00:00 It's the main legal aid agency for Aboriginal Territorians, but the North Australian Aboriginal
00:07 Justice Agency is in crisis.
00:10 Naja this week lost its third chief executive in 12 months.
00:16 And now, its Alice Springs office is turning away clients from Monday.
00:20 "We're suspending taking on new matters into our criminal practice from that date
00:27 until the end of the year.
00:28 It is essential and it will give us a much needed reprieve."
00:33 Naja says it will continue servicing Bush courts and the clients already on its books.
00:38 Closing its doors to new files will give remaining staff a chance to catch up on heavy workloads.
00:45 But means the burden will fall to another overworked agency.
00:49 The Legal Aid Commission will have to step in.
00:52 And when conflicts of interest arise, there's fears vulnerable Alice Springs residents will
00:57 have to represent themselves in court.
00:59 "I've made it very clear to all parties invested in this space that that is to not
01:05 happen."
01:06 The NT Attorney General says he's calling on his Commonwealth counterpart to temporarily
01:11 redirect funds from Naja to NT Legal Aid.
01:15 Former staff told the ABC the workload of 17 criminal lawyers is currently being shared
01:21 between just three at Naja's Alice Springs office.
01:25 They said rehiring didn't take place for about six months due to what they call dysfunction
01:30 and delays, while many other staff left due to burnout.
01:35 The federal and NT Attorneys General have written to the Naja board, raising their concerns.
01:42 Naja is currently advertising 19 positions across Alice Springs, Catherine and Darwin.
01:48 "I have absolute confidence that we can turn this around."
01:52 In the meantime, it's the territory's most at-risk residents bearing the brunt.
01:57 [BLANK_AUDIO]
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