Our Consumer Panel is one way we’re trying to gain a better understanding of what our community needs and expects from the legal profession and from us as its regulator.
Established in March 2020, and the first of its kind in Australia, Panel members bring a wealth of knowledge of consumer research, customer and disability advocacy, consumer policy and regulation and change management.
Panel’s achievements
In its first term, the Panel’s achievements include:
- Developing a framework to understand legal services from the perspective of the Consumer Principles: Access, Choice, Information, Quality, Safety, Fairness, Representation and Redress. This framework helps shape our policy and practice.
- Commissioning a Rapid Review into Consumer Experience of Legal Services, which informs ongoing research and initiatives.
- Advising on and supervising on major research projects:
- a deep dive into a group of costs complaints, in order to understand the root causes of costs dissatisfaction and
- commissioning research from the Victoria Law Foundation into lawyers’ pricing, scoping and matter management practices.
Both pieces of research will help us develop tools for better engagement for both lawyers and consumers
- Developing a framework to help us better understand consumer vulnerability and to regulate in such a way as to address areas of particular harm
- Consulting and advising on various strategic projects in the VLSB+C.
In its second term (commencing in January 2023), the Panel continues to bring insight and original research to the VLSB+C to help us regulate in a more consumer-centric way. A highlight of the Panel’s upcoming work program includes the development of a Consumer Experience Tracker Survey. This will help us, consumers, the profession, government and other stakeholders to understand in greater depth the way consumers choose, use and experience legal services and to track the impact of particular trends and initiatives. The information will also provide valuable market intelligence to lawyers seeking to develop new kinds of services and improve the consumer experience of law.
Please note that the Consumer Panel does not have any involvement with particular complaints or cases managed by our office, but rather focuses on policy and research.