Family Legal Aid - Are You Eligible?

Written by Lucy Tissington, Senior Associate Solicitor at Family Law Group

Family Law Group are experts in all areas of family law, supporting both private and legally aided clients.

You have just separated from your partner or spouse and you need some advice on what to do next. You have googled as much as you can and you just need someone to talk to in order to put your mind at rest. In this article we aim to support you through the separation process by enabling you to see if you may be eligible for Legal Aid.  

Step 1: do you have proof that you are the survivor of domestic abuse or that a child is at risk of harm?        

Are you the victim of domestic abuse? Have you suffered abuse? Would you be able to show this? This can be tricky but the proof could be a GP letter, it could be a letter from a domestic abuse support service, or it could be a document showing police involvement. The Legal Aid Agency (LAA) have several template letters to follow as they are very rigid in the evidence they accept. You can access these on the Gov.UK website. 

The other evidence you could show is if a child is at risk of harm. The simplest way to show this would be police or social care involvement.

Step 2: are you on a low income?   

Are you on a lower income? Are you on any benefits? Are you on a low wage and have a lot of outgoings? It is worth checking if you will be eligible. A calculation can be carried out online or via a solicitor to see if you would be eligible. The disposable income limit is £733 per month but the LAA allows you to take off money for housing costs and dependants.

Step 3: how much capital to you have?

Do you have capital? This could be money in bank accounts, investments or equity in the family home. Just because you have capital does not mean you will not be eligible. You would just need a full assessment. If the capital is in dispute (i.e. it would form part of a settlement upon separation), some of it can be disregarded. If you have capital in a property which cannot be sold at this time, you can inform the LAA this is trapped and you may still be eligible for Legal Aid.  

At Family Law Group, we still provide Legal Aid. We are passionate about Legal Aid and we will always ensure that if a client is eligible, we will access it for them. We are quite unique in that over 50% of the work we undertake is on a Legal Aid basis. We offer free Legal Aid assessments and 20 minutes of advice for £24, as well as drafting fixed fee letters and fixed fee divorces to ensure everybody has the access to the justice and support they need at one of the hardest times of their lives. 

www.familylawgroup.co.uk

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