header-logo header-logo

Home Login E-newsletter About us

Frozen out? Civil legal aid

© Copyright LexisNexis 2025. All Rights Reserved.
05 January 2018 / Steve Hynes
Issue: 7775 / Categories: Opinion , Legal aid focus , Profession
printer mail-detail
nlj_7775_hynes_0

The review of LASPO should be used as an opportunity to develop a vision for early advice services, says Steve Hynes

Over recent months there have been calls from politicians and campaigners for the government to look at restoring early advice for civil legal problems. The Law Society in November published research which demonstrated the link between early advice and resolving a problem sooner. The Solicitor General, Robert Buckland QC, is among the politicians who are now calling for a re-think on early advice. Legal Action Group (LAG) welcomes the increased pressure on the government regarding this issue, but we are warning that action needs to be taken urgently, as civil legal aid is becoming a narrow collection of specialisms dominated by child protection, with shrinking provision for the type of early advice services needed by the general public.

Plummeting numbers

The Legal Aid Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders 2012 Act (LASPO) is the main culprit behind the current crisis. From April 2013 the axe fell on ‘legal help’, the

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

MOVERS & SHAKERS

Read All
Sponsored by
Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan—Andrew Savage

Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan—Andrew Savage

Firm expands London disputes practice with senior partner hire

Druces—Lisa Cardy

Druces—Lisa Cardy

Senior associate promotion strengthens real estate offering

Charles Russell Speechlys—Robert Lundie Smith

Charles Russell Speechlys—Robert Lundie Smith

Leading patent litigator joins intellectual property team

NEWS
Read All
NLJ this week: Law Society calls for clarity on AML
The government’s plan to introduce a Single Professional Services Supervisor could erode vital legal-sector expertise, warns Mark Evans, president of the Law Society of England and Wales, in NLJ this week
NLJ this week: Turning corporate liability into opportunity
Writing in NLJ this week, Jonathan Fisher KC of Red Lion Chambers argues that the ‘failure to prevent’ model of corporate criminal responsibility—covering bribery, tax evasion, and fraud—should be embraced, not resisted
NLJ this week: A prince no more?
Professor Graham Zellick KC argues in NLJ this week that, despite Buckingham Palace’s statement stripping Andrew Mountbatten Windsor of his styles, titles and honours, he remains legally a duke
NLJ this week: Shareholder secrecy sunk
Writing in NLJ this week, Sophie Ashcroft and Miranda Joseph of Stevens & Bolton dissect the Privy Council’s landmark ruling in Jardine Strategic Ltd v Oasis Investments II Master Fund Ltd (No 2), which abolishes the long-standing 'shareholder rule'
NLJ this week: The expanding remit of national security law
In NLJ this week, Sailesh Mehta and Theo Burges of Red Lion Chambers examine the government’s first-ever 'Afghan leak' super-injunction—used to block reporting of data exposing Afghans who aided UK forces and over 100 British officials. Unlike celebrity privacy cases, this injunction centred on national security. Its use, the authors argue, signals the rise of a vast new body of national security law spanning civil, criminal, and media domains
Copyright © 2025 LexisNexis
back-to-top-scroll