Lecture 17 Where is law?

Analysing Law: Civil Courts

The Civil Courts
• Resolve disputes between individuals or organisations: claimant (seeking remedy)
against defendant.
• Burden of proof = claimant must prove case on ‘balance of probabilities’ cf criminal
burden higher ‘beyond reasonable doubt’.

• Significant and on-going reforms to civil justice system:

• Woolf Reforms (1990’s);
• Sir Rupert Jackson (2010);
trying to increase access to justice by reducing costs
• Lord Justice Briggs Chancery Modernisation Review (2013);
• Lord Justice Briggs Civil Courts Structure Review (2016);
Review of the structure of the civil courts: training the judiciary & introduction of online
court for low value money claims, it also had an enhanced focus on alternative dispute
resolution methods.
• HMCTS Court Modernisation Reforms (on-going)
Trying to modernise all court processes by digitising as much of the process as possible

Civil Justice in England & Wales

• Civil justice mainly dealt with in the county courts and, in the case of more
substantial or complex cases, the High Court.
• Court of Appeal (Civil Division) and Supreme Court.
• Jurisdiction covers a very wide range.
• Civil cases involve hearings in open court. Principle of open justice: public may
attend, access to court documents etc. (Civil Procedure Rule 39.2)
 Importance of alternative means of resolving disputes.
• Many are dealt with through negotiation, mediation (a processes taking place
outside a court to resolve a dispute) or by using established complaints procedures
(see later ADR lectures).

Deputy District Judges

appointed to sit in the county court or in a High Court District Registry to case manage and
try civil, family, costs, enforcement and insolvency cases.

District Judge
More senior full-time judges who deal with the majority of cases in the county courts of
England and Wales. Cases such as breach of contract, personal injury, clinical negligence

Recorders – Civil
Sit as fee-paid judges in county courts.
statutory jurisdiction of a Recorder is in general identical to that of a circuit judge, although
the usual practice is that Recorders do not hear appeals from district judges. 
 
Circuit Judges – Civil
may deal solely with civil, family, criminal work, or divide their time between the three. 
Lecture 17 Where is law?

Regions and Supervising Judges

Chancery Supervising Judges are appointed to handle Chancery work outside London
according to region.

High Court Judges (Queen’s Bench - Civil Division)

Court of Appeal Judges (Civil Division)

Justices of the Supreme Court

Judgement
• After hearing evidence & submissions, judgment give recording judge’s decision.
• Application of law to the facts.
Costs
• Very high in England – successive civil justice dealing with this; most significant is
Jackson Reforms on Civil Litigation Costs.
• Loser pays winner’s costs.

Briggs Civil Courts Structure Review 2016: Online Court Procedures

“The single, most pervasive and intractable weakness of our civil courts is that they simply
do not provide reasonable access to justice for any but the most wealthy individual.” (para.
5.23). “To any rational observer who values access to civil justice, this is a truly shocking
state of affairs.” (para. 5.25) (Briggs LJ CCSR 2015)

The HMCTS Reform Programme –an approximately £750 million investment into the courts
– predicated on reduction in court estate and the move to digitisation of process

Briggs-II – reform of court structure - Interim Report only published in January 2016. Its
central focus is also digitisation – but specifically the creation of an entirely ONLINE CIVIL
COURT now called THE ONLINE CIVIL MONEY CLAIMS:

THE ONLINE CIVIL MONEY CLAIMS (OCMC) PILOT (CPR51R)

Stage 1: automated process

Stage 2: will involve a mix of conciliation/mediation and case management, mainly by a Case
Officer/legal adviser – currently ‘opt-put’ mediation stage

Stage 3: will consist of determination by judges but with no default assumption that there
must be a traditional trial.
Lecture 18

Alternative Dispute Resolution Processes I

THE COURTS & Alternative Dispute Resolution
• Courts:
– Judiciary is Independent
– Courts have Structured rules of procedure
– Enforcement
• Other forms of dispute resolution referred to as ‘alternatives’ to court process (ADR).
• Courts provide ADR with ‘legitimacy’ - settlement in the shadow of the law and
enforcement not possible without the courts.
• Other ways of resolving disputes (ADR) other than the court process are ranked
lower than the courts in the hierarchy of the importance of resolving disputes
ADR
• ‘Alternative Dispute Resolution’ is the generic expression of various methods for settling
conflicts otherwise than through the normal trial process.
• The Centre for Effective Dispute Resolution (CEDR) definition of ADR:
“A body of dispute resolution techniques which avoid the inflexibility of litigation and
arbitration and focus instead on enabling the parties to achieve a better or similar result,
with the minimum of direct and indirect cost.”
 ADR is there to avoid the courts
 ADR provides parties with party autonomy gives power to the party to resolve the
dispute in the best possible way

