Volunteer Programme information
Volunteer Recruitment
Consumer Action Law Centre is a non-profit, community organisation. Volunteers play a significant role at Consumer Action, providing valuable assistance and support to our case work solicitors and policy officers. Volunteers are generally law students and qualified lawyers.
Vacancies
Volunteers are recruited on an “as-needs” basis by the Volunteer Co-ordinator. However, we have two main intake periods in December / January and June / July of each year.
Consumer Action receives hundreds of applications regarding volunteer work each year but unfortunately we are limited in our capacity to take on volunteers. In general we can take on approximately 20 to 30 volunteers in each 6 month period. We regret that this means we are unable to take on many of the people who apply to volunteer with us. However, we are more than happy for applicants to apply more than once, for example, if someone missed out at the beginning of the year, they can apply again in the second half of the year.
Consumer Action is currently considering applications for the first half of 2010. Please follow our application process (explained below). Applications close on 30 January 2010.
Expected Commitment
Volunteers are required to commit one day a week for a period of at least 6 months. This is generally not negotiable.
Selection Criteria
Applicants should meet the following requirements:
- Law students should be in their penultimate or final year of study
- Committed to social justice and interested in the core principles of Consumer Action
- Able to commit one day a week for a period of at least 6 months
- Strong written and verbal communication skills
- Strong legal research skills
Rewards and Benefits of Volunteering
Roles and tasks undertaken by volunteers include:
- Legal and policy research
- Case summaries
- Drafting legal correspondence and court documents
- Assisting in client interviews
- Assisting on the advice line by taking instructions from callers in relation to their problem and disseminating these instructions to the advice line solicitors
- Filing and file summaries
- It is necessary for volunteers to be prepared to undertake some administrative work on occasion
The Application Process
If you would like to apply to become a volunteer at Consumer Action, please complete our Volunteer Application form and send it to info@consumeraction.org.au, along with your CV and Academic Transcript.
Applications need to be received between the 30th of November and the 30th of January and the 1st of June and 15th of July each year. While applications outside these periods may be considered in order to fill any spaces that become available unexpectedly, we cannot guarantee that you will receive a response to your application.
We endeavour to respond to all applications received during the above application periods. However, due to the large number of applications received each year and our limited resources, we cannot guarantee that a response will be provided.
Once you have submitted your application, you may be contacted for an interview with the Volunteer Co-ordinator. You can prepare for this by reading about the organisation on the website.
Enquiries
If you have any enquiries please contact our Volunteer Co-ordinator: 03 9670 5088 or by email to:info@consumeraction.org.au
FAQ
- Is there supervision and support available for volunteers?
Volunteers are provided with the opportunity to work with solicitors on a task by task basis. All our solicitors are friendly and willing to answer any questions. Before undertaking a task, volunteers are briefed by solicitors on the background and purpose of the task and what is expected of them.
- What training can I expect as a volunteer?
Initial training is provided and will cover:
- An induction to Consumer Action’s office systems and procedures and an introduction to staff.
- An induction to taking calls on Consumer Action’s advice line
- A basic introduction to consumer protection legislation and sources of information.
- We assume that volunteers already have the necessary legal research skills to undertake research on behalf of our solicitors and do not provide training in this.
What is the recruitment procedure?
Please refer to the Application Process on Consumer Action’s volunteer web page.
- Can I choose the day that I come in on a week by week basis?
- Can I get time off for exams or clerkships?
Consumer Action recognises that student’s studies come first and will accommodate any time off that you require for exams or clerkships. In return we ask that volunteers ensure that they are able to come in on their allocated day each week outside these periods.
- Can I undertake my placement for my professional legal training course through Consumer Action?
Depending on the course and its placement requirements, Consumer Action does take on students who need to undertake a practical placement period in order to obtain admission as a solicitor of the Supreme Court of Victoria.