In Victoria the Ombudsman doesn't kick in until all the other corrective steps have been exhausted.
I think you will find that is the same principle for all Ombudsman Offices, State or Federal, criminal or civil matters. Kind of makes sense as the Ombudsman can look at the case in its entirety. Doesn't help though if you been fighting a case for years that smells of corruption and your fast running out of money!