Alternative to litigation potentially include the following factors:

– A process that is either formal (e.g. arbitration) or informal (e.g.
negotiation)
– Involves the parties and/or lawyers (e.g. negotiation) or third party (e.g.
mediator or arbitrator)
– Involves specialists or experts (adjudication)
– Process that is based on meetings and/or documents (adjudication).

ADR in the English Legal System

ADR given enhanced role after Woolf Reforms.
“From the point of view of the Court Service, ADR has the obvious advantage of saving
scarce judicial and other resources. More significantly, in my view, it offers a variety of
benefits to litigants or potential litigants. ADR is usually cheaper than litigation, and often
produces quicker results. In some cases the parties will want to avoid the publicity
associated with court proceedings. It may also be more beneficial for them, especially if they
are involved in a continuing personal or business relationship, to choose a form of dispute
resolution that will enable them to work out a mutually acceptable solution rather than
submit to a legally correct adjudication which at least one party would inevitably find
disappointing.” Lord Woolf, Access to Justice Interim Report (1995)

But no compulsion (but see Lomax case later)

“I do not think it would be right in principle to erode the citizen’s existing entitlement to
seek a remedy from the civil courts… I do, however, believe that the courts can and should
play an important part … in providing information about the availability of ADR and
encouraging its use in appropriate cases.”Lord Woolf, Access to Justice Interim Report (1995)
Lecture 18

The Civil Procedure Rules and ADR

• CPR 1.4(2):
– (e) Active case management includes encouraging parties to use ADR when
appropriate
– (f) helping parties to settle disputes
• CPR 26.4:
– Courts can grant a stay of proceedings while parties use ADR
• CPR 36:
– Offers to settle with cost consequences
• CPR 44.4
– Costs penalties when one party has refused to use ADR

Court Promotion of ADR

• Dunnett v Railtrack [2002] EWCA Civ 303
– Courts will impose the legal costs on to the party who has unreasonably
rejected the use of ADR … even if that party has succeeded on the merits
• Hurst v Leeming [2002] EWHC 1051 (Ch)
– Lightman J “But alternative dispute resolution is at the heart of today's civil
justice system…”
• Halsey v Milton Keynes General [2004] EWCA Civ 576
– Compelling parties to use ADR would be a violation of art. 6 ECHR (obiter)
• PGF II SA v OMFS Company 1 Ltd [2013] EWCA Civ 1288
– the Court formally endorsed the advice given in the Jackson ADR Handbook
(OUP 2013) that silence in the face of invitations to participate in ADR is, as a
general rule, unreasonable.

Court Promotion of ADR

Thakkar v Patel [2017] EWCA Civ 117 (Jackson LJ)
“The message which this court sent out in PGF II was that to remain silent in the face of an
offer to mediate is, absent exceptional circumstances, unreasonable conduct meriting a
costs sanction, even in cases where mediation is unlikely to succeed. The message which the
court sends out in this case is that in a case where bilateral negotiations fail but mediation is
obviously appropriate, it behoves both parties to get on with it. If one party frustrates the
process by delaying and dragging its feet for no good reason, that will merit a costs sanction.
In the present case, the costs sanction was severe, but not so severe that this court should
intervene.”

Leading Case: Lomax v Lomax [2019] EWCA Civ 1467 (Moylen LJ) – C
PR 3.1(2)(m) court can order judicial early neutral evaluation.
• High Court – court cannot compel non-consenting parties to judicial ENE
• Court of Appeal - The court dismissed the argument that consent should be implied into
CPR 3.1(2)(m) and held that if the intention had been to require the parties’ consent,
then it would have been easy to make this clear.
• The court concluded that there was no reason to imply into CPR 3.1(2)(m) any limitation
on the courts’ power to order an ENE hearing so that the consent of the parties is
required. Such an interpretation, the court explained, ‘would be inconsistent with
elements of the overriding objective, in particular the saving of expense and allotting to
Lecture 18

cases an appropriate share of the court’s resources, and would, therefore, be contrary
to rule 1.2(b)’.

