b'Supporting access to justiceAll Australians have the right to seek justice, but the realitywhen it imposed the blanket ban on prisoners voting. The is that many people are not able to access legal supportcourt ruling meant that prisoners serving less than three when they need it. Pro bono legal services provided byyears in prison retained an entitlement vote. Roach herself Allens, and many other legal firms, play an important rolewas still unable to participate but, together with Allensin securing access to justice for the most disadvantaged and the Human Rights Law Centre, she had reinstated the and vulnerable members of our community. voting rights of many prisoners. The case was particularly important for First Nations peoples who are incarcerated at The firms first known case of pro bono legal assistance wasmore than ten times the rate of the general population.in 1831, when George Allen helped a former employee who was unfairly fired upon for trespassing. The firm continuesAssisting asylum seekersto provide support across a broad range of legal causes andAllens has helped hundreds of asylum seekers gain communities. It includes helping train the next generationresidence in Australia. Among these are two Afghan of community lawyersfor the past twenty years, the firmrefugees, an adult and an unaccompanied minor, who has funded a full-time graduate position at the Fitzroy Legalarrived on Christmas Island in 2011 without visas. Under Service. What follows is a small sample of the significantthe terms of an agreement with the Malaysian Government, pro bono work undertaken by the firm. the refugees were to be transferred directly to Malaysia, which was not a party to the Refugees Convention, where Upholding the right to vote they risked being returned to Afghanistan.In 2006 the Howard government introduced significant changes to Australias voting laws through the ElectoralTo ensure the safety of the refugees, the firm worked with and Referendum Amendment (Electoral Integrity and Otherthe Refugee and Immigration Legal Centre to take the case Measures) Act 2006 (Cth). Among the changes containedto the High Court, claiming the government did not have the in the legislation was the denial of voting rights to allauthority to send them to Malaysia. Having been instructed people in prison. Previously only prisoners serving sentenceson a Sunday morning, that night the firm obtained an of more than three years were excluded from voting. At theinterim injunction from the High Court preventing the time, Indigenous woman Vickie Roach was in prison servingplanned removal of the refugees to Malaysia the next day. a six-year sentence, and she decided to challenge the constitutional validity of the new legislation.A few weeks later, after an accelerated court hearing, the court determined the arrangement with Malaysia was Working closely with the Human Rights Law Centre, Allensunlawful under the Migration Act 1958 (Cth), enabling represented Roach in a High Court of Australia challenge,the refugees to stay in Australia for processing. The firm arguing that the right to participate in the legal process,was recognised for this work, and its work on the offshore including the right to vote, is a fundamental civil libertyprocessing case the previous year, when it was (together and human right. In a landmark decision the High Courtwith counsel and the Refugee and Immigration Legal upheld the fundamental right to vote and found theCentre) awarded the Human Rights Law Award by the government had acted unlawfully and unconstitutionally 236'