The leaflet is available on our website. You will also find a range of other legal information leaflets at www.legalservices.gov.uk or from the LSC Leaflet Line (see back cover for details).
Contents
Introduction
1.1 About this booklet
1.2 The different levels of service
1.3 A low-cost interview
1.4 How do I find a solicitor or legal adviser?
1.5 How do I find solicitors or advice agencies?
1.6 How the LSC administers the funding schemes
1.7 Public legal funding in Scotland and Northern Ireland
1.8 Legal funding abroad
1.9 Statutory provisions
Legal Help and Help at Court
2.1 What do Legal Help and Help at Court cover?
2.2 How do I apply for Legal Help or Help at Court?
2.3 Children
2.4 Do I qualify financially?
2.5 Capital: do I qualify?
2.6 Income: do I qualify?
2.7 Do I pay a contribution?
2.8 What happens if money or property is recovered or preserved?
2.9 How does my solicitor or legal adviser get paid?
2.10 Repeated applications
Family Mediation
3.1 What does Family Mediation cover?
3.2 How do I apply for Family Mediation?
3.3 Do I qualify financially?
3.4 Capital: do I qualify?
3.5 Income: do I qualify?
3.6 Do I pay a contribution?
3.7 What happens if money or property is recovered or preserved?
3.8 How does the mediator get paid?
Approved Family Help: Help with Mediation and General Family Help
4.1 What does Approved Family Help cover?
4.2 How do I apply for Approved Family Help?
4.3 Do I qualify financially?
4.4 Do I pay a contribution?
4.5 What happens if money or property is recovered or preserved?
4.6 How does my solicitor get paid?
Legal Representation
5.1 What does Legal Representation cover?
5.2 What kinds of courts and cases are covered?
5.3 How do I apply for Legal Representation?
5.4 What happens if my case is urgent?
5.5 How do I qualify for Legal Representation?
5.6 Who decides whether I qualify financially?
5.7 Do I qualify financially?
5.8 Income: do I qualify?
5.9 Income: do I pay a contribution?
5.10 Capital: do I qualify?
5.11 Capital: do I have to pay a contribution?
5.12 How do I pay towards the cost of my case?
5.13 What costs do I pay if I win?
5.14 What costs do I pay if I lose?
5.15 Legal Representation and appeals to a higher court
Support Funding
6.1 What does Support Funding cover?
6.2 How do I apply for Support Funding?
Guide to assessing financial eligibility for all levels of service
LSC offices
1.1 About this booklet
This guide explains how the Legal Services Commission (LSC) funds civil legal services. It is for people seeking help on legal matters as well as those who can put others seeking legal help in touch with a solicitor or legal adviser.
1.2 The different levels of service
The LSC funds a range of legal services. The different levels of service in civil matters are:
It is available in two forms:
Investigative Help: funding is limited to
investigation of the strength of a claim.
Full Representation: funding is provided to represent
you in legal proceedings.
It is also possible for both Investigative Help and Full
Representation to be granted on an emergency basis where the matter
is urgent and meets the criteria.
One of the key changes of the reformed scheme is that some cases which were previously paid for by legal aid will now be carried out under a "conditional fee agreement" (CFA). A CFA is a private arrangement between you and your solicitor. Usually you will not pay any costs to your solicitor if you lose, it all depends on what agreement you draw up with your solicitor. The following levels of service may be available to support these cases if they meet the criteria.
It is available in two forms:
Investigative Support: funding is limited to
investigation of the strength of a claim with a view to a
conditional fee agreement.
Litigation Support: provides partial funding of high cost
proceedings under a conditional fee agreement.
1.3 A low-cost interview
In addition to the above levels of service, some solicitors are prepared to give a free or low-cost initial interview whether or not you qualify for funding. Solicitors offering these interviews are part of local referral schemes and details are available from local CABx, law centres or other advice agencies. Please note these schemes are not available in some areas.
1.4 How do I find a solicitor or legal adviser?
If you do not already have a solicitor or other legal adviser, here are some ways of finding one:
When you find a solicitor or legal adviser, make sure that what you tell him/her about your finances and your case is accurate.
There are penalties for deliberate false statements about capital and income and you may have your funding taken away if you give a solicitor wrong information about your case.
Keep in touch with your solicitor about your case and be guided by his/her advice. You must immediately tell him/her if your finances change. Tell him/her if you change your address.
If you are not sure about any aspect of the funding of your case the LSC regional office dealing with your case may be able to help you. The offices are listed at the back of this guide.
1.5 How do I find solicitors or advice agencies?
LSC funded services for civil cases are only available from solicitors or advice agencies which hold a contract with the Legal Services Commission. This means that they have been checked to see that they meet certain standards and provide a quality service. The CLS logo is a special mark of quality and will be displayed in the windows of organisations, see 1.4.
For some types of cases, in particular family, immigration, mental health and clinical negligence, the organisation must not only have a contract with the LSC but the contract must actually cover the specific type of case.
Details of Quality Marked solicitors and advice agencies are available in the CLS Directory, from the website www.justask.org.uk or contact the CLS Directory line on 0845 608 1122 (calls charged at local rate) (minicom: 0845 609 6677). You will need to check with the individual solicitors firm or advice agency whether they offer LSC funded services (also called legal aid).
