Ruah Legal Services and Mental Health Law Centre

26/01/2026

Today, we acknowledge 26 January as a Day of Mourning for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples - not a celebration.

For many, this date marks the beginning of profound loss following 1788 and the Frontier Wars that followed. While Australia Day has only been a national public holiday since 1994, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples have recognised 26 January as a Day of Mourning for generations.

Today is not about division, but deeper understanding. Ruah Legal Services and Mental Health Law Centre stands in solidarity with the world’s oldest continuing cultures and invites everyone to pause, reflect, and listen to the full story of this country as we move toward a more inclusive national day.

CHANGE YOUR UNDERSTANDING
CHANGE YOUR HEART
CHANGE THE DATE

🖤💛❤️

20/01/2026

Ruah Legal Services and Mental Health Law Centre is pleased to support Social Reinvestment WA’s submission to the National Inquiry into Australia’s Youth Justice and Incarceration System.

We recognise the urgent need for reform in Western Australia, including:

⚖️ Enforceable national youth justice standards
National standards must be enforceable and consistent with Australia’s international human rights obligations.

📊 Better measures of youth justice outcomes
Governments must move beyond a narrow financial and compliance lens and develop meaningful measures of success, including access to diversionary program and their effectiveness.

🧠 Timely access to mental health assessment and treatment
The Coronial Inquest into the death of Cleveland Dodd exposed critical gaps in access to mental health services for children in detention, particularly when young people are held in facilities not designed for children. Children and young people must have access to appropriate mental health care and court-related assessments, including fitness to stand trial. In WA, current wait times for fitness assessments exceed 20 weeks—leaving young people in detention undiagnosed, untreated, and unable to progress their legal matters.

We support the 19 recommendations made by Social Reinvestment WA and call on the State and Federal governments to create a clear reform agenda and uphold the rights of children in the justice system.

23/12/2025

📌 HOLIDAY CLOSURE NOTICE

RLS will be closed from Wednesday 24 December 2025 and will reopen on Monday 5 January 2026.

🤍 We know this time of year can be difficult for many. If you need support, help is available:

☎️ Mental Health Emergency Response Line (MHERL)
1300 555 788
This service offers 24-hour support for people in the Perth metropolitan area experiencing a mental health crisis.

☎️ Lifeline
13 11 14
This service offers 24-hour support for people experiencing emotional distress, including crisis support, su***de prevention, mental health, and domestic and family violence support.

🌿 We wish everyone a safe and restorative break and look forward to continuing our work in 2026.

22/12/2025

Last week the Coroner made recommendations to immediately close Unit 18 following the release of the devastating findings that 16-year-old Yamatji boy, Cleveland Dodd, died while in the care of the CEO of the Department of Justice, and that his death was foreseeable.

As we approach the holiday period our hearts are with children in Unit 18, a maximum-security adult prison.

We call on Minister Papalia, Premier Cook and the WA Labor Government to close Unit 18, fully implement the Coroner’s recommendations, invest in diversion, prevention and Aboriginal-led supports, and uphold accountability, integrity and justice for Cleveland’s family.

We encourage you to sign Social Reinvestment WA's Open Letter to Premier Cook calling for urgent change.

Thank you for your continued support to create a better youth justice system in WA. As you will know, experts and advocates have been working to improve the poor conditions in youth detention this year, but in October 2023, we tragically saw the first death of a child in detention. The next step is....

10/12/2025

WARNING: This story discusses incidents of self-harm and contains the name and image of an Aboriginal person who has died.

Ruah Legal Services and Mental Health Law Centre urge the state government to act on Coroner Philip Urquhart’s recommendation to immediately close Unit 18 following the release of the devastating findings about the death of Cleveland Dodd. This cannot wait until 2028.

Cleveland was on remand in Unit 18 when he self-harmed, dying one week later. Inquest documents show that he was confined for 22 hours a day in his cell for 74 out of the 86 days he was held in Unit 18. He had no access to running water, sunlight or fresh air. Cleveland was a Yamatji boy, just 16 years old at the time.

Coroner Urquhart found that Cleveland’s death was caused while he was a person held in care of the CEO of the Department of Justice. It was revealed that the death of Cleveland was predictable. Unit 18 was never able to provide Cleveland the support he needed.

We echo the calls of Aboriginal Legal Service of WA CEO Wayne Nannup, to immediately invest in genuine alternatives that meet the needs of children.

“The death of Master Dodd must be the catalyst for real change. The status quo - keeping Unit 18 open, building more and more detention centres, doubling down on tough on crime approaches and demonising young people, their families and their communities for juvenile crime – cannot continue. It might get votes, but will never shift the dial”.

“The evidence is staring government in the face if it cares to look at it. Investing in diversion and prevention programs to stop juvenile offending and reduce re offending gets results. It is only through investing and helping young people in the justice system, rather than torturing them to death, that meaningful change which makes communities safer, will come about.”

We call on Minister Papalia, Premier Cook and the WA Labor Government to close Unit 18, implement the Coroner’s recommendations, invest in diversion, prevention and Aboriginal led supports, and ensure accountability, integrity and justice for Cleveland’s family.
This must never happen again.

Leaders in Western Australia are urging the state government to act on Coroner Philip Urquhart's call to immediately close the notorious Unit 18, following the release of his findings into the death o...

09/12/2025

📣 RLS regional travel to expand access to legal services under the Mental Health Act continues – the last trip of 2025!

📍 Menang Noongar Country | Great Southern Region

Our lawyers, Elle de Koning and Heidi Rees travelled to Albany last week to deliver community legal education to WA Country Health Service, Community Mental Health Service and Acute Psychiatric Unit at Albany Health Campus.

