By Ashley Young-
The Ministry of justice has developed a new strategy to help people resolve legal problems at the earliest opportunity and avoid the need for unnecessary court proceedings .
Measures announced in the Legal Support Action Plan are in direct response to evidence heard during a wide-ranging, year-long review of the changes to legal aid made by the Coalition Government in 2013 under the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012 (LASPO). These reforms aimed to take the legal aid system back to its initial intention to ensure public funding would remain sustainable by refocusing resources on those who most need it.
The 290-page document addresses a pledge by the MoJ to examine the impact of the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012 (Laspo), which reduced annual spending on legal aid by at least £350m. The MoJ promised improved advice , and promises to review The financial eligibility thresholds for those seeking legal aid will also be reviewed, the MoJ said.
The department plans to invest up to £5m in innovative forms of legal support, whilst harnessing the power of the UK’s thriving LawTech sector to modernise and expand the services on offer. This will focus on using new technologies to ensure people can access support in the best way for them, and making funding go further. The MoJ pledges a further £3 million to support litigants in person , and provide practical support and information as well as routes to free or more affordable legal advice. How practical this support will be is unclear at the moment, but the Moj also states that it will conduct an awareness campaign to inform litigants in person better about how support can help them.
The nature of its awareness campaign is currently unknown, but could take various forms. Time will tell how effective these would be. The MoJ says it will make sure it gives people the right help in the best way for them, helping them evaluate the introduction of integrated “legal support hubs” and drawing together and better coordinating existing services in local communities.
”We want to deliver face to face legal support to help people with the range of legal problems they may be experiencing. This will include testing new approaches to signposting support early in the process, to help people resolve problems early and prevent them from escalating”, the MoJ says.
Early intervention that gives people the breadth of support they need to solve problems quickly and easily is the plan of the ministry of justice. The strategy aims to provide aid to users of the service before they become entangled in the legal system or need legal representation. The ministry of justice is investing of up to £5million in developing innovative technologies and testing new methods of delivering support.
The MoJ says it will make sure that people can access the right help in the best way for them, and that taxpayers’ money is spent on what works best. A lot of the department’s plans are still at a developmental stage. It plans to conduct a series of pilots to explore new ways of delivering legal support and enhanced services for people in need. It will include testing legal support hubs; and bringing together existing legal support services; and
Justice Minister Lucy Frazer, said:
”Legal aid will continue to play an important role and we are committed to ensuring people can access the help they need into the future.
However, in seeking to bolster legal aid as a key part of helping people with a diverse range of problems, we are clear that there is much to do aside from legal aid, so we are emphasising the need for new technologies and new ideas to catch people early, before their problems escalate to the courtroom.
We have carefully considered the responses in this review and will expand the scope of legal aid to cover new areas of family law, launch a review of legal aid eligibility thresholds, invest up to £5 million in delivering innovative services and test new methods of support to help people resolve their problems quickly and easily, in the way that best works for them.
More than 100 groups and individuals from across the justice system were engaged during the Post Implementation Review (PIR) of the legal aid reforms. A key point of concern raised during this process was the ability of individuals to access legal aid for civil and family matters.
Today’s Action Plan responds to the evidence heard and includes taking immediate action to ensure vulnerable people, particularly children, can access legal aid when it is needed by:
Reviewing the thresholds for legal aid entitlement and wider eligibility criteria – this will ensure that in circumstances where it is necessary, legal aid continues being accessible to those who need it most. Amending the Exceptional Case Funding process to improve timeliness and making it easier to access – this will make it easier for people to access legal aid for cases which are not generally in scope, but where there is a risk of a breach of Human Rights and a lawyer is required; and expanding the scope of legal aid to include legal aid for non-asylum immigration matters for separated migrant children; and to cover all Special Guardianship Orders in private family law cases; and removing the means test for those with parental responsibility to oppose placement or adoption orders in family law proceedings – responding to evidence from the PIR, we will ensure legal aid is available for these proceedings.
Last year the Government spent £30 million a week (£1.6 billion per year) funding legal services for those who needed help and is committed to ensuring the system remains sustainable into the future. However, the review also confirmed that publicly funded representation is not always the best way to help people resolve their problems.
The Action Plan is the first step towards overhauling the legal support system; promoting early intervention to resolve problems before they escalate, drawing together the full and diverse range of legal support already being delivered and developing innovative services to help people access justice at the right time and in the right way for them”.
Minister Of Justice: Lucy Frazer
Ensuring that inquests are more sympathetic to the needs of bereaved families and that families are more able to participate, with all parties clear about what is expected of them throughout the process; and
improving guidance and advice to increase understanding and awareness of the availability of legal aid for inquests.
We will be looking into further options for the funding of legal support at inquests where the state has state-funded representation. To do this we will work closely with other Government Departments.
Meanwhile, a review of criminal legal aid payment schemes has also already been announced to ensure criminal defence remains a sustainable and attractive career. The Government will continue to work with the sector and other government departments, building on the evidence heard over the review process, to ensure that legal support remains available for those who need it, both now and in a future more modern and efficient justice system”.