1.6 How the LSC administers the funding schemes
The LSC administers the funding schemes for civil and criminal cases under the general guidance of the Lord Chancellor. For this purpose, England and Wales are divided into a number of regions. Each region has a regional office and regional committees which perform a number of roles. The Regional Legal Services Committees work with local authorities and others to develop new ways of planning and delivering advice services to the public. The funding review and costs committees hear applications for review of decisions in individual cases made by the regional office.
If your solicitor/legal adviser holds a contract with the LSC they may, if fully approved by the LSC, also be authorised to decide whether you should have funding for the following types of service:
For other levels of service, your solicitor will normally apply on your behalf to one of our regional offices, where our staff will decide whether your application meets the criteria for LSC funding.
The regional office (or your solicitor where he/she is authorised) can either grant or refuse your application.
If an application is refused because you do not qualify financially, or because you have applied for an emergency certificate but do not meet the criteria for an emergency grant, you can ask for the decision to be reviewed by the Regional Director.
If your application is refused because it does not meet any other criteria applied to that type of case then there will also be a right to review. This will be initially by the Regional Director and if the refusal is confirmed by him or her, then by the funding review committee.
1.7 Public legal funding in Scotland and Northern Ireland
There are separate schemes in Scotland and Northern Ireland. If you want to know about legal aid in Scotland, write to:
The Scottish Legal Aid Board,
44 Drumsheugh Gardens, Edinburgh EH3 7SW.
Tel: 0131 226 7061. Fax: 0131 220 4878.
Website address: www.slab.org.uk
For Northern Ireland, write to the Incorporated Law Society of
Northern Ireland,
Legal Aid Department,
3rd Floor, Bedford House,
16-22 Bedford Street,
Belfast BT2 7FL.
Tel: 02890 246441. Fax: 02890 332548.
1.8 Legal funding abroad
Many foreign countries have legal aid schemes, but most do not cover as much as ours. England and Wales have an agreement with some European countries that they can pass on, through the LSC, applications from people seeking legal aid for civil proceedings in those countries. Although the foreign country decides the application on its own rules, you can make your application through us.
The LSC will transmit the application on your behalf to the relevant authority in the foreign country. You can, if you qualify financially, get Legal Help from your solicitor to help you with the application, including obtaining any necessary translations.
The countries covered by this agreement are: Austria, Azerbaijan, Belgium, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Denmark, Eire, Estonia, Finland, France, Greece, Italy, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and Turkey.
If you need legal aid outside these countries you should approach the United Kingdom representative (embassy/consulate) of the country concerned for information.
1.9 Statutory provisions
The provisions of the civil scheme are contained in the Access to Justice Act 1999, and the Funding Code, guidance, regulations, directions and orders made under that Act. This guide is a brief summary only.
2.1 What do Legal Help and Help at Court cover?
Legal Help and Help at Court can only be provided by a solicitor or legal adviser who has a contract with the LSC. S/he can give general advice, write letters, negotiate, get a barrister's opinion and prepare a written case if you have to go before a court or tribunal.
The solicitor or adviser can also provide Help at Court, which means that s/he can appear in court on your behalf at a particular hearing, without formally acting for you in the whole proceedings. One example where this level of service might be available would be for an application to suspend a warrant for possession in a housing case. You must satisfy a financial eligibility test for these levels of service.
These two levels of service enable people of moderate means to get help from a solicitor or adviser until his/her charges reach a total of £500 (the figure is higher for immigration asylum cases). Once the costs limit is reached, the solicitor or adviser can only carry out further work at this level with the authority of the LSC regional office.
Legal Help cannot be applied for retrospectively.
If you need to go to court in civil proceedings your solicitor or adviser may advise you to apply for a higher level of funding such as Full Representation. Your solicitor may be authorised to grant your application in some cases (see 1.6). If not, s/he can complete the necessary application forms under the Legal Help level of service.
Legal Help and Help at Court are available in England and Wales and apply only to questions of English Law. They do not cover the law of Scotland or Northern Ireland, nor that of any other country unless such law is relevant for determining any issue relating to the law of England and Wales.
2.2 How do I apply for Legal Help or Help at Court?
You should contact a solicitor or legal adviser who holds a contract with the LSC to provide these levels of service. It is best to telephone for an appointment first. If you are ill or cannot travel, you should ask someone to call at the solicitor's or adviser's office for you - or the solicitor or adviser may be able to visit you. The solicitor or adviser will ask about all your finances. S/he will then fill in a form.
Your solicitor or adviser will tell you at once whether you qualify. If you do qualify financially you will not have to pay a contribution. A solicitor or adviser can refuse to give you Legal Help or Help at Court. S/he need not give a reason. However, s/he may be asked to explain the reasons for his/her refusal by the LSC regional office.
2.3 Children
Children are eligible for Legal Help and Help at Court. In most cases where a child under school-leaving age (16) requires the help of a solicitor, a parent or guardian should apply on his/her behalf. A solicitor can advise a child directly in certain cases. The parents' or guardian's means will be taken into account in assessing the financial eligibility of the child except in certain circumstances, for example, a conflict of interest between the child and parent.
