--- title: "Homepage" description: "Australian women’s legal fund No woman should face the law alone YAEL helps fund the cost of legal matters that advance and protect women’s rights under Australian law and connects people with free legal information. Donate monthly Find legal help How YAEL works Four ways to take part No one person should have to carry […]" url: "https://yaelwomensdefenceguild.org.au/" date_modified: "2026-07-22T17:03:42+00:00" --- ## Australian women's legal fund # No woman should face the law alone ## YAEL helps fund the cost of legal matters that advance and protect women's rights under Australian law and connects people with free legal information. [Donate monthly](https://yaelwomensdefenceguild.org.au/give-to-us/) [Find legal help](https://yaelwomensdefenceguild.org.au/receive-from-us/) --- ## How YAEL works ## Four ways to take part ![PngItem_5305601](https://yaelwomensdefenceguild.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/PngItem_5305601.webp) ## No one person should have to carry the cost of standing up for her rights. When many people give a little each month, the fund grows large enough to make a real contribution toward someone's legal costs. ## 01. ## Give to us ## Recurring, one off or periodic gifts. Every dollar is a contribution toward someone's legal costs. [Donate monthly](https://yaelwomensdefenceguild.org.au/give-to-us/) ## 02. ## Receive from us ## Seeking help with a women's-rights matter under Australian law? Check whether you're eligible and how to apply. Confidential. [Check eligibility](https://yaelwomensdefenceguild.org.au/receive-from-us/) ## 03. ## Become a member ## Members get a vote at general meetings, our quarterly newsletter, and the chance to serve on the board. [Join us](https://yaelwomensdefenceguild.org.au/join-the-guild/) ## 04. ## Volunteer ## A volunteer is simply a member who takes on a role legal research, events, social media, newsletter, admin. [Get involved](https://yaelwomensdefenceguild.org.au/join-the-guild/) --- ## About YAEL ## A focused, non-partisan fund for women's legal matters. Yael Women’s Defence Guild is an Australian charity that helps fund the cost of legal matters advancing and protecting women’s rights under Australian law and provides free legal information to those who need it. We don’t fund whole cases or provide lawyers. We make fixed contributions toward the real costs of being heard  filing fees, expert reports, an hour of advice  so that standing up for your rights doesn’t come down to what you can afford alone. We take our name from Yael, who protected her people through courage and quiet resolve, and from the sure-footed mountain goat that shares her name steady on hard ground. - Fixed-amount grants toward legal costs contributions, not full case funding. - Free legal information, and connections to volunteer lawyers for information. - Entirely non-partisan focused on women's rights under Australian law. - We don't provide or source lawyers, and we don't fund whole cases. [About Us](https://yaelwomensdefenceguild.org.au/about-us/) ![hf_20260618_144253_9c3fe418-16f8-4fd6-acfb-c692b833bae9](https://yaelwomensdefenceguild.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/hf_20260618_144253_9c3fe418-16f8-4fd6-acfb-c692b833bae9.webp) ## 1. ## One-off & periodic gifts ## Give once, or whenever you're able. Every contribution counts. ## 2. ## Recurring donations ## Monthly giving that lets the fund grow and plan ahead. --- ## Give to us ## Together we make justice affordable ![PngItem_5305601](https://yaelwomensdefenceguild.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/PngItem_5305601.webp) ## For one woman, the cost of being heard can be impossible $300 to $650 for an hour of advice, thousands for a single expert report, filing fees owed before a matter is even heard. Shared between many of us giving a little each month, it's barely felt. That's the whole idea: small gifts, pooled into a fund large enough to help a woman stand up for her rights. ## $10 ## / per month ## Covers filing fees and the everyday costs that pile up before a hearing. [Choose $10](https://yaelwomensdefenceguild.org.au/give-to-us/) ## $50 ## / per month ## Close to an hour of expert legal advice, every month. [Choose $50](https://yaelwomensdefenceguild.org.au/give-to-us/) ## $100 ## / per month ## Builds the fund toward the expert reports that can decide a case. [Choose $100](https://yaelwomensdefenceguild.org.au/give-to-us/) --- ## Get in touch ## We'd love to hear from you. ## Whether you'd like to support the fund, you're seeking help with a women's-rights matter, or you'd like to lend your skills, we're glad to hear from you. Inquiries about assistance are always treated in confidence. Please enable JavaScript in your browser to complete this form.Please enable JavaScript in your browser to complete this form.Name *FirstLast Name Reason you Email *Phone *Reason for contacting *--- Select Choice ---General inquiryDonations & supportMembership & volunteeringMedia & speakingSomething elseComment or Message *Please prove you are not a robot *What is 8-2? Submit --- ![hf_20260618_151130_c0534399-bb2f-417f-a4b9-06ef39991aad](https://yaelwomensdefenceguild.