Legal help
Free community help is available if you need legal assistance or advice.
Community Law
Community Law Centres across New Zealand provide free legal information, advice and representation for people who cannot afford a lawyer.
Legal issues they can help with include:
Money trouble (Work and Income, credit and debt, fines and court fines, problems with goods and services)
Tenancy and housing issues
Employment problems
Māori land
Issues for young people (family matters, problems at school, youth justice)
Health-related matters (ACC, health and disability, mental health)
Legal issues for community organisations (legal entities, leases, employment matters)
Human, civil and privacy rights
Family matters (caring for children, Oranga Tamariki)
Domestic violence and other forms of violence
Criminal matters
Find out if you can get free legal help from Community Law
Citizens Advice Bureau
Citizens Advice Bureau (CAB) provide free, confidential, independent information and advice to anyone. They help people know what their rights are and how to access services they need.
Get help from Citizens Advice Bureau
Youth Law
Youth Law provides free legal services to anyone aged under 25 who is unable to access legal help elsewhere, or those acting on their behalf.
Services Youth Law provides include:
legal advice via their 0800 UTHLAW (884 529) advice line or website contact form
legal information on their website and in other resources
education sessions for young people and people who work with them.
Depending on the issue, Youth Law may be able to provide further assistance, such as helping you complain or write a letter, or representing you at a hearing or in court. However, due to limited resources, they cannot guarantee this kind of further assistance and may refer you to Community Law.