2.4 Do I qualify financially?
You must be able to show that your capital AND your income are within the current financial limits. If you are married or living with someone as a couple, your partner's capital and income will be included unless:
2.5 Capital: do I qualify?
Work out your disposable capital (see Section 7 of this guide). If this exceeds £3,000 you will not be eligible.
2.6 Income: do I qualify?
If you are receiving income support or income based jobseeker's allowance you will be eligible on income but your capital will still need to be assessed.
If you are not receiving one of these benefits your solicitor will take the actual gross income in the past month of yourself and your partner (see Section 7). If this exceeds £2,288 you will not be eligible. A higher limit applies if you have more than 4 dependant children in your family for whom you receive child benefit (see table in Section 7). If your gross income is £2,288 or less your solicitor will then calculate your disposable income (see Section 7). If your monthly disposable income exceeds £621 per month you will not be eligible.
2.7 Do I pay a contribution?
No. You will not be asked to pay any contribution out of your capital. Neither will you pay anything from your income if you qualify.
2.8 What happens if money or property is recovered or preserved?
Where money or property is recovered or preserved under Legal Help or Help at Court in a family or clinical negligence matter then your solicitor must use this to pay his/her bill. This is called the statutory charge.
For example, if your solicitor recovers £750 for you and his/her bill is £100, you will receive £650. There are some exceptions to this rule.
The statutory charge does NOT apply if the money or property recovered consists of either maintenance payments, or payments up to £3,000 in a matrimonial property settlement.
2.9 How does my solicitor or legal adviser get paid?
The LSC regional office will pay your solicitor's bill. But remember, if anything is recovered or preserved in your case using Legal Help or Help at Court it may be put towards paying your solicitor's bill in family or clinical negligence matters.
2.10 Repeated applications
You must tell your solicitor or adviser if you have had Legal Help or Help at Court about the same matter paid for by the LSC or its predecessor the Legal Aid Board. The new solicitor may be able to give you further Legal Help or Help at Court even though you have already had previous funding for your case.
3.1 What does family mediation cover?
The LSC provides funding for mediation of a family dispute for couples and family members who qualify financially.
Mediation can help with disputes relating to children, money and property. A mediator does not make decisions for you, but helps you and the other party, usually your partner, to reach your own decisions in a neutral environment. It is an alternative to reaching agreements or obtaining court orders entirely through solicitors and does not replace legal or other advice. For more information on mediation see the leaflet "Family Mediation" produced by the LSC in association with the Consumers' Association. It is available on our website at www.legalservices.gov.uk or from the LSC Leaflet Line.
Those eligible for mediation can obtain legal advice and assistance from a solicitor to support them during mediation. This can either be through Legal Help (see Section 2) or Help with Mediation (see Section 4).
Currently, mediation is covered by family mediators contracted to the LSC.
3.2 How do I apply for family mediation?
Information about mediation is available from your local LSC regional office. You can also find out further information and the names of mediators at www.justask.org.uk or contact the CLS Directory Line on 0845 608 1122 (calls charged at local rate) (minicom: 0845 609 6677).
3.3 Do I qualify financially?
If you are receiving income support or income based jobseeker's allowance you will be eligible on income and capital. In all other cases you must be able to show that your capital AND your income are within the current financial limits.
If you are married or living with someone as a couple, your partner's capital and income will be included unless:
3.4 Capital: do I qualify?
Your mediator will work out your disposable capital (see Section 7).
If this exceeds £8,000 you will not be eligible.
3.5 Income: do I qualify?
The mediator assessing eligibility will take the actual gross income in the past month of yourself and your partner. If your gross income exceeds £2,288 per month you will not be eligible. A higher limit applies if you have more than 4 dependant children in your family for whom you receive child benefit (see table in Section 7). If your gross monthly income is £2,288 or less your mediator will assess your disposable income (see Section 7). You qualify if your disposable income is £707 per month or less and your disposable capital is £8,000 or less.
3.6 Do I pay a contribution?
No. You will not be asked to pay any contribution out of your capital or income.
3.7 What happens if money or property is recovered or preserved?
Where money or property is recovered or preserved under Family Mediation the statutory charge will not apply, and you will not be liable to pay any of your mediator's costs.
3.8 How does the mediator get paid?
The LSC will pay the mediator's costs.
4.1 What does Approved Family Help cover?
Approved Family Help provides help in family cases short of Full Representation in contested proceedings. This can take two forms: Help with Mediation which is limited to giving advice to you to support Family Mediation, or General Family Help, which covers negotiations where no mediation is in progress. Both levels of service can cover obtaining a court order to confirm any agreement where appropriate.
Help with Mediation is only available if you are actually participating in Family Mediation, or have successfully reached an agreement or settlement as a result of Family Mediation, and are in need of legal advice or assistance. It is only available from solicitors with a contract with the LSC in family law. It enables people who qualify to get help from a solicitor or adviser until his/her costs reach £150 where mediation relates to children issues only, £250 for financial issues only and £350 where mediation covers issues relating to children and finances together. This limit can be extended where necessary on application to the LSC regional office. All work properly carried out under this level of service is exempt from the statutory charge (see 5.13 for a further explanation of the charge).
