Legal Aid
The government has announced that it is to restrict the availability of legal aid for certain kinds of case.
This not only represents the latest attack on the poor by a Government of millionaires but also prejudices the Article 6 rights of those of limited means to achieve a fair hearing.
Campaign now to oppose the cuts in Legal Aid
Fair Justice for All
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1501 comments
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Ben
commented
Lets all go live in China if these legal aid reforms go through.....
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Ben
commented
Lets all go live in China if these legal aid reforms go through.....
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Anonymous
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No access to justice, means no justice.
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Helen
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Access to justice is a fundamental human right and essential to the rule of law. Cutting legal aid has the greatest effect on the most vulnerable people and takes away their voice. Cutting legal aid is not the answer and will close the door on thousands of people preventing them from using the law to protect them from harm and wrongdoing. What is the purpose of a legal system if those who need it most have no access to it.?
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Clare Cib
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Cutting legal aid to those who need it does not stop cases from needing to go to court... all it does is prevent access to justice to people who cannot afford to pay for it. If the proposed cuts go ahead, those who can afford to go to court will continue to do so but those who cannot afford it will either have no redress whatsoever or will have to represent themselves. They may then be faced with representing themselves against a party who can afford to pay for legal advice and representation and this will represent a clear unfair advantage to the wealthy at the expense of the poor. Or worst still, if there are two parties who cannot afford legal advice they would be forced to represent themselves against each other and will have to navigate the law, the court system and the rules of evidence without any guidance.
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Lachlan
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I would rather not see justice become a commodity, ordered like so much online shopping. Access to justice is a legal right established after generations of effort. Do not throw it away!
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Laura
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Access to justice is a fundamental tenet of our society. The proposed changes to legal aid will adversely affect some of the most vulnerable people in Britain and every effort needs to be made to prevent this.
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Julia Bale
commented
Legal aid is essential to ensure justice for the most marginalised parts of our society.
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Trebor
commented
This campaign is crucial. If these proposals go through it will restrict legal advice so that the most vulnerable and most in need can't get it.
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Prakash Ruparelia
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The green paper proposals are direct insult to the poor and vulnerable in society, Legal aid is essential for access to justice and the rule of law. Why should the poor suffer for a problem created by the bankers who continue to get massive bonuses.
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Rochdale Law Centre
commented
These proposed cuts will mean that half a million people in Britain will be left without access to justice. Justice is for everyone--not just those who can afford it.
In deprived areas such as Rochdale free, independent legal advice is essential in ensuring that vulnerable people are not subjected to exploitation or discrimination.
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Paul Taylor
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This is a really important campaign - the cuts are hitting the poorest and most vulnerable at a time when they need it most - if they go through it really will be a day of shame
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Ben Mason
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The Law Society has just created a website to harness public protests against the cuts to legal aid. It would be great if you could sign the petition at: http://www.soundoffforjustice.co.uk/ and join our community on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/soundoffjustice or Twitter: http://twitter.com/#!/soundoffjustice
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She
commented
The proposed changes will separate parents from children, spouses from each other. Immigration law is complex and if the changes are allowed to take place, only those who can afford to pay a legal representative will be able to afford expert guidance through a complex system which can mean permanent family separation.
Justice will be denied !
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Jo
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The proposed changes to legal aid are criminal, thought up by millionaire ministers who will never be personally affected by them. This is an outrage. In 21st century Britain, you should not be able to buy justice, all should have access to decent legal representation and the best opportunity possible to achieve justice.
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Andrew Parsons
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Access to good legal representation is an important right in a civil society. In employment law cases employers will often have legal representation and unless an employee can afford to hire a lawyer or are lucky enough to have free legal representation then they will be expected to present their case in person.
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UEA ALUMNI
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Fair access to legal representation is a human right, to protect some of the most vulnerable people in society from discrimination, injustice and unfair practices by employers, local authorities and individuals.
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Beverley Rockliff
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The current proposal to, effectively, remove legal aid is, in itself, a breach of every citizen's fundemental human right. The knock on effect will be fewer and fewer solicitors able to undertake such work (without there being any decrease in the number of clients who need such help). There will be job losses amongst solicitors, legal executives, administrative, support and secretarial staff and the Courts will become bear pits of angry litigants in person not subject to any legal filtering system. Our legal system and the access to justice which it afforded used to be the envy of the world - No longer if these proposals are instituted.
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Tess Wheeler
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I heard the end of a news item on breakfast tv this week, and think it was the dropping of a case against a company manufacturing an anti-epilepsy drug given to mothers during pregnancy which has cause birth defects? Apparently the case has been six years in the making and was due to come to court within weeks but now that legal aid has been withdrawn it will not go ahead. Friends I've spoken to have heard little about it - my apologies if the details are not all correct. Have we really come to this so long after the thalidomide cases decades ago? It's a travesty and means only the rich can afford justice.
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Laura Janes
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Legal aid is essential for access to justice and the rule of law. These proposals will mean double standards and will undermine fairness. Only the poorest people in the most desperate of situations will be able to access justice - and then often only by phone. All this will ultimately result in problems escalating before they can receive limited help. Lawyers actually spend most of their time keeping people out of court and trying to simplify matters. These proposals will see more people ending up in court unnecessarily.
