We offer telephone and face-to-face advice to women statewide, and work with trusted service providers in the community to meet with clients, ensuring that you can access legal support regardless of where you are in Tasmania.

In addition to our telephone or face-to-face legal information and advice, we can sometimes provide casework and legal representation in specific situations, providing support to clients with complex legal matters who otherwise would not be able to be supported.

With offices in Burnie, Hobart, and Launceston, we provide holistic assistance for women experiencing family and sexual violence.

We know that all women are different, with different needs, so we support each woman in ways that meet their individual circumstances.

Often, women impacted by family and sexual violence are dealing with a range of legal and personal issues such as family violence orders; parenting; ongoing abuse and risks to the safety of their children and themselves; housing issues; and financial difficulties. So, our social workers and financial counsellors can provide added support as our clients move through the legal process.

Our social workers provide support and advocacy for women accessing our legal support. They often work closely with our lawyers to ensure that women have the information and empowerment they need to navigate often-complex legal processes.

Our social workers also provide trauma-informed emotional support and counselling to women we are supporting, who have experienced trauma or abuse. They also advocate for women within the social and legal systems to ensure their rights are protected, their voices are heard, and their needs are met.

Our financial counsellors help women we are supporting in legal matters, to manage their financial situations. This supports them to achieve financial independence. Our financial counsellors provide information and resources to help women understand budgeting, debt management, credit and financial planning.

They conduct assessments of a financial situation to identify areas of concern or that may need assistance, and advocate for clients in financial matters such as communicating with creditors or financial institutions on their behalf.

Financial Literacy

Our financial literacy officer provides workshops and information sessions in the community, including schools, to build financial knowledge, capacity and independence.

Rule of Thumb

It’s hard to fix something we don’t really understand. Rule of Thumb helps us better understand issues like family violence, separation and sexual harassment. Host Penny Terry takes you into the offices of lawyers, researchers and support services, as well as the homes of people who have lived through it, to discuss these and many more matters in an engaging and informative way.

As well as advocating for the rights and needs of individual clients, we are a vocal advocate for women’s rights at local, state, and national levels.

We are an active member of Women’s Legal Services Australia (WLSA), and contribute to national committees, including those established by WLSA.

We lead awareness and advocacy on issues affecting women, such as family violence, gender inequality, gaps in service delivery, sexual harassment, child support, system and law reform. Through our advocacy work, we aim to develop more informed, engaged and helpful supports for women experiencing family and sexual violence.

We understand that it may not be safe for you to call us. We also understand the time and travel difficulties for women living in regional areas to get to an appointment in a major population centre.

We have lawyers travelling the state who can meet with you at locations much closer to home. If is safe to do so, you can phone us on 1800 682 486 to book an appointment, or see our map to find an area near you where we provide outreach services so you can meet face-to-face with one of our lawyers without the need for a phone call.