BAILII, the free online legal materials provider, is currently appealing for donations.
The legal profession is being asked to rally to the support of the non-profit-making charitable trust.
The British and Irish Legal Information Institute, which runs the site at www.bailii.org, has annual operating costs of about £160,000 and currently faces an uncertain future due to a lack of secure funding.
BAILII’s database has grown to include over 280,000 searchable documents, 32,275 individual users per week, and close to a million weekly page requests.
The Bar Council and the four Inns of Court provide £30,000 annually, and HM Courts Service gives about £35,000 each year. A wide network of law firms, barristers’ chambers, publishers and legal bloggers also offer financial support. However, the trust is looking for additional contributions.
Joe Ury, chief executive of BAILII comments: “If a quarter of our weekly users sent us £5 each year we’d make up what looks like our current yearly short fall into the future.”