Most recent High Court decisions (sexual abuse cases):

– BXB v Watch Tower and Bible Tract Society of Pennsylvannia [2020] EWHC
656 (QB) Chamberlain J:
“One important purpose of a joint settlement meeting is to convey a defendant’s view
about the strength of its case. In any event, the possibility of agreeing quantum subject to
liability provides a good reason to engage in discussions even in a case where the defendant
is confident about its case on liability. In this case, that would have shortened the trial and
avoided some of the intrusive questioning which in the event was necessary”

DSN v Blackpool Football Club Limited [2020] EWHC 670 (QB).

Cf O (G) v H (CD) (2000) 50 OR (3a) 82:
the Ontario Supreme Court of Justice refused to grant an exemption from mediation where
the claimant, who was suing the defendant for a series of torts, including sexual assault and
indecent assault, argued that she was too afraid of the defendant to be in the same room as
him for the purposes of participating in ADR.

Increasing importance of ADR

• Lawyer must be aware of the nature of ADR.
• Duty to advise clients (Solicitor’s Conduct Rules and the Civil Procedure Rules).
• Judicial expectation for lawyers to advise clients on ADR (especially mediation – see
above) e.g.
“this case sends out an important message to civil litigants, requiring them to engage with
a serious invitation to participate in ADR, even if they have reasons which might justify a
refusal, or the undertaking of some other form of ADR, or ADR at some other time in the
litigation….The court's task in encouraging the more proportionate conduct of civil
litigation is so important in current economic circumstances” (Briggs LJ PGF V OMFS [2013]
EWCA Civ 234)

Jackson LJ in Thakkar v Patel [2017] EWCA Civ 117

‘The message which this court sent out in PGF II was that to remain silent in the face of an
offer to mediate is, absent exceptional circumstances, unreasonable conduct meriting a
costs sanction, even in cases where mediation is unlikely to succeed. The message which
the court sends out in this case is that in a case where bilateral negotiations fail but
mediation is obviously appropriate, it behoves both parties to get on with it.’

Reasons for using ADR

• Cost and time employed in litigation
• Use of experts
• Win/win options
• Informal and less stressful than litigation
• Confidentiality
• Better compliance
• Keeps relationships
Lecture 19

Alternative Dispute Resolution Processes II

ADR processes:
• Negotiation
• Arbitration
• Mediation
• Conciliation
• Other methods
– Ombudsman
– Early neutral evaluation (see Lomax v Lomax case)
– Expert determination
– Med-Arb or Arb-Med

Negotiation
Most used form of ADR on day-to-day basis;
• Direct communication between disputants or their representatives talks to other
side
• Flexible and cheap (over telephone/face-to-face)
• No need for neutral 3rd party to facilitate (no mediator or arbitrator)

Mediation, the main ADR method in civil matters

Centre for Effective Dispute Resolution definition of mediation:
"Mediation is a flexible process conducted confidentially in which a neutral person actively
assists parties in working towards a negotiated agreement of a dispute or difference, with
the parties in ultimate control of the decision to settle and the terms of resolution."
 It’s a flexible process, not governed by strict procedural rules; makes process less
stressful and easier to communicate for parties
 Conducted confidentially so anything discussed and any information exchanged
cannot be used in subsequent court proceedings
 Neutral person= mediator; helps parties to come to settlement; he cannot impose
own opinions.
 Parties decision prevails.

Mediation most popular ADR process

“… [T]he most important form of ADR … is mediation. The reason for the emphasis upon
mediation is two fold. First, properly conducted mediation enables many (but certainly not
all) civil disputes to be resolved at less cost and greater satisfaction to the parties than
litigation. Secondly, many disputing parties are not aware of the full benefits to be gained
from mediation and may, therefore, dismiss this option too readily.”
Jackson L.J., Review of Civil Litigation Costs Final Report, January 14, 2010, Ch.36, p.355.