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/hf_20260618_151130_c0534399-bb2f-417f-a4b9-06ef39991aad.webp) ## Yael Women's Defence Guild ACN 684 957 140 · ABN 59 684 957 140 · Registered with the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission (ACNC). ## Built on trust. ## Why people trust YAEL ## Volunteer-led ## run by women giving their time and skills. ## Non-partisan ## focused only on women's rights in law. ## ACNC-registered ## a registered Australian charity. ## Confidential ## your inquiry stays private unless you choose otherwise. --- ## Testimonials ## What our stakeholders say ![PngItem_5305601](https://yaelwomensdefenceguild.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/PngItem_5305601.webp) ## Law is costly, and no one person should carry it alone. Legal advice runs about $300–$650 an hour; a single expert report can cost $5,000–$10,000; court filing fees mount before a matter is even heard. When many people give a little each month, the fund grows large enough to make a real contribution toward someone's costs. ![1565077970813](https://yaelwomensdefenceguild.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/1565077970813.jpg) ## The Lesbian Action Group had to enter an expensive legal process to ask for the protection of lesbian-only spaces, and even with pro bono representation we still had to crowdfund thousands of dollars just to meet all of the court fees. YAEL Women’s Defence Guild will be of great benefit for women fighting similar legal cases. ## — Nicole Phillips, on behalf of the Lesbian Action Group ![images (1)](https://yaelwomensdefenceguild.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/images-1.jpg) ## I was misidentified as the perpetrator of family violence. After years of coercive control and physical abuse I was letting my emotions get the better of me and yelling. One time I pushed him because he was beating me. The police believed him because he was the calm one, and my children were taken away from me. I didn’t have the money to hire a lawyer, and my children were hurt in care. Eventually a barrister who understood the abuse cycle represented me pro bono and things finally turned around, but I felt so alone until then. ## — Melissa, IVO/AVO and family law client ![images (3)](https://yaelwomensdefenceguild.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/images-3.jpg) ## We can never take women’s rights for granted. Sometimes we have to fight and re-fight for them. This legal fund is here to help if your rights need defending, because nothing should stand in the way of protecting them. We want to leave a lasting legacy for our daughters and granddaughters, ensuring they inherit a world that not only knows what a woman is, it doesn’t hold it against her. ## — Sall Grover, CEO of Giggle for Girls, co-respondent in Tickle v Giggle, and developer of a custom-built fundraising platform for the costs of that legal action ![images](https://yaelwomensdefenceguild.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/images.jpg) ## Legal matters such as discrimination, gendered violence and parenting disputes don’t generally arise because a woman is engaged in a profit-making activity or has the backing of government or insurance companies. The costs of solicitors, barristers, expert reports and court fees don’t change because of that, however — even a woman receiving pro bono legal assistance can face a $12,000 bill for an expert report, plus daily fees if that expert appears as a witness. We started YAEL so that the community could pull together and help women thrust into these situations come out the other side. ## — Megan Blake, Victorian barrister and President of YAEL Women’s Defence Guild Ltd --- ## News ## Latest from the guild Uncategorized Suffragette Colour Palette Color Palette Suffragette Colour Palette Color Palette, Suffragette Color Palette Color Palette June 16, 2026 6:02 pm law Five Ways to Stand With Women Facing the Law Per expedita ligula semper ex cumque maecenas veniam, urna interdum! Aliquam? Anim euismod cumque felis June 16, 2026 5:37 pm Uncategorized What a Day in Court Really Costs Per expedita ligula semper ex cumque maecenas veniam, urna interdum! Aliquam? Anim euismod cumque felis June 16, 2026 5:35 pm [View More](https://yaelwomensdefenceguild.org.au/news/) --- ## Get started ## Ready to join us? ## Become a member, take on a role, or simply support the work every bit helps a woman stand up for her rights. [Apply for membership](https://yaelwomensdefenceguild.org.au/join-the-guild/) [Donate now](https://yaelwomensdefenceguild.org.au/give-to-us/)