Photo: RNZ / Dan Cook
An Auckland duty lawyer says he and some of his colleagues will not work for a full week next month, as they battle poor pay and working conditions.
Duty lawyers are paid by the Justice Ministry to give free legal advice to those appearing in court who could not afford a lawyer.
Dennis Ansley has been a duty lawyer for over 38 years in Auckland.
For the last three years, Ansley said he had been pushing the government for a better hourly pay rate.
"It's very low," he said.
"It's about a fifth of what I could charge if I was charging in private practice."
Ansley said duty lawyers could be getting paid twice what
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