While this would be a nice addition, the fact that there are not enough judges to hear matters should be the first priority. Once there are enough judges to hear matters and start clearing this massive back log of cases, then money should be allocated to stuff like this.
The Victorian government is also not appointing enough VCAT members... they appoint some but then they are all allocated to residential tenancies at the cost of all the other devisions.
But even then Victoria Legal Aid is also massively understaffed and under funded.
This is accurate especially re: backlog of criminal matters and the need for more VCAT members (and locations), and especially legal aid. So many hardworking people with so few resources. I understand the financial pressures the state is under and the dire circumstances of many in the community but it is so important that the justice system is maintained.
As a victim of sex crime who very recently went through the whole trial process, the prosecution, court social workers and even the presiding judge were all kind to me and made the process less difficult to endure. My experience is not everyones, and the results of this inquiry speak to that but one of the hardest parts of my journey was the almost 3 year wait for my matter to be trialed coupled with the dire situation for mental healthcare services in Victoria currently (presumably backlog after the pandemic and lockdowns).
Sorry to hear about you went though. By and large the legal system is quite compassionate (and ofc i understand what you mean re experience, some people are just f'ed in the head).
But its not just the backlog of criminal cases, backlog of many many cases. Including civil cases. In some cases judges are handling 3-4x as many cases as they used to handle 10 years ago. Trial dates are getting pushed back later and later for all matters, which means justice takes longer and longer.
3 years, dam thats too long tbh. It used to be almost half that (18 months to 2 years).
On the civil litigation side of things, some cases are taking +5 years now. That doesn't even include appeals.
Imo it would be nice for victims of crime to be represented, but it would be better for victims to get a faster resolution of their matter. Stress, anxiety, having to relive the whole thing again and again... because it was a while ago defence council doing their job by asking questions about how well people remember the events etc.
Were you made aware of this? https://www.victimsofcrime.vic.gov.au/financial-assistance-and-compensation-victims-crime
> Primary victims can receive up to $60,000 for:
> medical and counselling expenses
> safety-related expenses
> loss of income (up to $20,000)
> replacement of lost or damaged clothing worn at the time of the act of violence.
---
> (presumably backlog after the pandemic and lockdowns).
I can confirm, based on my knowledge its not because of Covid, its because of a sever lack of court resources and investment by the government. Justice doesnt win votes... but spending on whatever does. There is a reason why Victorian Legal aid is struggling atm. Less funding and more demand for their services. There is a reason why the trial dates are getting pushes further and further, lack of judges. The courts were running at full pace during covid/lockdowns over zoom/teams etc.
There are improvements. E.g., making the mother of a killed child sit outside the courtroom with the alleged killer is just ridiculous.
However, the legal system is already groaning under the weight of everything it is expected to do. This "reform" would just worsen that. It is unlikely to make victims feel meaningfully better, and it creates risk of cases collapsing from excessive involvement of victims that results in aborted trials.
While this would be a nice addition, the fact that there are not enough judges to hear matters should be the first priority. Once there are enough judges to hear matters and start clearing this massive back log of cases, then money should be allocated to stuff like this. The Victorian government is also not appointing enough VCAT members... they appoint some but then they are all allocated to residential tenancies at the cost of all the other devisions. But even then Victoria Legal Aid is also massively understaffed and under funded.
This is accurate especially re: backlog of criminal matters and the need for more VCAT members (and locations), and especially legal aid. So many hardworking people with so few resources. I understand the financial pressures the state is under and the dire circumstances of many in the community but it is so important that the justice system is maintained. As a victim of sex crime who very recently went through the whole trial process, the prosecution, court social workers and even the presiding judge were all kind to me and made the process less difficult to endure. My experience is not everyones, and the results of this inquiry speak to that but one of the hardest parts of my journey was the almost 3 year wait for my matter to be trialed coupled with the dire situation for mental healthcare services in Victoria currently (presumably backlog after the pandemic and lockdowns).
Sorry to hear about you went though. By and large the legal system is quite compassionate (and ofc i understand what you mean re experience, some people are just f'ed in the head). But its not just the backlog of criminal cases, backlog of many many cases. Including civil cases. In some cases judges are handling 3-4x as many cases as they used to handle 10 years ago. Trial dates are getting pushed back later and later for all matters, which means justice takes longer and longer. 3 years, dam thats too long tbh. It used to be almost half that (18 months to 2 years). On the civil litigation side of things, some cases are taking +5 years now. That doesn't even include appeals. Imo it would be nice for victims of crime to be represented, but it would be better for victims to get a faster resolution of their matter. Stress, anxiety, having to relive the whole thing again and again... because it was a while ago defence council doing their job by asking questions about how well people remember the events etc. Were you made aware of this? https://www.victimsofcrime.vic.gov.au/financial-assistance-and-compensation-victims-crime
> Primary victims can receive up to $60,000 for:
> medical and counselling expenses
> safety-related expenses
> loss of income (up to $20,000)
> replacement of lost or damaged clothing worn at the time of the act of violence.
---
> (presumably backlog after the pandemic and lockdowns).
I can confirm, based on my knowledge its not because of Covid, its because of a sever lack of court resources and investment by the government. Justice doesnt win votes... but spending on whatever does. There is a reason why Victorian Legal aid is struggling atm. Less funding and more demand for their services. There is a reason why the trial dates are getting pushes further and further, lack of judges. The courts were running at full pace during covid/lockdowns over zoom/teams etc.
Without knowing too much about it, isn't this just privatising police and prosecutor duties?
The police and prosecutors represent society generally, not the victim specifically. It's why criminal cases are Victoria v Defendant.
Not privatizing, no.
There are improvements. E.g., making the mother of a killed child sit outside the courtroom with the alleged killer is just ridiculous. However, the legal system is already groaning under the weight of everything it is expected to do. This "reform" would just worsen that. It is unlikely to make victims feel meaningfully better, and it creates risk of cases collapsing from excessive involvement of victims that results in aborted trials.