Basic mediation process

Process: -- Opening statement by the mediator
– Statements by parties
– Discussions and meetings in separate rooms with mediator
– Confidentiality
– Voluntary agreement – mediation settlement agreement
Contract: Parties are often willing to comply
Lecture 19

Conciliation
• A Type of mediation
• neutral 3rd party takes activist role, putting forward terms of settlement or an
opinion on the case.
• The conciliator seeks actively to promote settlement by suggesting possible
outcomes
• Used in industrial disputes for unfair dismissal
– Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service (ACAS)

Early Neutral Evaluation (ENE)

• Parties agree to submit dispute to an independent third-party expert to provide an
early view on the merits of the parties’ respective positions.
• Evaluation is not binding on the parties unless they agree that it will have that effect.
• Used to explore legal, evidential, factual or technical issues.
• E.g. origin in United States District Court for Northern California, Courts Legislation
Amendment (Judicial Resolution Conference) Act 2009 (Victoria), Commercial Court
Guide, Technology & Construction Court Guide etc.
• CPR r.3.1(2) (m) provides that the court may, as part of its general case management
powers:
“Take any other step or make any other order for the purpose of managing the case and
furthering the overriding objective, including hearing an Early Neutral Evaluation with the
aim of helping the parties settle the case.”

Lomax v Lomax [2019] EWCA Civ 1467 consent of the parties for court ENE under CPR 3.1(2)
(m)?
High Court Parker J concluded ‘on the finest of fine balances’ that she could not order an
ENE or FDR.
Court of Appeal Moylan LJ court had case management powers to compel parties to ENE. It
did not obstruct a party’s access to the court. No need to imply party consent requirement:
“would be inconsistent with elements of the overriding objective, in particular the saving of
expense and allotting to cases an appropriate share of the court’s resources, and would,
therefore, be contrary to rule 1.2(b)”

Expert Determination
Used when there is a lot of technical issues
• An independent expert in the subject matter of the dispute, is appointed by the
parties to resolve the matter.
• Final and binding on the parties but parties must agree.
• Used when:
– Dispute involves technical issues requires expert knowledge and experience
– Used before a mediation is entered into as a means to assist settlement
• Suitable in:
– Rent review where determination will usually be by a surveyor acting as an
expert
– Disputes relating to causation (e.g. medical negligence disputes, construction
disputes)
– Valuation of company and shares
 Lecture 19

– Construction disputes
– Property disputes and boundary disputes
• ED clause will be upheld by the courts and will prevent the parties from issuing court
proceedings– see Harper v Interchange Group Ltd [2007] EWHC 1834 (Comm).

Arbitration
• Adjudicative method of dispute resolution; third party which is appointed to decide
issues, his decisions bind the parties
• Party Autonomy: parties must consent to go to arbitration
• Arbitrators are generally experts
• Limits the intervention of the courts (Part I of the Arbitration Act 1996)
• Very popular; Predominant in commercial world

Pros and cons of ADR

Pros Cons
Less antagonistic: Keeps relationships Imbalance of power
Faster Confidentiality
Cheaper Not compulsory (but see Lomax v Lomax)
Confidentiality Doesn’t always resolve
Save court resources Not adjudication of legal rights
Empowerment Not self-enforcement

Key features of arbitration

• the need for an arbitration agreement (arbitration clause and submission agreement)
• a dispute between the parties
• referring the dispute to a neutral third party i.e. the arbitrator
• rendering of an arbitral award by the arbitrator
• implicit agreement to be bound by the award

The Principle of Party Autonomy

Parties agree to arbitration and decide on:
– Procedure: number of arbitrators, rules of procedure, experts etc.
– Substantive principles: choice.
Arbitration Act 1996
• Excludes court procedures (ss. 9-11)
– Unless both parties agree otherwise
• Arbitrators’ competences and privileges similar to that of judges
– Arbitrators are not liable for anything done in the course of their functions
– Decide on their own competences
• Appeals are restricted to cases where there is:
– Serious irregularity in the procedure
– Matters of public interest
– Decisions that are blatantly wrong

Types
 Lecture 19

• Commercial Arbitration:
– Eg, International Chamber of Commerce and Chartered Institute of Arbitrators
– All types of disputes, but mostly of commercial nature
– Increasingly using mediation as a first step (e.g. Med-Arb)
• Investment Arbitration: ICSID
• Consumer Arbitration
CEDR Solve: Disputes between

Advantages & Disadvantages of arbitration

Advantages Disadvantages
Party autonomy Can be expensive
Greater control Limits on arbitrator’s powers
Venue can be fixed by parties Advantages such as finality and
confidentiality are lost if matter is appealed
to national courts
Confidentiality Cannot compel party to engage in
arbitration
Arbitrators may be specialist in particular Delay if applications made to court
field
Finality of arbitral award recognised International commercial arbitral
internationally and nationally proceedings becoming more formalised
 Lecture 20

ONLINE COURTS
Overview:
The Civil Money Claim Online (aka the Online Court)
I. Background –ODR processes
II. Process
III. Best practices

