I am advised:

Legal aid is available in criminal matters for District and Supreme Court bail applications, trials and sentence hearings, subject to a means test, regardless of whether a person is at risk of imprisonment.

People can access the Legal Aid NSW duty solicitor service at the Local Court regardless of whether they are at risk of imprisonment.

Legal aid is available for all Children's Court matters, regardless of means and whether they are at risk of imprisonment.

Legal Aid advice clinics, available at Legal Aid offices around New South Wales and at some outreach locations, provide free legal advice and minor assistance to individuals facing charges, regardless of whether a person is at risk of imprisonment. People defending minor charges in the Local Court can also contact LawAccess NSW for information and referral and, in some cases, advice. Legal Aid NSW, LawAccess NSW and the Legal Information Access Centre produce a number of print and web publications and videos to assist people attending court.

In addition, legal aid is available for representation in defended hearings in the Local Court where there are 'exceptional circumstances', subject to a means test. Examples of 'exceptional circumstances' include where the defendant is a child or young person, or has substantial difficulty dealing with the legal system because of a substantial psychiatric condition or intellectual, physical or developmental disability; where the matter raises an issue of civil liberties; and where the person is a defendant in a domestic violence assault charge and is also the protected person in associated domestic violence order proceedings.