MEDIA RELEASE Monday 6 November 2023 The Aboriginal Legal Service welcomes the NSW Government’s move to de-privatise Junee Correctional Centre, urging the Government to follow through with bringing all private prisons back into public hands. “Prisons are inherently harmful and dangerous places, especially for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, who are still dying in custody,” said Karly Warner, CEO of the...

JOINT MEDIA RELEASE Monday 30 October 2023 A scathing report from the Law Enforcement Conduct Commission (LECC) says NSW Police use of the Suspect Targeting Management Plan (STMP) against young people ‘amounted to agency maladministration’ and ‘could possibly meet the threshold for serious misconduct’. It recognises the STMP policy followed by police was unreasonable, unjust, oppressive and improperly discriminatory in its effect...

MEDIA RELEASE Wednesday 25 October 2023 NSW Police must share responsibility for Closing the Gap, says the Aboriginal Legal Service in response to a new report assessing how police work with Aboriginal communities. The Aboriginal Legal Service (NSW/ACT) Limited (ALS) is concerned that it was not consulted on the new blueprint for police engagement with Aboriginal communities before its launch in August...

MEDIA RELEASE Monday 23 October 2023 The Aboriginal Legal Service (NSW/ACT) Limited (ALS) has today launched its Employment Law Service, the first specialist sexual harassment and discrimination legal service in NSW that’s for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander workers and run by an Aboriginal community-controlled organisation. The ALS Employment Law Service offers free and confidential legal support for Aboriginal and Torres Strait...

JOINT MEDIA RELEASE Monday 16 October 2023 A new way of working in child protection cases across NSW should see more families stay together, with changes to practice in care matters designed to ensure lawyers can provide early help and avoid unnecessary separation of children from their families. Legal Aid NSW, the Aboriginal Legal Service, and the Department of Communities  and Justice...

MEDIA RELEASE Thursday 12 October 2023 The NSW Government’s new drug reform legislation is a welcome step towards sensible, fair and evidence-based drug policy. Yet the proposed diversion scheme relies on police discretion, meaning Aboriginal people will continue to be disproportionately harmed by the state’s drug laws. “We all want to see smart and realistic drug laws that result in better access...

JOINT MEDIA RELEASE  Wednesday 20 September 2023  Family Is Culture Community Report Card (September 2023)  NSW Child, Family and Community Peak Aboriginal Corporation (AbSec) and the Aboriginal Legal Service (NSW/ACT) Ltd (ALS) have today launched their most recent Community Report Card evaluating the government's progress towards addressing critical deficiencies in the NSW child protection system. Continuing the disappointing trend highlighted in previous...

MEDIA RELEASE Wednesday 30 August 2023 ALS elects new Chairperson Kamilaroi and Ngunnawal man, Jason Allan has been elected as Chairperson by the Board of the Aboriginal Legal Service (NSW/ACT) Limited (ALS).Mr Allan was elected at a Board meeting held on Friday 25 August at Tweed Heads, following the resignation of former Chairperson Mark Davies. On behalf of the Board and ALS...

JOINT MEDIA RELEASE Issued in partnership with the Public Interest Advocacy Centre Tuesday 30 May 2023   The Aboriginal Legal Service (NSW/ACT) (ALS) and the Public Interest Advocacy Centre (PIAC) say the Government cannot ignore the growing crisis of the imprisonment of Aboriginal people in NSW. New figures from the NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research (BOCSAR) show the proportion of...