Access to Legal Help and Education
Victorian Law Week will provide residents with access to more than 100 free and low-cost events from 18th to 24th May 2026. These activities offer practical help on common legal issues such as renting, work, family, money, and purchasing goods and services.
Community organisations, legal services, and government agencies organize these events to make legal knowledge accessible to those without a legal background. This year’s theme, ‘Where law meets life’, highlights the intersection of legal issues with everyday experiences.
Victoria Law Foundation Executive Director Lynne Haultain said, “Law usually meets life in the everyday. It could be a dodgy purchase, a bond dispute or unpaid wages. Victorian Law Week is about giving people clear, reliable information and a way to find the right help, without the jargon.”
Event Highlights and Participation
Attendees can participate in sessions on obtaining legal help with issues such as housing and work. Participants gain practical guidance on rights and responsibilities, opportunities to ask questions, hear from experts, and learn about the justice system.
Highlighted events include ‘From Community to Jury Box’, where attendees can explore how juries work, and a guided tour of the Neighbourhood Justice Centre, the only community justice centre in Australia. Other sessions cover topics such as making complaints, resolving tenancy disputes, and understanding coronial investigations.
The session ‘The Gentle Art of Making a Complaint’ explains the role of ombudsmen and how they accept, investigate, and resolve complaints. Another important session, ‘Resolving Residential Tenancy Disputes’, demonstrates Victoria’s new approach to these disputes.
For those interested in family law, ‘Separation and Family Law: What You Need to Know’ provides insights into family dispute resolution and available legal support. ‘Protest & Police: Know Your Rights in Victoria’ focuses on legal rights concerning protests and recent law changes.
The event ‘Legal Name and Sex Marker Change 101’ offers guidance on changing legal name and sex marker in Victoria to affirm gender identity. ‘Preventing Future Deaths: Inside the Coronial System’ provides insights into how coronial investigations and forensic medicine work together to investigate deaths.
Victorian Law Week is managed by the Victoria Law Foundation. For a full list of events and to register, visit viclawweek.org.au/program. Events can be searched by topic, location, date, or format.
Last updated: 5 May 2026, 12:06 pm
