We can help with the design of an advocacy service to represent people engaged in the dispute resolution process. Talk to us about whether this could be the right approach for you and how this could be incorporated into the design of your resolution scheme.
Advocacy Service
Sometimes people cannot resolve disputes themselves or feel that the other side is advantaged due to their familiarity with a subject area or a dispute. In these circumstances, access to representation can become a barrier to accessing justice through a resolution scheme.
An advocacy service is something for your organisation to consider incorporating into any resolution scheme.
An advocate is a person who represents another person's interests, and an advocacy service helps people by providing independent advocates.
Advocates can be lawyers or people who have the necessary training and experience to represent others in consensus-based and adjudication processes.
An advocacy service differs from a peer-support service and a navigation service because the advocacy service provides "representation" for people. There is some crossover as a navigation service can help people obtain information and understand the issues, but advocacy goes further as advocates become actively involved and make submissions, particularly in an adjudication process.
Functions of an advocacy service
The core function of an advocacy service is to provide representation to people in dispute resolution processes to overcome the barrier that lack of access to representation provides.
Secondary functions of an advocacy service include connecting with the sector, providing an interface with navigation and peer support services and participating in initiatives to identify and address systemic issues for example barriers accessing expert evidence or barriers accessing law.
Is an advocacy service right for your scheme?
Sometimes an advocacy service will help improve access to a dispute resolution scheme. Another option is that this function is developed externally with an existing organisation (for example a community law centre). Get in touch with us to discuss whether an advocacy service is right for your dispute resolution scheme.
