The Law Society of England and Wales has called on the Government to invest more money in civil legal aid to ensure greater access for all.
In collaboration with the Legal Services Board and YouGov, the body recently found that 55% of adults experiencing domestic abuse cases did not receive any legal support. Of those who sought help, 54% were unable to access it. They have acknowledged governmental efforts increasing civil legal aid fees for housing and immigration, but still believes improvement is necessary across family law, community care, mental health, and other related areas.
The Law Society’s new legal aid desert map reveals that more than 42 million people in England and Wales, nearly 70% of the population, lack access to community care legal aid providers in their area. The organisation’s president, Richard Atkinson, expressed his concern, saying ‘civil legal aid is a crucial service that protects people and communities and reduces the strain on other public services.’
The Law Society is also asking for further reforms: reinstatement of early legal advice for separating families, guaranteed legal aid for both parties in family law cases involving abuse allegations, and increased legal aid fees for family law, mental health, community care, and other critical areas to attract legal aid providers. Finally, it advocates for a test for determining legal aid eligibility that does not exclude people living in poverty.
In support of the campaign, Atkinson claimed that by helping people face their legal challenges, they help individuals and ‘strengthen families, protect children and provide better care for people in our communities.’
The Chancellor’s Spending Review has allocated 3.1% in extra funding to the Ministry of Justice. But there was scepticism about the impact that this would make on legal aid in particular. In response, quoted in the Law Society’s Gazette, Atkinson said that ‘it will take long-term sustained funding to fix it, including in civil and criminal legal aid to address the crises there,’
Matthew Maxwell Scott, from the Association of Consumer Support Organisations, was also concerned about the impact that this will have on the civil system. Also in the Gazette, he said that ‘this will only serve to cement the unwanted status of the civil system in particular as a Cinderella service, with the gaze of our politicians forever elsewhere. The long delays in our civil courts and the gradual decay of our legal system needs to capture ministers’ attention or we will see a further loss of confidence in law firms and others to invest in the technology and training necessary to improve services.’
