Legal Aid Provider Certificate of Standing
The Law Society and the Ministry of Justice have agreed on a process for handling late applications for certificates of standing.
If you have not applied for a legal aid provider certificate of standing you should apply immediately.
The Law Society has received nearly 2000 applications for certificates and has processed approximately 1800 applications already.
The Ministry of Justice has sent the email below to all legal aid providers, which outlines the arrangement.
If you have not received your legal aid provider certificate from the Law Society by 16 December 2011 you should submit your application to the Ministry of Justice without your certificate.
Legal Aid Provider Certificate of Standing from the New Zealand Law Society
By now the majority of legal aid providers, who want to continue as providers after 31 December 2011, will have applied to the New Zealand Law Society (NZLS) for a Legal Aid Provider Certificate of Standing (CoS). If you haven't yet done this, the application form is here.
A certified copy of your CoS is required as part of your application to be approved to provide legal aid services. Due to the number of applications, and the work involved in issuing a CoS, it is currently taking the NZLS about 4 weeks to issue a CoS. Although the NZLS is working to reduce the lead time there is a risk that some applicants will not be able to submit a complete application before 31 December 2011 (end of the transitional approval period) because they have not received their CoS.
To avoid this risk the Ministry will provisionally accept an application without a CoS up to 31 December 2011, as long as the application is complete in all other respects. We will obtain, from the NZLS, a list of CoS applicants as at 31 December 2011. As long as you have applied for a CoS by 31 December 2011 we will continue to hold your provisionally accepted application up to the end of January 2012 to enable you to provide your CoS to complete your application. While we are awaiting your CoS your transitional approval will continue.
If you have not applied for a CoS by 31 December 2011, or we do not receive your CoS by the end of January 2012, your application will be returned as incomplete and your transitional approval will end.
This accommodation is in addition to the arrangements we have made for Canterbury lawyers who cannot access case files and records due to earthquake damage.
If you have received a CoS, but have not yet submitted your application, please remember that the certificate is valid for 3 months only; the certificate must be received by the Ministry within three months of the date on which it was issued.
If you have any questions about the application process or any other aspects of this communication, please contact Provider and Community Contracts on 04 9188800 or email legalaidprovider@justice.govt.nz.
Yours sincerely
Alison Hill
Director Provider and Community Contracts
Ministry of Justice | Tahu o te Ture
Phone +64 4 918 8800
Level 3 The Vogel Centre | 19 Aitken Street
Wellington 6011 | DX SX10125
legalaidprovider@justice.govt.nz | www.justice.govt.nz