General Family Help covers negotiations in a family dispute where no mediation is in progress, although it will not usually be granted unless the suitability of the case for mediation has been considered by a mediator. It also includes representation in proceedings where this is necessary to obtain disclosure of information (for example, about finances) from another party. It is only available from solicitors with a family law contract with the LSC. It enables people who qualify to get help from a solicitor or adviser until his/her charges reach an initial limit of £1,500. This limit can be extended where necessary on application to the LSC regional office.
The statutory charge will apply to any money or property recovered or preserved under this level of service. (See 5.13 for a further explanation of the charge).
4.2 How do I apply for Approved Family Help?
Apply through your solicitor who will fill in the appropriate form. If you are attending Family Mediation, or have completed mediation and wish to apply for Help with Mediation, it will help your solicitor if you can show him/her any documents you have relating to the mediation. Your solicitor can grant Help with Mediation directly. If you are applying for General Family Help your solicitor will send the application form to the LSC regional office, which will decide whether it meets the criteria for funding. Your solicitor will explain how these criteria apply to your case. The regional office can either grant or refuse the application. If your application is refused on merits, you will have a right of review by the LSC's Regional Director and ultimately by the LSC's funding review committee.
4.3 Do I qualify financially?
Help with Mediation: if you received funding for your Family Mediation you will automatically qualify for funding for Help with Mediation in respect of the same mediation. Otherwise, your solicitor will assess your eligibility in accordance with the financial eligibility rules for Family Mediation (see Section 3).
General Family Help: the LSC regional office will assess your eligibility in accordance with the financial eligibility rules for Legal Representation (see Section 5).
4.4 Do I pay a contribution?
No contributions are payable if you receive Help with Mediation. Contributions may be payable if you receive General Family Help - the conditions are the same as those which apply to Legal Representation (see Section 5).
4.5 What happens if money or property is recovered or preserved?
If Help with Mediation is the only level of service given then the statutory charge will not apply, and you will not be liable to pay any of your solicitor's costs. If General Family Help is given, then the statutory charge may apply - please see 5.13 for an explanation of the way the charge operates.
4.6 How does my solicitor get paid?
The LSC regional office will pay your solicitor's bill, less any contribution you have to pay. But remember, if anything is recovered or preserved using General Family Help it may be put towards paying your solicitor's bill.
5.1 What does Legal Representation cover?
You may have had advice under Legal Help but your solicitor has not been able to resolve your legal problem. S/he may then advise that your case requires further investigation or should be taken to court. There are different types of Legal Representation which can cover this work:
Investigative Help: this is a form of Legal Representation which is limited to the investigation of the strength of a proposed claim. It is only available where the prospects of success are not clear and the investigation is likely to be expensive.
It covers the issue and conduct of proceedings only so far as these are necessary to obtain disclosure of relevant information or to protect your position in relation to any urgent hearing or time limit for the issue of proceedings. Investigative Help is not available in family cases as General Family Help will be more appropriate (see Section 4).
Only organisations with a relevant LSC contract may apply for Investigative Help on your behalf (see 1.5).
Your application will be assessed by the LSC regional office, which will decide whether it meets the criteria for funding. The regional office can either grant or refuse the application. If your application is refused, you will have a right of review by the LSC's Regional Director and ultimately by the LSC's funding review committee. In order for your application to succeed, you will need to show that you are eligible financially (please see Section 7 for guidance on eligibility) and meet the relevant merits criteria for funding. Your solicitor will explain how these merits criteria apply to your case. The statutory charge will apply to any money or property recovered or preserved under this level of service. (See 5.13 for further explanation of the charge).
Full Representation: this is the main form of Legal Representation. Although the LSC may impose limitations and conditions on the extent of funding, in principle
Full Representation can cover all work needed to take legal proceedings to trial and beyond.
Full Representation is available in both family and civil cases, but there are different merits criteria and financial criteria for different types of case. Your solicitor will be able to explain the different merits criteria to you. Two examples where different criteria apply are:
Legal Help - see Section 2) and special merits criteria.
Only organisations with a relevant LSC contract can apply for Full Representation on your behalf (see 1.5). Your application for Full Representation will in most cases be assessed by the LSC regional office, which will decide whether it meets the criteria for funding. The regional office can either grant or refuse the application. If your application is refused on merits, you will have a right of review by the LSC's Regional Director and ultimately by the LSC's funding review committee.
Any funding certificate issued may be limited in terms of the work which your solicitor can undertake and the amount of costs which can be incurred. Your solicitor will explain the limitations which apply to your certificate.
The statutory charge may apply to any money or property recovered or preserved using this level of service, depending on the type of proceedings involved. (See 5.13 for further explanation of the charge).
5.2 What kinds of courts and cases are covered?
Legal Representation is available for civil cases in:
Some cases before:
And some cases before:
Your solicitor will be able to advise you whether your case comes within any of the exclusions. When a case is out of scope funding can be considered in very exceptional circumstances (contact the LSC Policy and Legal Department on 020 7759 0000 for details).
