Legal Aid

A woman who wants to bring family law proceedings against her allegedly violent former partner has launched a High Court challenge over the Legal Aid Board's refusal to fund her action. The mother-of-two, who is reliant on social welfare payments, claims that her application for legal aid was turned

Landmark domestic abuse legislation has been delayed by Justice Minister Naomi Long due to a row over legal aid and is no longer expected to become law by the end of the year. The Domestic Abuse and Family Proceedings Bill was due to be debated at the further consideration stage by MLAs yesterday bu

The Court of Appeal has ruled on two appeals relating to the procedural fairness of the Criminal Injuries Compensation Tribunal. The judgment, delivered by Ms Justice Úna Ní Raifeartaigh, rejected arguments that legal aid should be provided to people availing of the scheme. The court a

Proposals to provide victims of domestic abuse with greater access to legal aid in family law cases have been approved by the Northern Ireland Assembly. MLAs debating the Domestic Abuse and Family Proceedings Bill agreed to back an amendment brought by Rachel Woods, Green MLA for North Down, in the

The vast majority of legal aid lawyers in England and Wales are suffering from stress and most have trouble sleeping, MPs have been told. Evidence collected by the Legal Aid Practitioners Group (LAPG) from over 400 lawyers and submitted to the Commons justice select committee's inquiry into the futu

The Legal Aid Board has denied claims that cuts to fees for solicitors advising international protection applicants will impact access to justice for a vulnerable group of people. An immigration solicitor told Irish Legal News last week that the new fee structure for the International Protection Sol

The Legal Aid Board is bracing for an increase in demand and delays in accessing legal services due to the Covid-19 pandemic, its chairperson Philip O'Leary has said.

Fresh cuts to legal aid for international protection applications will further limit access to justice for vulnerable people, lawyers have warned. The new legal aid scheme includes dramatic cuts, such as reducing the fee for preparing submissions for an application by 58 per cent from €730 to &

Legal rights group FLAC assisted around 27,000 people last year as it marked its 50th anniversary, according to its latest annual report. Over the course of 2019, FLAC dealt with over 26,995 requests for legal information/advice through its telephone line and its network of 72 legal clinics.

More than 5,000 local law firms and up to half of law centres in England and Wales could go bust as a result of the COVID-19 crisis if the UK government does not step in, MPs have warned. In a new report, Westminster's justice select committee has urged the Ministry of Justice to consider further gr

The new government's programme "falls short" on access to justice in a number of key areas, legal rights group FLAC has said. In its new 17-page response to the Programme for Government, FLAC has repeated its call for a "root-and-branch" review of the civil legal aid system.

A 64-year-old cleaner has won an age and disability discrimination case in the Workplace Relations Commission with support from legal rights group FLAC. The woman, represented by FLAC managing solicitor Sinead Lucey, took proceedings after being dismissed on the grounds of age and ill health from he

Law centres are facing dramatic increases in calls from workers concerned about their employment rights during the coronavirus pandemic. Community Law and Mediation (CLM), with law centres in Dublin and Limerick, has said it is "at capacity" after a 196 per cent year-on-year increase in consultation

The number of applications to the legal aid agency's COVID-19 interim payment scheme has fallen sharply in its second full week of operation. The Legal Services Agency (LSA) received 444 requests in the week ending 22 May 2020, a 45 per cent decline from 818 in the previous week.

Nearly a third of solicitor applications and nearly half of barrister applications to the legal aid agency's COVID-19 interim payment scheme have been rejected. The Legal Services Agency (LSA), which launched the scheme two weeks ago, has revealed it had received 818 requests by Friday 15 May.