Health+Law has developed a national Award recognising lawyers and migration agents who provide informed and responsive services to people living with blood-borne viruses.

Award recipients are lawyers and migration agents who have been nominated by industry peers for their informed, responsive approach to the needs of people living with blood-borne viruses (BBVs). They are professionals that community members can trust.

Why the Awards exist

For people living with blood-borne viruses, finding the right legal and migration support when its needed is not always easy. And it’s not only about getting straightforward procedural expertise. It’s about being met with a specific sensitivity and awareness –an understanding of the specific legal, health and social experiences of people in these communities, and an approach to practice that ensures people feel safe and respected.

Health+Law’s large-scale, Australia-wide Legal Needs Study (LeNS) showed that:

• People living with blood-borne viruses have clear views on what makes a ‘good lawyer’ or ‘good migration agent’ – particularly when their matters are connected to or made more complex by their health condition

• Safety, respect, awareness and stigma sensitivity powerfully shape migration and legal processes – and their outcomes – including whether people feel able to reach out and seek legal support in the first instance

• Many people rely on word of mouth to find lawyers and migration agents they can trust and that have the skills and awareness to manage their issues.

Given recommendations or referrals to appropriate legal and migration supports often occur within small networks and do not circulate widely, access to BBV responsive practitioners is often patchy, particularly for people in regional and remote areas and for recently arrived migrants or people on temporary visas.

The BBV Responsive Lawyer and Migration Agent Awards respond to this service gap. They include a structured assessment process that is grounded in the specific needs of people living with blood-borne viruses, including targeted online training for professionals seeking to expand their work with people in this community. The Awards provide a national, community supported and professionally ratified approach to identifying and recognising lawyers and migration agents whose practice reflects what people living with blood-borne viruses say matters most.