Legal Aid WA Family Law: Free Help for Grandparent Carers

Private family lawyers in Perth charge $300 to $600 an hour. If you're a grandparent on the Age Pension who's suddenly raising a grandchild, that's not a realistic option. Legal Aid Western Australia exists for exactly this situation.

What Legal Aid WA Covers

Legal Aid WA provides free legal advice, duty lawyer services, and in some cases full court representation for people who meet their income and asset criteria. For grandparent carers, the relevant areas are:

• Parenting orders through the Family Court of WA — if you need formal legal responsibility for the child
• Children's Court matters — if the Department of Communities is involved or you're seeking a Special Guardianship Order
• Family violence protection orders — if you need to protect the child from a parent

Their Infoline (1300 650 579) is the starting point. You can get a one-off legal advice session over the phone, and they'll assess whether you qualify for ongoing representation.

What Legal Aid Doesn't Do

Legal Aid doesn't help with Centrelink claims, the Grandcarers Support Scheme application, or routine administrative paperwork. Those are handled by Centrelink's Grandparent, Foster and Kinship Carer Advisers (1800 245 965) and Wanslea's Grandcare line (1800 794 909).

The boundary is clear: Legal Aid deals with courts and legal orders; Centrelink and Wanslea deal with payments and grants.

Aboriginal Legal Service of WA

Indigenous kinship carers have a dedicated service — the Aboriginal Legal Service of WA (ALSWA) on 1800 019 900. ALSWA provides culturally secure legal assistance in family law and child protection matters across Perth and regional WA.

If you're an Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander grandparent, ALSWA should be your first call. They understand the specific dynamics of kinship care in Indigenous communities and can represent you in both the Family Court and Children's Court.

When You Actually Need a Lawyer

Not every kinship care situation needs legal involvement. If you're caring for a grandchild informally and the biological parents aren't contesting your care, you can manage school enrolment, medical consent, and Centrelink claims using statutory declarations and the informal care evidence process.

You need legal help when:

• A parent is actively trying to remove the child from your care
• You need legal advice about travel permissions because a parent will not consent to interstate or overseas travel
• The Department of Communities has become involved
• You're seeking a Special Guardianship Order
• There are family violence concerns requiring a protection order

For everything else — the payments, the school paperwork, the Centrelink process — the WA Kinship Carer Support Guide walks you through it without needing a lawyer.

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