ISSUE NO. 20
MARCH 2026

Legal Corner

This section provides people in prison with information about their legal rights and how to make best use of them.

If you have any general legal questions that you would like to be answered, please let us know.

Latest

What Happens to Your Debts While You’re Inside?

By Prisoner Legal Service Queensland

Generally, debts can be put into two categories. First, there are private debts (e.g. from a bank, a landlord, a car dealer, or ‘Afterpay’). Second, there are debts owed to the State (e.g. unpaid fines).

ISSUE NO. 20
2 MIN READ
Alice Pasquale via Unsplash

Confusing Decision Made About You? Maybe FOI Can Help

By Dan Vansetten

The concern for those who are subjected to government decisions is that they often do not get to see the integrity of the information which was considered by the decision-maker and don’t get to check if it’s correct.

ISSUE NO. 20
3 MIN READ

Previous Editions

ISSUE NO. 5
November 2024

Freedom of Information (Part Two): Review Options

By Daniel Vansetten

This is the second part of a two-part series on Freedom of Information (or Right to Information) laws. This part discusses ‘review processes’ – that is, what can be done if you are unhappy with the FOI decision, particularly if you were refused information and you think this was incorrect.

10 MIN READ
ISSUE NO. 4
October 2024

Freedom of Information (Part One of Two)

By Daniel Vansetten

This is the first of a two-part series on Freedom of Information (FOI), (also called Right to Information). In this part, we explain why FOI is important and how to lodge an application for information.

9 MIN READ
ISSUE NO. 3
September 2024

Bail: Common Questions

By Meg Tait and About Time (with help from Uther Webster & Evans Solicitors and Daniel Vansetten)

Bail is a promise you can make that you will return to court. It means you can stay in the community (instead of jail) until your legal matters finish. If you are being held in custody and you haven’t been found guilty, you may be able to apply for bail.

15 MIN READ
ISSUE NO. 2
August 2024

What You Need to Know About OPCAT

By Andreea Lachsz

When people are imprisoned, they lose their freedom, but they do not lose all of their human rights. International human rights law makes this very clear.

9 MIN READ
ISSUE NO. 2
August 2024

How to Complain to the Ombudsman

By About Time

The Ombudsman is an independent organisation that oversees complaints against government decisions and actions. Each state/territory has their own Ombudsman. The Ombudsman responds to a complaint by investigating from both sides what has happened and why.

8 MIN READ
ISSUE NO. 1
July 2024

Welcome to the Legal Corner

By About Time

Through these articles, we provide information on relevant areas of law. This first article provides basic information to make it easier for family and friends to support you. There are differences in the ways the systems operate depending on where you’re located (VIC, NSW, ACT or TAS), so we hope this is useful and relevant to where you are.

7 MIN READ

Welcome to About Time

About Time is the national newspaper for Australian prisons and detention facilities

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Welcome to About Time

About Time is the national newspaper for Australian prisons and detention facilities

Your browser window currently does not have enough height, or is zoomed in too far to view our website content correctly. Once the window reaches the minimum required height or zoom percentage, the content will display automatically.

Alternatively, you can learn more via the links below.

Donations via GiveNow

Email

Instagram

LinkedIn