About Women's Legal Service WA

Women’s Legal Service WA is an accredited and specialist gender-specific community legal centre, providing trauma-informed services to women around Western Australia who are financially disadvantaged, prioritising assisting women who have or are experiencing family violence.

In addition to poverty and family violence, WLSWA clients live with multiple vulnerabilities and complex unmet social and legal needs that creates additional barriers to accessing justice.

WLSWA practice areas include family law, child protection and care matters, family, domestic and sexual violence and criminal injuries compensation. The specialised legal services provided by WLSWA ensure that clients access a single legal service, that is responsive to their different legal needs. Assistance is tailored to ensure continuity in support and mitigate re-traumatising clients with a high complexity of legal and social issues.

WLSWA aims to empower WA women to make informed legal choices and participate fully in legal processes that greatly impact on their lives and the lives of their children.

WLSWA also promotes and advocates for women’s human rights to be upheld and fosters legal and social change through a range of strategic activities, including community legal education and policy reform.

WLSWA provides socio-legal assistance to women in collaboration with our sector partners.

About the role

We are looking for lawyers who share our passion for women’s education and empowerment within the legal system.

There are several positions currently vacant in different program areas, as detailed below.

Whilst these positions are full-time, there is also provision to configure part-time arrangements between successful applicants.

1. Women's Legal Service WA

WLSWA lawyers provide information, advice, referral, advocacy, community legal education and court representation to women in Western Australia in need of legal support and who meet WLSWA eligibility criteria. The gender-specific and trauma informed casework includes all areas of our service – family law (children’s issues), protection and care matters, family and domestic violence and criminal injuries compensation.

2. Sexual Assault Legal Service WA

The Sexual Assault Legal Service WA pilot is a partnership between Women’s Legal Service WA, Aboriginal Family Legal Services and Ruah Legal Services, all specialist community legal services. SALSWA delivers state-wide, integrated, culturally appropriate and trauma-informed socio-legal assistance to victims-survivors in Western Australia.

The aim of SALSWA is for clients to understand their legal rights, make informed decisions, have better engagement with the justice system, and have improved justice outcomes. Services will be provided from as early and close to the place of disclosure as possible and tailored to meet the unique needs of each client and include legal and community services. Wherever possible, assistance will be ongoing. Services will be targeted at known points of victim-survivor disengagement or departure from the system.

The SALSWA lawyer is a member of the SALSWA team who will deliver socio-legal assistance to women eligible for the pilot service, which will be overseen by the Management Group, comprising Executive members of each of the partner agencies.

This position is funded to 30 June 2026, with potential extension.

About the candidateS

The successful applicants will have considerable legal experience across family and domestic violence and protection and care in particular, as well as other areas of practice relevant to women’s human rights.

The appointed applicant will be highly professional, combining legal experience with demonstrated empathy and understanding. They will value effective teamwork. They will be able to work under pressure, multi task and be flexible in approaches. 

Taking initiative, problem solving and a ‘can do, will do’ attitude will ensure the position holder is empowered to work autonomously.

Unrestricted lawyers committed to working to ensure best outcomes for women in the legal system are encouraged to apply. We will also consider expressions of interest from exceptional restricted legal practitioners.

Above all they will be passionate about advancing the interests of women, reducing gender inequality, and empowering women through the provision of excellent services to know and understand their legal rights.

The successful applicants will require a recent Police Clearance (within the last 6 months).

Conditions

In addition to the opportunity to join a great team, WLSWA offers flexible working arrangements, employee assistance program, targeted professional development, opportunity to salary sacrifice, and additional paid leave between Christmas and New Year.

We strongly encourage applications from people from diverse backgrounds including Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander, culturally and / or linguistically diverse backgrounds.

Please indicate on your application whether you wish to be considered for one or both of the roles available.

For a confidential discussion about the positions

For the WLSWA Lawyer position, please contact Acting PLO Marnie Williams at [email protected] using the subject line: WLSWA Lawyer enquiry via EthicalJobs, or 0457 494 198.

For the SALSWA Lawyer position, please contact Senior Lawyer Olivia Tan at [email protected] using the subject line: SALSWA Lawyer enquiry via EthicalJobs, or 0400 679 542.

A position description is attached.