Civil Law Legal Aid Scheme

What is the CLLAS

The Civil Law Legal Aid Scheme (CLLAS) is an outlays-only scheme helping financially disadvantaged people get access to justice for civil law claims where Legal Aid Queensland doesn’t give grants of aid.

The CLLAS is administered by the Queensland Public Trustee and Legal Aid Queensland. The scheme operates under its own funding guidelines(PDF, 808KB) separate to Legal Aid Queensland’s grants of aid.

People accessing the CLLAS must have a private lawyer acting for them who is on the CLLAS panel of lawyers. If you don’t have a lawyer, we can refer you to a lawyer on our panel.

CLLAS funding guidelines

CLLAS funding is only available if:

• your claim has reasonable prospects of success
• your claim meets the CLLAS funding guidelines
• you agree to refund the CLLAS if your claim is successful
• you agree to follow the CLLAS grant of aid conditions
• you’re represented by a legal practice on the CLLAS panel of lawyers
• the legal practice has agreed to act on a ‘no win, no fee’ basis
• you’re not eligible for a grant of legal aid available under Legal Aid Queensland’s eligibility criteria
• your civil law claim will be dealt with under Queensland laws and in a Queensland court or tribunal
• your claim is likely to exceed $50,000
• funding approval aligns with the CLLAS’s financial sustainability.

What outlays are funded by the CLLAS

The CLLAS funds outlays like expert and medical reports, court filing fees and fees to copy documents.

CLLAS grants of aid are not available for:

• lawyer’s professional fees
• barrister’s fees.

Refunding outlays paid by the CLLAS

Funding provided by the CLLAS isn't free.

If your claim is wholly or partly successful and you receive money and/or property, you must refund the CLLAS for all outlays paid on your behalf.

You will also have to pay your lawyer's fees.

To get the grant of aid you must agree to refund CLLAS outlays paid on your behalf. If your CLLAS application is approved, you must sign a Client agreement and acknowledgement(PDF, 254KB), agreeing to refund any outlays paid on your behalf if the claim is successful or partly successful.

You do not have to refund the CLLAS if your claim is unsuccessful.

What cases does the CLLAS fund?

The CLLAS funds:

• motor vehicle personal injury claims
• professional negligence claims
• personal injury claims - health care, medical negligence
• personal injury claims - non-health care (including public/occupier liability, work-related common law claims, nervous shock/psychological injury)
• wrongful death/dependency claims
• public interest test cases
• other civil law claims or actions considered reasonable by Legal Aid Queensland and Queensland Public Trustee.

Priority is given to matters involving children or matters where you will lose your home or livelihood if you don’t take legal action. The scheme can also help with public interest and ‘test’ cases, where other people would benefit in the future from your case going before a court.

What cases doesn't the CLLAS fund?

The CLLAS doesn't fund:

• environment development disputes
• total and permanent disability claims
• motor vehicle property damage claims
• wills, estates, family provision
• property dispute claims
• class actions
• family/de facto property disputes
• WorkCover statutory claims
• claims under Commonwealth law
• other civil law claims determined by Legal Aid Queensland and the Queensland Public Trustee as not eligible.

Getting legal advice

You should get legal advice before applying to the CLLAS. It's important to get legal advice as soon as possible as there are laws that set strict time limits.

Some private legal practices may give free initial consultations, but you should check this when you make an appointment. Legal Aid Queensland lawyers don't give legal advice or represent clients in personal injury claims or other CLLAS funded claims.

Getting legal advice from a lawyer will help you understand your legal rights and verify the claim’s prospects of success to help you decide whether it’s financially worthwhile to go ahead.

The CLLAS has a panel of private legal practices approved to do CLLAS work. These approved legal practices have agreed to act on a ‘no win, no fee’ (speculative) basis in line with the scheme’s guidelines. These approved legal practices do not have to represent clients and will only do so if they consider the claim meets their requirements.

If you need financial help to cover the cost of outlays and to find a lawyer, the CLLAS team can refer you to an approved legal practice.

Call 1300 65 11 88 for more information or read Civil Law Legal Aid Scheme: a client’s guide or Civil Law Legal Aid’s Scheme: a lawyer’s guide.

Submitting a CLLAS application

After getting legal advice and finding an approved legal practice who has agreed to represent you on a ‘no win, no fee’ (speculative) basis, you can ask your lawyer to help you apply to the CLLAS for a grant of aid.

You'll need to complete a CLLAS application form(PDF, 1MB) and verify your income (for example, give a copy of your Centrelink income statement or payslips and current bank statements).

Your lawyer will submit your application to the CLLAS with a completed CLLAS checklist(PDF, 217KB) or letter with details about your claim, supporting documentation and a budget for outlays needed to prepare your claim for settlement negotiations.

You can submit your application by:

• emailing it to cllas@legalaid.qld.gov.au (preferred)
• posting it to

Civil Law Legal Aid Scheme Coordinator
Legal Aid Queensland
GPO Box 2449 Brisbane Qld 4001

Assessing an application

The criteria we use to decide if you are eligible for a CLLAS grant of aid are:

• funding guidelines
• means test
• merits test
• the scheme’s financial sustainability.

CLLAS means test

The scheme applies Legal Aid Queensland’s means test guidelines except for the ‘equity in the home’ criteria.

CLLAS applicants may have equity in their home of up to $320,000.

For more information about our financial eligibility requirements, read Can I get legal aid?

CLLAS merits test

Under the merits test we look at:

• whether the claim or action is likely to succeed
• whether the scheme is likely to recover the approved outlays
• whether a prudent self-funding litigant would spend their own money on the claim
• the appropriateness of spending limited public funds balanced with the scheme’s financial sustainability
• costs likely to be incurred by the CLLAS
• any benefit an applicant may get if a grant of aid is approved
• any detriment an applicant may suffer if aid is refused
• whether the expected amount for the claim is more than $50,000.

What legal costs are not funded by the CLLAS?

The CLLAS doesn’t cover:

• your lawyer’s professional fees – if your claim isn't successful, you won't have to pay your lawyer's fees or refund the CLLAS
• barrister’s fees
• court ordered legal costs.

If your lawyer can't negotiate a settlement, your claim may have to go before a court or tribunal.

You should keep in mind the court could award costs against you if your claim is unsuccessful. This means you may have to pay the other party’s legal costs, and these can't be claimed from the CLLAS, Legal Aid Queensland or the Queensland Public Trustee.

Before you go ahead with your claim, you should talk to your lawyer about the possibility of having to pay the other party’s legal costs.

Last updated 21 August 2026