recent month or proof of debts. Make sure you have clearly stated what your income is, and where you receive this money from. You’ll need to complete the means assessment in the application form. What supporting information do I need to provide? Examples could be if you’re currently looking for work, or you need to stop your payments for a few weeks. If you’re unable to make payments in the short term, you can contact us to discuss putting off (deferring) payments. This means you’re unable to make repayments towards your legal aid debt because it puts you in serious financial hardship over the long term. You can choose to apply under one or both of these reasons. You can apply for a write off based on serious financial hardship, or for any other reason you think should be considered (these are called “just and equitable reasons”). What grounds can you apply for a write off under? Providing all relevant supporting information for your claim will help our debt team decide as quickly as possible. We’ll notify you by sending an email or letter once we’ve made a decision. If we cannot assess your application over the phone, we will require a written application to be submitted along with supporting information by email to you can post your application to: We’re available between 8.00am and 5.00pm, Monday to Friday. In some cases, we can assess a write off application over the phone. This means the debt will be reduced, but you’ll still have to pay back a certain amount. Sometimes a partial write off will be approved. If a legal aid debt is written off in full, you won’t have to pay the remainder of that debt.
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