Legal Representation is not available for cases outside England and Wales, except where a case is referred by the court to the European Court of Justice.
5.3 How do I apply for Legal Representation?
Apply through your solicitor. For some types of representation your solicitor may be able to decide whether you qualify financially, and your application meets the merits criteria without referring to the LSC regional office first.
The majority of applications will need to be submitted to the regional office for a decision. In every case your solicitor will need to complete an application form on your behalf. It is important that you help your solicitor to complete any forms accurately and promptly. Your solicitor can be paid for filling in the forms under Legal Help if you qualify for it (see Section 2). Most applications to the LSC regional office are processed within two weeks. You may be sent a further form to fill in asking for more information about your finances. If you are, you should complete and send it back immediately. The regional office assessment officer (see 5.6) will work out whether you qualify financially. The regional office will also decide whether your application satisfies the relevant merits criteria for funding for your type of case. Your solicitor will probably not be prepared to deal with your case until a funding certificate is issued by the LSC which confirms that you have got funding.
This is because a certificate does not cover your solicitor for any work done before it is issued. A certificate will not be backdated but in some cases involving children the solicitor can act immediately.
5.4 What happens if my case is urgent?
If your case is urgent, your solicitor can ask for emergency Legal Representation. This can be granted at once. If your solicitor is authorised to do so by the LSC then they may also be able to make the decision to grant emergency Legal Representation without applying to the LSC's regional office beforehand. Emergency Legal Representation covers limited urgent steps and lasts only until the regional office has taken a decision on your full application for Legal Representation.
When you apply for emergency Legal Representation you must agree to co-operate with the assessment officer in his/her enquiries into your financial position and to pay any contribution that is assessed.
You also have to agree to pay the full costs of your case if it is found that you do not qualify for Legal Representation or if you refuse it when it is offered to you (for example because you are asked to pay a contribution).
5.5 How do I qualify for Legal Representation?
You must:
These criteria are set out in the LSC "Funding Code" and your solicitor will be able to explain to you how they apply.
Example
You might have reasonable grounds for claiming damages but the amount involved is small enough to be dealt with by the county court as a small claim, which does not require you to have legal representation. An application for Legal Representation would be refused, but if you qualified financially you might be able to obtain Legal Help.
Note: in some cases involving children there are no means or merits criteria.
5.6 Who decides whether I qualify financially?
Your solicitor will assess whether you qualify financially for Legal Representation before the immigration adjudicator, immigration appeal tribunal or in a limited range of family cases in the magistrates' court. In these cases, your solicitor will need to see evidence of your finances and will provide you with details of their assessment directly.
Assessment officers at the LSC regional office assess means in most other cases. A Special Investigations Unit determines means in complex cases.
The assessment officer will work out if you qualify financially for Legal Representation and if you have any contribution to pay.
To do this s/he may need to see evidence of your finances, including bank statements, savings books and details of your earnings. The financial application form will tell you what is required. Remember the finances of both you and your partner must be added together if you live as a couple unless:
You will be issued with a breakdown of how you have been assessed.
If you do not agree with the assessment officer's assessment, you may ask for it to be reviewed.
5.7 Do I qualify financially?
For Legal Representation before the immigration adjudicator or
immigration appeal tribunal the financial eligibility criteria are
the same as that for Legal
Help (see Section 2). Legal Representation before the mental health
review tribunal is not subject to a means test.
For all other types of Legal Representation, if you are on income support or income based jobseeker's allowance you will qualify for funding automatically without having to pay a contribution. Otherwise, you must be able to show that your capital, including savings, and your income are within the current financial limits.
Children are assessed in their own right when they apply for Legal Representation and their parents' financial position is not taken into account. The limits apply to children and adults alike.
If you are granted funding and your finances, liabilities or dependants change you must tell the LSC's regional office immediately. Section 7 will help you work out whether you might qualify for funding.
5.8 Income: do I qualify?
The assessment officer assesses your gross income for you and your partner for the previous month. If your gross monthly income exceeds £2,288 you will not be eligible for funding. A higher limit applies if there are more than 4 children in your family for whom you receive child benefit (see table in Section 7). If your gross monthly income is £2,288 or less your solicitor will then assess your disposable income (see Section 7).
If disposable income is £707 or less you will qualify on income for all types of Representation except Legal Representation before the immigration adjudicator and immigration appeal tribunal.
The upper disposable limit for Legal Representation before the immigration adjudicator or immigration appeal tribunal is £621 per month.
5.9 Income: do I have to pay a contribution?
If you are eligible for Legal Representation before the immigration adjudicator or immigration appeal tribunal no contributions are payable from either income or capital.
For all other types of Legal Representation, if your disposable income is £267 per month or less you will pay no contribution. If it is between £268 and £707 per month inclusive, you will have to pay towards the cost of your case from your income. Contributions from income are paid on an ongoing basis. The monthly contribution will be assessed in accordance with the following table:
So if disposable income is £303 per month, the contribution will be in band A, the excess income is £40 and therefore the monthly contribution will be £10 per month.
If the disposable income was £408 per month, the contribution would be in band B, the excess income would be £15 (£408-£393), the monthly contribution would therefore be £37.50 i.e. £32.50 + £5.