Elle and Heidi also provided legal training sessions to the Aboriginal Legal Service of WA, Legal Aid WA, Great Southern Community Legal Services and Southern Aboriginal Corporation community legal services in Albany.

The sessions covered a wide range of topics including RLS practice areas, an in-depth exploration of key aspects of the intersection between criminal law, mental health and the new Criminal Law (Mental Impairment) Act 2023.

This trip was a wonderful opportunity to connect with fellow community legal services and the local health service in Albany.

Through this regional, rural and remote travel we aim to improve access to justice, strengthen collaboration with WA Country Health Services, share expertise and foster connections with local legal assistance providers.

RLS is grateful for the active engagement and shared commitment to improving legal and community awareness of mental health across the Great Southern.

08/12/2025

26/11/2025

📣 Reminder: RLS presenting at the Health Justice Australia Conference!

RLS is excited that our Principal Lawyer Luke Cassidy and Sarah Toovey will be presenting at the Health Justice Australia Conference on 3 December 2025 in Sydney.

Health Justice Australia is the leading organisation advocating for innovative partnerships between health and legal services.

Grown from a practitioner-led movement, it supports services to implement these partnerships while sharing outcomes about their effectiveness with policy makers and funders to advocate for system-level solutions that respond effectively to the reality of people’s lives.

Luke and Sarah will share reflections on navigating clashes of professional obligations in integrated legal services and implementing safeguards for legal professional privilege.

Collaboration between lawyers, health practitioners and other professionals is critical to providing meaningful help to people with complex, intersecting needs.

We look forward to hearing from other leaders in this space as we work together to provide transformational services to our clients.

https://healthjustice.org.au/learn-with-us/hja-conference/

07/11/2025

Calling All Law Students!

Are you passionate about social justice and looking to gain real-world legal experience? We’d love to hear from you.

Ruah Legal Services and Mental Health Law Centre is seeking expressions of interest from law students eager to volunteer and develop their practical legal skills in a supportive, purpose-driven environment.

As a volunteer, you’ll gain hands-on experience with:

📞 Managing client phone calls and enquiries
📝 Conducting intakes and drafting legal documents
👩‍⚖️ Shadowing our dedicated lawyers across diverse practice areas

This is a fantastic opportunity to make a meaningful contribution while building your professional skill set.

📩 To apply, please send your resume, cover letter, and academic transcript to:
✔️ legalservices@ruah.org.au
✔️ Or apply via our website: https://lnkd.in/gTuT98K9

We look forward to hearing from you!

Volunteer Application Form Please fill out the below form to apply as a volunteer: Personal DetailsFirst Name(Required)Last NameDate of Birth MM slash DD slash YYYY PhoneEmail Address(Required) EducationUniversity(Required)Course(Required)Anticipated Date of GraduationVolunteering DetailsCommitment....

05/11/2025

RLS regional travel to expand access to legal services under the Mental Health Act continues — the second last trip of 2025! 🧳

📍 Ballardong Noongar Country | Wheatbelt Region

Our Principal Lawyer, Luke Cassidy, and lawyer, Jacinta Peet, travelled to Northam last week to deliver community legal education to the Wheatbelt Community Legal Centre and staff at Holyoake Northam.

🧠 The session with Wheatbelt Community Legal Centre covered RLS practice areas, with an in-depth exploration of key aspects of the Criminal Law (Mental Impairment) Act 2023 and Guardianship and Administration orders.

💬 For Holyoake, Luke and Jacinta presented a comprehensive overview of our practice areas and the Mental Health Act, including how RLS lawyers represent clients under the Act and the referral process.

🤝 This trip was a wonderful opportunity to connect with Wheatbelt Community Legal Centre staff and strengthen partnerships with Holyoake Northam.

RLS is grateful for the active engagement and shared commitment to improving legal and community responses to mental health across the Wheatbelt. 🌿

31/10/2025

Karni Walbirniny Koorliny | Walk of Truth and Healing

Yesterday the RLS team joined our Ruah and community legal sector companions for the Walk for Reconciliation at Galup | Lake Monger - a place of deep cultural and historical significance to the Whadjuk Noongar people.

The walk honoured the storytelling passed down to Doolann-Leisha Eatts (Garlett) by her grandmother Yurleen Bennell (Garlett) and acknowledged the Galup massacre story.

It was an important moment to reflect on the ongoing journey toward truth-telling, healing and justice for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, and a meaningful reminder of the importance of listening, learning, and strengthening partnerships across community and legal sectors in our collective pursuit of a more just and fair future.

30/10/2025

RLS travel to regional areas to increase access to legal services for matters under the Mental Health Act continues 🧳

📍 Jaburrarra and Kariyarra Country | WA Country Health Service (WACHS) Pilbara region trip

Our Principal Lawyer, Luke Cassidy, travelled to Munjaree | Karratha and Marapikurrinya | Port Hedland last week to provide training to WACHS staff and deliver community legal education to legal assistance providers.

🧠 Tailored training on the Mental Health Act was delivered to the Karratha and Port Hedland Community Mental Health Service teams. This presentation examined the rights of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people under the Mental Health Act, the Criminal Law (Mental Impairment) Act 2023, and Guardianship and Administration orders.

⚖️ Luke also presented to the Pilbara Community Legal Services (PCLS) teams in both Karratha and Port Hedland. Topics included RLS practice areas, legal professional privilege in integrated legal services, and what to do when a lawyer has doubts about a client’s capacity to give them proper instructions.

We are thankful to our PCLS partners for inviting other legal practitioners to join the Port Hedland session!