Free legal advice a relief for poor

MORE than 180 000 mainly poor South Africans have received legal advice telephonically in the two years since the launch of the Legal Aid Advice Line.

According to Legal Aid Advice Line manager Andries Nthebe, legal issues that seem to keep disadvantaged and impoverished South Africans up at night range from children, family and land matters – areas of the law in which there is an increasing demand for legal aid.

From its first year, the call centre has experienced a steady growth in volume with an average of up to 60 000 calls a year.

“At the moment, we are able to service our clients more efficiently through a centralised call centre, which is open from 7am to 7pm,” Nthebe said.

“Callers who call outside these times are invited to leave a message with their telephone number so that we can call them back on the next business day.

“If demand for assistance outside normal hours should increase, we may have to enhance our services by extending our operations outside normal office hours.”

Nthebe said about 70% of calls were resolved by call centre staff while the balance was referred to justice centres and other institutions.

The call centre is manned by four qualified attorneys and 18 paralegals.

“They give advice mainly on civil issues, but also take on labour and criminal matters in five of our 11 official languages.

“The advice line has greatly impacted the lives of the poor and vulnerable,” Nthebe said.

“The fact that calls are free means that we are able to call the clients, and that has brought about a significant reduction in the cost to them. The clients save on transport costs and are able to receive legal advice over the phone.

“We also have quality assurance measures in place to ensure that our staff meet the clients’ needs.

“For instance, all our calls are mechanically recorded and management can recall previously recorded calls and also tap into real time live calls to ensure efficiency,” he said.