Live Law Manual

About the project

The Community Law Manual is a practical guide to everyday New Zealand law, updated with new content every year. It provides comprehensive answers to common legal questions, written in plain English so that more people can understand.

Community Law Manual is published by Community Law Wellington and Hutt Valley and is available in both a hard copy version and online. The free online version is used by nearly 70,000 people per month (nearly 840,000 online manual readers each year)!

Previously, with support from the Borrin Foundation, Community Law Wellington and Hutt Valley and Citizen AI explored enhancing digital access to the Community Law Manual through the development of chatbots to answer legal questions and launching real-time updated information about COVID-19 and the law.

This current grant builds on the previous experience gained to further develop the digitally interactive online version of the Community Law Manual with real-time legal updating.

Grant amount

$155,000 over 18 months for work in 2021 – 2022

About Community Law Centres o Aotearoa

Community Law Centres o Aotearoa is a network of 24 community law centres providing free legal help and advice in over 140 locations in New Zealand. This advice covers all aspects of New Zealand’s legal system, including family law, employment issues, housing problems, consumer advice and criminal law. As well as around 200 staff, Community Law’s services are boosted by over 1,200 volunteer lawyers who run clinics and deliver free advice and assistance.

Contact for this project

Tina Walker-Ferguson (Rongomaiwahine, Ngāti Porou, Kāi Tahu), Kaiwhakahaere Tānga – Publications Director at Community Law Wellington and Hutt Valley

Sue Moroney, Chief Executive Officer of Community Law Centres o Aotearoa