If the disposable income was £542 per month, the contribution would be in band C, the excess income would be £20 (£542-£522) , the monthly contribution would therefore be £85.50 i.e. £75.50 + £10.
The first contribution must be paid when you accept your offer of funding, with further contributions every month after that for as long as your case is being funded by the LSC. Contributions may be waived where the contributions already paid are more than the likely total costs of the proceedings.
5.10 Capital: do I qualify?
You will need to add up your disposable capital (see Section 7).
To qualify for Legal Representation before the immigration adjudicator or immigration appeal tribunal, you must have not more than £3,000 in capital. If your disposable capital is £8,000 or less you will qualify for all other types of Legal Representation.
With the exception of Legal Representation before the immigration adjudicator or immigration appeal tribunal, if your disposable capital is more than these limits you may still be offered funding if your case is likely to be expensive.
5.11 Capital: do I have to pay a contribution?
No contributions are payable from capital for Legal Representation before the immigration adjudicator or immigration appeal tribunal.
For all other types of Legal Representation, if your disposable capital as assessed is £3,000 or less, or if you are receiving income support or income based jobseeker's allowance, you will not have to pay a contribution. If your capital is assessed at more than £3,000 you will have to pay a contribution; this will be required at once. You will be asked to pay all your disposable capital over £3,000.
The calculation of disposable capital is different for pensioners. Men and women of 60 or over may benefit from an extra allowance. If their disposable income is less than £267 per month (excluding net income earned from capital) then certain amounts of savings are disregarded so that they can still qualify for funding despite their total savings being more than the usual capital limit.
The amounts that are disregarded are set out below: Capital disregards for pensioners (NB these do not apply to Legal Representation before the immigration adjudicator or immigration appeal tribunal and to Legal Representation for a limited range of family cases in the magistrates' court).
| Monthly disposable income (excluding net income derived from capital) | Amount of capital disregarded |
| £ | £ |
| Up to 25 | 100,000 |
| 26-50 | 90,000 |
| 51-75 | 80,000 |
| 76-100 | 70,000 |
| 101-125 | 60,000 |
| 126-150 | 50,000 |
| 151-175 | 40,000 |
| 176-200 | 30,000 |
| 201-225 | 20,000 |
| 226-250 | 10,000 |
5.12 How do I pay towards the cost of my case?
If the LSC regional office decides your case satisfies the merits criteria and also decides that you qualify financially, it will either issue a certificate if you do not have to pay a contribution or, if you do, send you an offer of a certificate.
You do not have to pay anything until you accept the offer.
Once you do accept, you must pay a contribution from your savings straight away and any contribution from income by monthly instalments, of which the first is paid when you accept the offer.
A certificate will then be issued and only then can your solicitor start to deal with your case using LSC funding. For Legal Representation before the immigration adjudicator or immigration appeal tribunal there are no contributions to pay.
Except in a limited range of cases in the magistrates' court, if your income or capital increase while your certificate is in force you must immediately notify the LSC regional office and your means may be re-assessed. If your income decreases you may apply for your means to be re-assessed and your contribution may be reduced. If you come into money, for example if you sell your house or win the lottery, while your case is being funded by the LSC, you may be asked to pay some, or all of your legal costs out of the money.
If you have a contribution to pay in instalments, it is very important that you keep them up. If you do not, the funding for your case may be withdrawn.
5.13 What costs do I pay if I win?
Your solicitor, as well as your barrister - if you have one - is entitled to be paid his/her reasonable costs. If you win your case, the amount you will have to pay will depend on whether:
If the other side does not pay your costs in full, the LSC regional office must deduct from any money ordered by the court or agreed by the other side to be paid to you (and actually paid) as much as may be needed to cover the costs.
This deduction is known as the statutory charge and it will apply to any property you receive or preserve in the case, whether by a court order or under a compromise or settlement of the case.
Maintenance and the first £3,000 of any money or property recovered or preserved from the other side in family proceedings are exempt from the statutory charge - and so are most state benefits. In some specific circumstances the statutory charge can be postponed, that is to say, not collected immediately. In these cases the money you owe will be registered as a charge on your home like a mortgage, and it will be subject to payment of simple (rather than compound) interest. More information can be found in a separate leaflet called "Paying back the Legal Services Commission - The Statutory Charge".
This leaflet is available on our website at www.legalservices.gov.uk or from the LSC Leaflet Line (see back cover for details).
5.14 What costs do I pay if I lose?
If you have received Legal Representation and lose your case then the most you will normally have to pay towards your solicitor's or barrister's costs will be any contribution under your certificate.
Normally, the court will not order you to pay your opponent's costs, but it may do so in certain limited circumstances. Where this is so, the court decides how much you must pay towards them. The amount you may be ordered to pay will depend on your means and your conduct in connection with the dispute. It will also take into account your opponent's means and conduct.
The court will normally take your partner's resources into account when assessing ability to pay, but will not include the value of your clothes, household furniture, and tools of trade unless exceptional circumstances apply, nor the first £100,000 of the value of your home.
If you cannot afford to pay your costs, then the debt may be secured against your home, but the court cannot order the sale of your home to pay the debt.
