Budget night … Porter can’t get the family courts legislation through the senate … Crumbs off the table for the legally aided … Lumps of money for the government’s proposed Integrity Commission … Plus follow-up money for ASIC and ARPA to get stuck into the bankers … Janek Drevikovsky reports from lock-up land 

Shadow attorney general Mark Dreyfus, who has led Labor’s opposition to the fusion of the two courts, said on Wednesday morning (April 3):

“Christian Porter has finally woken up to reality and abandoned his damaging family court bills.” 

Porter’s Federal Circuit Court and Family Court Bill does not appear for debate on today’s Senate agenda. The Senate will not sit again before the election, meaning today was the government’s last chance to pass the reform.

The news comes after reporting last night that the reforms looked “dead in the water”. Though Porter claimed he had secured the eight crossbench votes needed, Justice Party senator Derryn Hinch refused to support a motion to gag debate and allow a vote today.

Last night’s budget promised an extra $16 million to fund four new family law judges and a registrar – but only if parliament passed the reforms.

Labor’s Dreyfus said this amounted to “holding the family court system to hostage … This desperate ploy exposes Mr Porter’s project for what it has always been – purely political”. 

In other budgetary developments the government renewed funding for the community legal sector, under the national partnership arrangement which is due to run out on June 30 next year. Legal Aid, Community Legal Services and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Legal Services will get a funding boost from $350.3 million this year to $370 million from 1 July 2020. 

The extra $20 million is equivalent to the boost in funding to combat the fire ant plague. 

Several stakeholders have criticised the increase in legal air and community legal services as too miserable. Law Council of Australia president Arthur Moses said the community sector was woefully underfunded. 

“Additional funding of $20 million, while welcome, does not come close to addressing the minimum $310 million a year shortfall identified by the Law Council.” 

Nassim Arrage, CEO of the National Association of Community Legal Centres, was on board with this. He characterised the funding increase as “an important first step”, but pointed out successive reports had shown rising demand for services.

“[This] is another missed opportunity to not provide more significant funding increases in line with recommendations made by the Productivity Commission and others.” 

The funding announcement reverses proposed cuts slated to hit the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Legal Services from next year.

NACLC pointed to some spending measures: 

Moses thanked the government for this decision, but raised concerns around the new national mechanism for divvying up the funds under a “unified administrative process”.

Moses thinks the mechanism may undermine the independence of Aboriginal legal services. 

 “ATSILS provide specialised and culturally appropriate legal services for some of the most marginalised people in our community. They need to maintain independence to effectively continue their vital work.” 

Arrage agreed, adding anything that might risk the independence of ATSILS ran counter to the recommendations of a recent review.

In other budgetary announcements, $104.5 million over four years is earmarked for establishing the Commonwealth Integrity Commission.

ASIC will receive $404.8 million over four years to better regulate the financial services sector, in line with recommendations of the Banking Royal Commission. APRA will receive $145 million over four years for the same purpose.

Finally, $35.5 million will be spent to extend the Federal Court’s jurisdiction to corporate crime. This will also cover the cost of the appointment of two fresh judges to the court.