Background: CPR
• Woolf (1996): Civil Procedure Rules 1998
– Pre-Action Protocols; the Track System; promotion of ADR
• Jackson (2009): LAPSO Act 2012
– Removed legal aid; Changes to CFA & DBA; OWCS
• Briggs (2016): Digitalisation process
– “The single most pervasive and indeed shocking weakness of our civil courts is
that they fail to provide reasonable access to justice for the ordinary individuals”
– The cost of legal representation is often disproportionate
– Adjudication is not the best process to resolve most disputes
– Technology is being imbedded in all forms of communication

ADR: Adjudication (AADR y CEDR) Airline disputes

Financial Ombudsman Service
• Investigate financial complaints
• Fees paid by banks (c £900)
• Mostly a written process
• Claimants need to complaint to the financial institution 1st
• Decisions by adjudicators and ombudsmen

II. The Online Court: B. Tiered Process: Stage

1 Issue of claim online
Fill in claim application online
[Commoditised legal advice through legal trees (triage)]
Upload documents
Telephone and online support
Pay court fees
Claim is serviced to Defendant by post
 Admit
 Defend
 Make an offer to settle
- “without prejudice” negotiation

III. The Online Court Tiered Process: Stage 2

Conciliation stage :
- 1hour telephone mediation if parties agreed to it (30%)
 Opt-out mediation <£500 (higher settlement rate)
- Legal adviser appointed
 Limits on legal advice to ensure equality of arms
 Lecture 20

 Assists self-represented litigants with case management

 Recommend parties are to use ADR/ODR

III. The Online Court Tiered Process: Stage 3

Judicial adjudication: the trial
– Without a hearing when possible
• pilot for claims <£500
– Via telephone or video-conferencing when necessary
* Exceptionally traditional face-to-face trial
– Open justice

III. The Online Court c. Best practices

• Online Court:
1. Replicate offline process
2. Re-imagine justice: design of processes that seek early resolutions
– Stage 1: Triage
– Stage 2: Encourage settlements
• Connecting it with certified ADR/ODR schemes
• Opt-out ADR
• Published judgments
• Economic incentives and penalties
– Building safeguards for self-represented litigants
– Stage 3: Change from generalist local judges to specialised online judges that
can adjudicate cases in a more efficient and consistent manner
Lecture 20

Legal Advice Clinic: Advising Your Client

Where is law?
Must consider:
The law (obviously)  
But a lawyer must identify all relevant matters INCLUDING the law, and factor these into her
advice.

Also consider:
Commercial considerations
Loss of reputation
Urgency and timings
Ethics and professional conduct

Commercial Considerations (1)

Lawyers need to be able to consider their own work and the work of their clients in the
context of the business world in which they and their clients operate.

As a junior lawyer, you will be expected to understand enough about your clients’ business
to know what drives them and how the work you are doing for them will affect them in a
business context.
As a law student or a trainee, you will be expected to demonstrate a general understanding
of:
• Topical business-related issues
• How businesses operate and run
How a law firm operates and runs

Loss of Reputation
• Clients may sometimes prioritise this over commercial considerations.
EG a business being sued in their local court may be very keen to “clear their name”
whatever the cost. This may or may not be the best way to proceed. Their lawyer

Urgency and Timings

You may need to deal with an urgent issue differently 
• email not a meeting; 
• prioritise it over other work; 
• give shorter advice because there’s no time for a longer written advice 
You are responsible for ensuring no limitation periods are missed

Client Advice: Barrister v Solicitor

• A barrister may need to bear in mind all of these considerations. 
• But more likely to need to focus purely on the law. 
• A solicitor is more likely to be required to be a  "trusted adviser" and will need to
consider all of the other factors to a greater extent. 
• A solicitor may obtain an advice from a barrister on the legal issues facing the client,
and then advise more broadly, taking into account the barrister's advice on the law
and all the other factors described above. 
How to advise? 
Whether in person or in writing: 
• Practical advice: Give options if there are any. Weigh them up. ADVISE don't just
describe. 
• EG: advising a business owner on the purchase of another company. He could buy
the assets (or some of them) or he could  buy the shares. There would be
implications for the client, depending on which he chooses. 

