Legal advice centres open

Press, Volume CXV, Issue 34000, 14 November 1975, Page 18

Legal advice centres open

Two extensions to the legal advice scheme are being made by the Canterbury District Law Society.

A prison legal advice centre opened at the Paparua Prison on Tuesday and a centre will begin at Hoon Hay. at the Rowley Avenue Kindergarten, next Tuesday. The Hoon Hay centre will be opened each Tuesday, from 7.30 p.m. to 9 p.m., and will operate in the same way as those at Aranui, Bishopdale, Sydenham, Hornby, and the Citizens’ Advice Bureau in Gloucester Street. The Hoon Hay centre has arisen as a result of discussions which the Canterbury Law Society has had with the Hoon Hay Area Action Committee. The new centre at Paparua Prison will be held each fortnight, on a Tuesday, between 6 p.m. and 9 p.m. Qualified socilitors will man this centre on a voluntary basis. They will deal only with civil and domestic matters of an urgent nature. The service will not cover criminal or internal discipline matters. The Christchurch Crown solicitor (Mr N. W. Williamson) said last evening that 16 prisoners had taken advantage of the new service when , it opened on Tuesday and it

was clear that the problems raised were ones which demanded some urgent attention.

“Apart from the necessity I of assisting persons to obtain prompt and adequate legal advice, the Law Society also ' feels that such a scheme will be of benefit in the eventual

rehabilitation of prisoners since it tends to iron out problems which they have and which are left to fester while they are in prison unless some active steps are taken,” Mr Williamson said.