If you have received Investigative Support or Litigation Support then your opponent's costs will usually be met from an insurance policy if the case goes ahead and is unsuccessful.
5.15 Legal Representation and appeals to a higher court
If you lose a case where you were not funded by the LSC you may
still apply to us for funding to appeal to a higher court. The
rules in 5.5 still apply.
If your case was funded by the LSC your funding certificate can be
amended to cover an appeal.
6.1 What does Support Funding cover?
Support Funding provides partial funding for personal injury cases (excluding clinical negligence) and some multi-party actions (a case in which a large number of people bring claims of the same type) in certain circumstances. These are where you are bringing (or intending to bring) your case under a "conditional fee agreement" (CFA), but it is unusually expensive so justifies some assistance from the LSC. An information sheet on CFAs is available from your LSC regional office. Also a leaflet on CFAs entitled "No-win, no-fee actions" has been produced by the LSC in association with the Consumers' Association. It is available on our website at www.legalservices.gov.uk or from the LSC Leaflet Line (see back cover for details). The CLS Directory includes information on solicitors willing to act under CFAs.
When Support Funding is granted, the LSC does not take over general responsibility for funding the costs of proceedings. The case will continue on a private basis but your solicitor will be paid limited payments by the LSC during the case towards the overall legal costs. This is intended to make the risk to your solicitor of losing the case more acceptable, as under a "conditional fee agreement" you will not usually have to pay your solicitor if you lose, (it all depends on what agreement you draw up with your solicitor).
There are two types of Support Funding:
Investigative Support: provides limited funding for the investigation of the strength of a proposed claim with a view to proceeding under a CFA. Only work done investigating the strength of the claim is covered, not other work investigating, for example, the size of the claim in detail. As soon as sufficient investigative work has been carried out to estimate prospects of success and to decide whether to proceed under a CFA, this must be reported to the LSC and no further work will be funded. Investigative Support is only available where the reasonable costs of investigation are exceptionally high, i.e. disbursements (such as expert's reports) are likely to exceed £1,000 or the solicitor's fees to investigate the case are likely to exceed £3,000. Other merits criteria apply to this level of funding, including a requirement that likely damages exceed £5,000.
Litigation Support: provides partial funding of high cost litigation already proceeding under a CFA. Litigation Support is only available where the reasonable costs of the litigation are exceptionally high, i.e. disbursements (such as expert's reports) are likely to exceed £5,000 or the costs of the case excluding disbursements are likely to exceed £15,000. Other merits criteria apply to this level of funding, including a requirement that damages must exceed costs by set ratios, except where the claim has a significant wider public interest.
6.2 How do I apply for Support Funding?
Only solicitors contracted by the LSC to undertake personal
injury cases may apply on your behalf for Support Funding.
Your solicitor will need to complete an application form on your
behalf. It is important that you help your solicitor to complete
any forms accurately and promptly.
Applications for Investigative Support should be made to your LSC regional office. Applications for Litigation Support must be submitted to the LSC Special Cases Unit with a costed case plan.
Support Funding is only available for clients who are eligible
financially and whose cases meet the merits criteria.
Costs incurred under Support Funding give rise to the statutory
charge (see 5.13 for a further explanation of the charge) but there
are special rules which apply in certain situations. Your solicitor
will be able to explain these rules to you.
Summary of Eligibility Limits
The following guide shows how your solicitor or adviser will work out whether you are likely to qualify financially for funding. This guide does not apply to Legal Representation before the mental health appeal tribunal (see 5.5).
Remember that for some Legal Representation this is only a rough guide and it is for the LSC to assess eligibility (see 5.3). Note that also the assessment officer may take into account the assets of others where they have transferred resources to the client, maintained the client in the proceedings or have made resources available to the client.
Step 1: Identify whether the client has a partner whose means should be included in the assessment
Step 2: Identify clients in receipt of income support or income based jobseeker's allowance
Clients in receipt (either directly or indirectly) of income support or income based jobseeker's allowance are eligible on income for all levels of service but clients applying for Legal Help, Help at Court or Legal Representation before Immigration Adjudicators and the Immigration Appeal Tribunal must still have their capital assessed (see step 7). If the client is not in receipt of income support, or income based jobseeker's allowance, move on to step 3. Other types of benefit, such as Working Tax Credit and Child Tax Credit, do not give automatic entitlement.
Step 3: Work out monthly gross income
Add together the client's monthly gross income (i.e. before tax)
and that of his/her partner if appropriate.
Income includes:
Income excludes: the full amount of any of the following welfare benefits: attendance allowance, council tax benefit, housing benefit, social fund payments, disability living allowance, constant attendance allowance, invalid care allowance, severe disablement allowance, exceptionally severe disablement allowance, any war pensions, independent living fund payments, fostering allowance (to the extent it exceeds the relevant dependant's allowance), back to work bonus under section 26 of the Job Seeker's Act 1995, payments made under the Earnings Top-up Scheme and Payments under the Community Care Direct Payment Scheme.
Gross monthly income £ If over £2,288** the client will not get funding.
