Civil legal aid: too little, too late?

Reading between the lines of the government’s latest review of the civil legal aid system, Roger Smith unearths the same old fundamental problems at its heart

Over the new year, I read the suite of seven final reports of the Ministry of Justice’s review of civil legal aid. I did so with a heavy heart. For what is now nigh on a half century, too many of these attempts to identify ‘evidence-based options’ for future legal aid policy have rolled across my desk like tumbleweed through a Western desert. This version suffers from the crucial structural weaknesses of most of its predecessors. But, within those limitations, there are, to quote Leonard Cohen, some cracks where ‘the light gets in’.

Structural weaknesses

And the structural weaknesses endemic to this sort of exercise? The first is political, and the second methodological. This review was established in January 2023 by Dominic Raab, a now deservedly forgotten footnote to history as Boris Johnson’s one-time deputy prime minister. It was designed—after more than

If you are not a subscriber, subscribe now to read this content

If you are already a subscriber sign in

...or Register for two weeks' free access to subscriber content

Civil legal aid: too little, too late?

Reading between the lines of the government’s latest review of the civil legal aid system, Roger Smith unearths the same old fundamental problems at its heart

Structural weaknesses

If you are not a subscriber, subscribe now to read this content

If you are already a subscriber sign in

...or Register for two weeks' free access to subscriber content

SourceURL:

Links:

E-newsletter Sign-Up

MOVERS & SHAKERS

Read All

NLJ Career Profile: Daniel Burbeary, Michelman Robinson

Daniel Burbeary, office managing partner of Michelman Robinson, discusses launching in London, the power of the law, and what the kitchen can teach us about litigating

Sidley—Jeremy Trinder

Global finance group strengthened by returning partner in London

Joelson—Jennifer Mansoor

West End firm strengthens employment and immigration team with partner hire

NEWS

Read All

NLJ this week: CPR tweak closes third-party disclosure gap

A seemingly dry procedural update may prove potent. In his latest 'Civil way' column for NLJ this week, Stephen Gold explains that new CPR 31.12A—part of the 193rd update—fills a ‘lacuna’ exposed in McLaren Indy v Alpa Racing

NLJ this week: Court of Appeals wrestles with Mazur fallout

The long-running Mazur saga edged towards its finale as the Court of Appeal heard arguments on whether non-solicitors can ‘conduct litigation’. Writing in NLJ this week, Professor Dominic Regan of City Law School reports from a packed courtroom where 16 wigs watched Nick Bacon KC argue that Mr Justice Sheldon had failed to distinguish between ‘tasks and responsibilities’

NLJ this week: Driving test fraudsters steer towards jail

Cheating in driving tests is surging—and courts are responding firmly. Writing in NLJ this week, Neil Parpworth of De Montfort Law School charts a rise in impersonation and tech-assisted fraud, with 2,844 attempts recorded in a year

NLJ this week: Deepfakes demand data law muscle

As AI-generated ‘deepfake’ images proliferate, the law may already have the tools to respond. In NLJ this week, Jon Belcher of Excello Law argues that such images amount to personal data processing under UK GDPR

NLJ this week: 40% penalty for coercive control

In a striking financial remedies ruling, the High Court cut a wife’s award by 40% for coercive and controlling behaviour. Writing in NLJ this week, Chris Bryden and Nicole Wallace of 4 King’s Bench Walk analyse LP v MP [2025] EWFC 473

Error message

Civil legal aid: too little, too late?

Structural weaknesses

Structural weaknesses

MOVERS & SHAKERS

NLJ Career Profile: Daniel Burbeary, Michelman Robinson

Sidley—Jeremy Trinder

Joelson—Jennifer Mansoor