This information is for legal representatives to help them assist their clients in applying to the Financial Assistance Scheme (FAS), and find out how to receive payment.
If you are looking for legal advice to help you with your application please go to legal assistance.
Authorised representative
A legal representative may act as an authorised representative on behalf of the applicant.
An applicant may nominate you as their authorised representative by completing the client authorisation form:
As an authorised representative, you can act on behalf of the applicant to:
- view an application
- edit a draft application
- withdraw an application
- make decisions regarding an application
- provide documents or information in support of an application
- change details about an application
- correspond with the FAS on matters related to the applicant.
Learn more about being an authorised representative.
Access the online portal to make and edit an application.
The authorised representative has the same level of access to an application as an applicant.
An authorised representative cannot:
- make changes on an application regarding the authorised representative arrangements, unless it relates to contact information about themselves
- receive the applicant’s payment on their behalf (all payments must be made to the bank account in the name of the applicant).
Authorised representatives must agree to:
- act in the best interests of the applicant
- respect any cultural considerations that apply to the applicant
- communicate with the FAS on matters necessary to progress an application
- understand that completing the application requires time and effort on their part
- notify the FAS of any changes to the applicant’s circumstances that may impact the application
- cease acting as an authorised representative and disclose to the FAS if they are, or are likely to be, subject to criminal and/or civil family violence matter(s), including allegations, where the applicant is the affected person.
How to make someone an authorised representative
An applicant may only have one authorised representative.
To nominate or change an authorised representative who is a lawyer, applicants can complete the client authorisation form below:
To nominate a person such as a family member or friend as an authorised representative, applicants can complete the relevant nomination form available on the nominate someone to help with your FAS application page.
Receiving payment for legal services
A legal practitioner (or any other person) is not entitled to charge an applicant any legal or other costs for representing or assisting the applicant.
The FAS can however pay reasonable legal costs (or other assistance costs) to a legal practitioner or other person for assisting a victim with their application. These reasonable legal costs are in addition to the financial assistance available to victims.
For the FAS to pay legal costs, a lawyer must:
- have been listed as the victim’s authorised representative
- have a practising certificate at the time of assisting the victim with their application, and
- provide reasons in their legal costs application explaining why the application should be considered complex.
See the guidelines for more information on receiving legal costs.
Identity verification of authorised representatives and clients
As part of the FAS online application process, the authorised representative and the applicant (if aged 18 or over) will be required to verify their identities.
See Nominate someone to help with your FAS application for more information on the identity verification process.
Forms for legal professionals
Client authorisation form
Victims and their lawyers must complete this client authorisation form to nominate the lawyer as an authorised representative:
Statutory declaration templates
Authorised representatives may complete this statutory declaration template to explain the reasons why the victim has not reported the incident(s) to the police. Authorised representatives will also have the option of downloading a FAS generated statutory declaration which will include inputs based on the answers they provide in their application.
This statutory declaration template may be completed by an authorised representative in relation to any issue on which you would like to provide evidence to the FAS to support your application:
Examples include:
- to explain why you are submitting an application outside of the FAS’s time limits
- to describe the injury and explain how it was sustained as a direct result of the violent act, together with any photographs of the injuries
- to explain the nature of the violent act/incident
- to support an application for loss of earnings by providing information about past and/or current earnings (including any details about your employment conditions)
- to show that you are a close family member of a deceased primary victim
- to detail your relationship with the deceased primary victim and your reliance on their income
- to evidence clothing expenses
- to detail the clothing worn at the time of the act of violence and the cost of the clothing lost or damaged
- in relation to seeking recovery expenses, to explain your exceptional circumstances and why the recovery expense you are seeking is needed
- in relation to seeking loss of earnings, to explain your exceptional circumstances and why you require assistance for loss of earnings
- for witnesses, family members, friends, colleagues, teachers and religious or cultural leaders to explain an applicant’s delay in applying to the FAS
- for witnesses, family members, friends, colleagues, teachers and religious or cultural leaders to explain the circumstances of the violent act and the reasons for not reporting it to the police
- for family members, friends, colleagues, teachers and religious or cultural leaders to explain the relationship between a related victim and the deceased primary victim.
Templates for service providers
Templates for letters and reports from service providers such as medical and mental health professionals can be found at on the resources for service providers page.
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