Government Lobbying Service offers in Australia

Government Lobbying

Most individuals, small, medium and large businesses and even non profit organisations have a need for a Government Lobbying service at some stage when confronted with a dispute with the local Council or a Government agency. Most people immediately think of a Lawyer or Solicitor and look to the legal fraternity as the best method of effectively representing their interests. While their obviously is a place for Solicitors and Lawyers when faced with legal issues that need time in the court process and where legal action is the only way of having the matter effectively resolved. However to me, legal action should be the very last course of action for one very good reason. Councils and Government agencies have far deeper pockets than the average punter and so to me the only time you want to consider challenging Government agencies through the courts is when you have a situation that based on legal advice your case is rock solid. "Rock solid" cases however are few and far between and even if it is "rock solid" that doesn't mean a judge is going to have the same view so my suggestion is to be very careful if you decide that legal action is the best course to take given it could prove a very expensive exercise.
So instead of hiring a lawyer which will cost you a princely sum no doubt, if you have a problem with Government or Council you need to ponder on hiring someone with Government Lobbying skills to try and mediate an effective resolution that meets your needs. A skilled Lobbyist should be able to mediate an outcome that might not exactly meet all of your needs but is something you can live with. Of course if the Council or Government agency's case is based on solid legal foundation then they have no reason to mediate but a skilled Lobbyist will still get you the best outcome possible because they will have excellent negotiation skills together with an ability to read and interpret legislation, town plans and by-laws and their relevant requirements.
Government Lobbying is very complex and can be highly emotive as well as very stressful. Most individuals and business generally try to take on Council or a Government Department themselves and emotion normally gets in the way and prevents clear rational thinking. This is again where a Lobbyist can provide great value to you by taking the stress out of the matter - negating the emotion and thinking strategically about the best possible way to try and get a resolution to the matter at hand.
Implementing the right strategy and attacking a problem the right way is crucial to achieving a good outcome. Developing an effective strategy to take on Council and a Government Department obviously will depend a lot on the type and complexity of the problem at hand but a good Lobbyist will be looking to validate or disprove the agencies position by reviewing relevant legislation, town plans, by-laws, identifying information and documents through Right to Information provisions, looking for precedent and by actively engaging with the key players and decision makers in the agency. Lobbying is a highly developed skill and unfortunately the complexity of red tape enveloping our lives means that if you really want to get the best value out of a Government or Council problem that you should look to engage a specialist Lobbyist to assist you. I believe my experience as an ex public servant and now through running my business Red Tape Busters gives our clients a unique insight into how to battle Government agencies.

Categories: council lobbying, government lobbying, legal issues, lobbyist