Step 4: Work out deductible allowances and expenses
Deduct the following from monthly income:
- rent or mortgage repayments (less any housing benefit),
although the amount allowed if the client has no dependants is
limited to £545;
- endowment policy premiums (if paid in connection with a
mortgage);
- actual costs of accommodation if the client is neither a tenant
nor owner-occupier.
The monthly amounts of allowances for dependants are:
| Partner | £135.14 |
| Dependants Aged 15 or under | £167.29 |
| Aged 16 or over | £167.29 |
Note that no other deductions may be made by the Assessment
Officer.
Step 5: Work out monthly disposable income
Monthly gross income (see step 3)
£ minus
deductions (see step 4) £ to give Monthly disposable income £
Step 6: Does the monthly disposable income qualify the client for funding?
For Legal Help, Help at Court, Legal Representation before Immigration Adjudicators and the Immigration Appeal Tribunal you will not get funding if your disposable income exceeds £621 per month.
For all other levels of service you will not get funding if your
disposable income exceeds £707 per month.
If your disposable income is below these limits then you qualify
for funding but you may have to pay a contribution from income (see
step 10 below).
Step 7: Work out capital
Add together all the capital of the client (and partner if appropriate).
Capital includes:
A maximum of £100,000 is allowed in respect of all mortgages on all the client's properties;
Do not include:
Total disposable Capital £
Step 8: Does the disposable capital qualify the client for funding?
For Legal Help, Help at Court, and Legal Representation before Immigration Adjudicators and the Immigration Appeal Tribunal you will not get funding if your disposable capital exceeds £3,000.
For all other levels of service you will not get funding if your disposable capital exceeds £8,000 unless the Commission considers the probable costs would exceed the contribution payable (see step 9).
If your disposable capital is below these limits then you may qualify for funding but you must have your income assessed (see steps 3-5 above). You may also have to pay a contribution from capital (see step 9 below).
Step 9: Work out the size of the client's likely capital contribution
If your disposable capital is £3,000 or below you will pay no capital contribution for any level of service.
There are no contributions from capital for Legal Help, Help at Court, Legal Representation before Immigration Adjudicators and the Immigration Appeal Tribunal, Family Mediation, and Help with Mediation.
For other levels of service if your disposable capital exceeds £3,000 you will have to pay a capital contribution as follows:
Total disposable Capital (see step 7)
£
Deduct £3,000 to give
Capital contribution £
Pensioners on low incomes are allowed capital disregards for some forms of Legal Representation (see 5.11).
Step 10: Work out amount of contribution from income
If your disposable income is £267 per month or less you will pay no income contribution for any level of service.
There are no contributions from income for Legal Help, Help at Court, Legal Representation before Immigration Adjudicators and the Immigration Appeal Tribunal, Family Mediation, and Help with Mediation.
For other levels of service if your disposable income exceeds £267 per month you will have to pay a monthly contribution from income. Such contributions will be assessed in accordance with the following bands depending on the level of the assessed income:
So if disposable income is £303 per month, the contribution will be in band A, the excess income is £40 and therefore the monthly contribution will be £10 per month.
If the disposable income was £408 per month, the contribution
would be in band B, the excess income would be £15
(£408-£393), and the monthly contribution would therefore be £37.50
i.e. £32.50 + £5.
If the disposable income was £542 per month, the contribution
would be in band C, the excess income would be £20
(£542-£522), and the monthly contribution would therefore be £85.50
i.e. £75.50 + £10.
You should telephone or write rather than attend in person.
Head Office
5 Gray's Inn Road, London
WC1X 8TX
Tel: 020 7759 0000
Birmingham Regional Office
Centre City Podium
5 Hill Street, Birmingham B5 4UD
Tel: 0121 665 4700
South East Regional Office
80 King's Road
Reading RG1 3BJ
Tel: 01189 558600
3rd/4th Floor, Invicta House
Trafalgar Place, Cheapside
Brighton BN1 4FR
Tel: 01273 878800
South Western Regional Office
33-35 Queen Square, Bristol BS1 4LU
Tel: 0117 302 3000
Eastern Regional Office
62-68 Hills Road, Cambridge CB2 1LA
Tel: 01223 417800
Yorkshire and Humberside Regional
Office
City House
New Station Street, Leeds LS1 4JS
Tel: 0113 390 7300
Merseyside Regional Office
2nd Floor, Cavern Court
8 Mathew Street, Liverpool L2 6RE
Tel: 0151 242 5200
London Regional Office
29-37 Red Lion Street,
London WC1R 4PP
Tel: 020 7759 1500
North Western Regional Office
2nd Floor, Elisabeth House
16 St Peter's Square
Manchester M2 3DA
Tel: 0161 244 5000
North East Regional Office
Eagle Star House
Fenkle Street
Newcastle-upon-Tyne NE1 5RU
Tel: 0191 244 5800
East Midlands Regional Office
1st Floor, Fothergill House
16 King Street, Nottingham NG1 2AS
Tel: 0115 908 4200
Wales Office
Marland House
Central Square, Cardiff CF10 1PF
Tel: 02920 647100
Chester Office
2nd Floor, Pepper House
Pepper Row, Chester CH1 1DW
Tel: 01244 404500
Website address