• If you were advising the business owner in that scenario you would need to 
• (1) explain the difference between an asset sale and a purchase sale, including 
• (2) the pros and cons of each but also 
• (3) your view on what might be best for this client in this particular scenario, bearing
in mind all the circumstances.
Then the client has the full picture which includes an understanding of his options, but also
your views on what option might work best for him

Lecture 22: Negotiating for your Client

Negotiation is....
 A way of leaving all parties (somewhat) satisfied
 Quicker and cheaper than going to court 
 Flexible
 A way of leaving all parties (somewhat) satisfied
 How well over 90% of legal disputes which could have ended up in court are settled 
 A form of Alternative Dispute Resolution
 Flexible - it can take a number of different forms, to suit the dispute or scenario. 

Negotiation by lawyers: You have to act: 

• In the best interests of your client 
• In accordance with your client’s instructions 
• Ethically

The process: (1) preparation:

• Really important to prepare
• What is the law and how does it apply to your client's position?
• What does your client want to achieve? What would they be willing to accept? 
• What are the client's underlying interests? i.e. Why do they want what they say they
want? 
• What will happen if you don't resolve the dispute by negotiation? (Next steps?
Cost?)  
• BATNA: What is each party's Best Alternative to a Negotiated Agreement? 
• What are the strengths and weaknesses of each party's position? 
• What issues need to be dealt with during negotiations? 
• What is your client's position on each of these issues?
• Exchange written documents eg mediation position statements? Agree an Agenda
or list of issues
• Obtain clear instructions from your client as to what they would like to achieve. Will
they be there / available on the phone?
 • Is client ready to negotiate? 
The other party or parties will have done similar preparation. 

The process: (2) the negotiation

• Opening Phase
• Discussion and Bargaining
• Closing phase 

Opening Phase:
Ground rules 
• Usually the host
• Purpose 
• Is it “without prejudice”, “subject to contract”? 
• Length of meeting
• Agenda
Opening Phase:
Opening Statements
• These may have been exchanged beforehand
• Think carefully about your tone
• Present client’s case / important issues 
• You may include a settlement offer. 
DISCUSSION AND BARGAINING
• DISCUSS THE ISSUES 
• ASK QUESTIONS
• LISTEN
• BARGAIN
• TAKE BREAKS IF NEEDED 
CLOSING PHASE:
• May or may not settle 
• Narrowing the issues may be a good result

L23: Legal Advice Clinic: Legal Aid

Introduction to Legal Aid (1) 
• Legal aid is where individuals can get help with legal fees (eg a solicitor's fees)
to resolve a legal issue.
• Prior to 2013 legal aid was available for more people who needed it, in relation to a
wider variety of legal problems. Then there was a lot of legal aid cuts, so people
couldn’t get access to courts or legal aid
• The benefit is that people are better informed about their legal position and more
likely to resolve their dispute at an earlier stage. 
• This benefits the people involved. It also benefits society. eg: 
• if a person cannot resolve their housing issue early on, they may be evicted, and
have to go on benefits. 
• If a divorcing couple have access to legal guidance early on they will have more
chance of resolving their issues amicably, and so will not take up court time. 
LASPO (1)
• Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012 ("LASPO") 
• Significant funding cuts to legal aid for civil cases
• eg family disputes, no legal aid except where domestic violence
• Also cuts to employment, welfare benefits, housing, debt, clinical negligence and
non-asylum immigration law. 

EFFECT OF LEGAL AID CUTS (1)

• Much greater need for free legal services as a result. 
• Many people who need legal advice can't afford it and have no other way to access a
lawyer. 

Cost benefit analysis of legal aid : World bank / iba report, 2019
• The report was based on a large number of studies conducted worldwide. 
• It concluded that: 
• “the economic benefits of legal aid investment outweigh the costs, and that support
for legal aid programs can bring significant budgetary savings to the government
and economic savings to the society”. 
• Based on direct economic benefits. Indirect benefits even greater. 

Legal Aid: The current position

Originally 80% of the population qualified for legal aid. 
Early 1990s: about 45%; 
Current figure may be as few as 20% of the population 

Also cuts to the areas of law legal aid is available for: 

Under LASPO large areas of civil legal aid were removed. 
These included most cases involving housing problems, family law, immigration,
employment disputes and challenges to welfare benefit payments. 
Family courts: about 80% of cases involve at least one unrepresented party.

Of those who had experienced a legal problem in the past 2 years in the UK: , 
• Almost 1/3 reported developing a stress-related or physical illness as a result.
• 1/10 suffered a relationship breakdown 
• Nearly 1/5 lost their job, faced financial strain or were forced to relocate.
Global Insights on Access to Justice 2019