Reconceptualising Indigenous access to justice in civil law

The project aims to research enhanced Indigenous access to justice in civil and family law, specifically in areas of housing, discrimination, social security, consumer matters, credit and debt and child protection. The research will identify and examine Indigenous understandings of access to justice and the ways that these may differ from non-Indigenous society. The research is centred on 24 male and female focus groups in Indigenous communities, and stakeholder interviews in a range of geographic contexts across Australia. It will investigate Indigenous-specific frameworks that most appropriately reflect Indigenous perspectives of access to justice, and the way that these can be applied in certain civil and family law contexts.