Home Affairs signs $50 million for legal services: see who cashed in

Home Affairs staff signed $50 million in contract variations for legal services on one day in 2026, amid a years-long surge in visa appeals.

Subscribe now for unlimited access.

or signup to continue reading

The biggest winners from the move were three law firms.

Home Affairs handed $23m to Sparke Helmore, $12.5m to Mills Oakley, and $11m to MinterEllison on May 27, records from AwardedTenders.au have revealed, for contracts that were originally worth a fraction of that.

Home Affairs the biggest spender on the government's legal services panel in 2026. Picture by Shutterstock

The move made Home Affairs the biggest spender on the government's legal services panel in 2026, with $90.5m in contracts started in the year to date, up from $36.2 million in 2024.

The surge in new legal services contracts was likely due to a backlog in one or multiple parts of the visa approvals chain, from applications to appeals and court cases.

New immigration-related appeals through the Administrative Review Tribunal grew by 49.5 per cent in the two years to the two years to the end of the 2025-26 financial year, to 48,000, while active cases before the tribunal surged by 28 per cent.

Visa applicants who want to challenge a tribunal decision often seek a judicial review in the Federal Court of Australia, where the number of migration filings increased by 59 per cent in the year to the end of the 2024-25 financial year.

Sparke Helmore manages more than 5000 merits or judicial review proceedings for government a year, according to its website, and one Mills Oakley partner promotes her work advising the immigration minister in thousands of matters.

The Albanese government passed legislation to speed up processing of migration matters through the tribunal in February, about three months before Home Affairs staff signed the multimillion dollar contracts.

The Administrative Review Tribunal and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 2025 means the tribunal can now make certain decisions based on written materials, without a hearing.

There were risks associated with pursuing efficiency reform in relation to migration hearings, according to Law Council of Australia president Tania Wolff.

"The Administrative Review Tribunal is under real pressure, and the Law Council supports sensible measures that help it keep pace with demand," Ms Wolff said.

"But efficiency is only one of the tribunal's objectives; it must also be fair, accessible, and able to get decisions right.

"In migration matters, a wrong decision can mean removal from Australia, separation from family, or return to harm; those consequences are serious and often irreversible.

"Shortcuts can also be a false economy; decisions made without a proper hearing are more likely to be challenged in the courts, where review is slower and more expensive for everyone."

Ms Wolff said getting decisions right the first time was the most effective efficiency measure there is.

"That means investing in the quality of primary decision-making, so fewer cases need review at all," she said.

A Department of Home Affairs spokesperson said data published on AusTender relating to the Department's external legal expenditure under the whole of Australian government legal services panel was an estimate only of the value of each arrangement, some of which were non-commitment arrangements.

"Home Affairs' total external legal expenditure increased from $80.9 million in FY25 to $96.6 million in FY26," the spokesperson said.

"The migration and citizenship caseload accounted for 77 per cent of all external legal expenditure in FY26.

"The expenditure in this caseload increased from $50.3 million in FY25 to $74.4 million in FY26.

"Civil litigation, including compensation claims, are largely covered by the department's insurer, Comcover.

"As at 30 June 2026, the number of active migration and citizenship administrative law litigation matters was 19,647."

Elsewhere in government, Social Services recorded the biggest year-on-year growth in new legal services contracts among the major agencies in 2026.

Social Services staff have signed $17 million of legal services contracts since January, almost triple that in 2025 ($5.9 million).

A Social Services spokesperson said the increase in contract values in 2026 reflected the department's anticipated requirement for seconded lawyers to balance its workforce.

"The Department manages a blended workforce of permanent legal officers and seconded legal practitioners," the spokesperson said.

"Seconded legal support is used on an as-needed basis where additional expertise or capacity is required.

"This blended workforce enables the Department to respond to fluctuations in legal workload while ensuring resources are used effectively and appropriately.

"The continued need for a seconded lawyer is then closely monitored to ensure the duration of the contract ceases once the need is met."

A MinterEllison spokesperson said the firm doesn't comment publicly on the financial arrangements or details of our work with individual clients.

"We value our relationship with the Commonwealth government and the opportunity to support government clients across a range of legal matters," they said.

Spokespersons for Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke, Sparke Helmore and Mills Oakley declined to comment.

More from Business and Finance