Legal Aid & Costs
Where a person receives legal aid and their disposable income exceeds £3,255 a year, a contribution in respect of income not greater than one-third of the excess or such proportion as may be prescribed shall be made. If their capital exceeds £3,000, a contribution in respect of not greater than the excess or such a lesser amount as may be prescribed shall be made.
Regulations may provide for the substitution of the above sum. The sum may be required to be paid in a single lump sum or by installments. If the contribution exceeds the cost, then the excess is repaid.
Except insofar as regulations otherwise provide, sums remaining unpaid on account of a person’s contribution and if the total contribution is less than the net liability of the legal aid fund on their account, an amount equal to the deficiency shall be a charge for the benefit of the legal aid fund on any property recovered or preserved in proceedings.
Property recovered includes rights under a compromise arrived at to avoid or bring an end to proceedings, and sums recovered under an order made in their favor. The charge created on any damages shall not prevent the court from allowing them to be set off against other damages or costs.
A solicitor who has acted for a person receiving legal aid should be paid out of the legal aid fund, and counsel shall be paid such fees. The sums payable to a solicitor or counsel shall not exceed those permitted under the legislation.
The above is not to prejudice sums recoverable by virtue of an order for costs made in favor of a person who has received legal aid or an agreement for costs so made which provides for taxation. For the purposes of any such order or agreement, the solicitor who acted for the person in whose favor it is made shall be treated as having paid any counsel’s fees.
Reference to the person’s disposable income and capital refers to their income after the deduction of maintenance for dependants, interest on loans, income tax, rates, rent, and such other matters in question which the person must reasonably provide, as well as other allowances as may be prescribed to take account of the nature of their resources.
Regulations may be made in relation to the manner in which a rate of a person’s income and amount of capital are to be computed, and in particular determining whether resources are to be treated as income or capital, and taking account of fluctuations in income.
Any practicing barrister shall be entitled to give advice and assistance or to act for persons receiving legal aid, unless they have been prohibited from doing so by the determination of the General Bar Council. Similar provision applies to solicitors who may be excluded by order under the Solicitors Act.
Where a person is entitled to receive legal aid, assistance, or advice, they shall be entitled to select the solicitor to act for them and, if the case requires, their counsel. This does not prejudice the rights of the solicitor or counsel who has good reason to refuse or give up a case to entrust it to another. A solicitor may select another solicitor to act as their agent, who is not excluded from providing legal aid.
The fact that services of counsel or solicitor are given by way of legal aid does not affect the relationship between solicitor and client and the relationship with counsel. The rights conferred on a person receiving legal aid are not to affect the rights and liabilities of other parties to proceedings or the principles on which the discretion of any court or tribunal is normally exercised.
Where a person receives legal aid in connection with proceedings between them and a person not receiving legal aid and the proceedings are decided in favor of the unassisted party, the court by which the proceedings are so decided may make an order for payment of the unassisted party out of the legal aid fund.
Such an order may only be made if the court is satisfied that it is just and equitable in the circumstances that provision for those costs should be made out of public funds.Before making such an order, the court shall, in every case, whether or not an application is made, consider what orders should be made for costs against the person receiving legal aid and determining their liability in respect of such costs.
An order shall not be made in respect of costs incurred in the court of first instance, whether by that court or on appeal, unless the proceedings in the court of first instance were instituted by the person receiving legal aid, and the court is satisfied that the unassisted party will suffer severe financial hardship unless an order is made. An order shall not be made in respect of costs incurred by an unassisted party in proceedings for which an order would not be made for payment of their costs. No appeal is allowed against such an order other than on a point of law.
The above provision may be modified by regulations. The relevant procedures may be specified.
The Law Society is to keep accounts in relation to the legal aid fund. An annual report must be made to the Lord Chancellor on the operation and finance of the scheme. The accounts are to be furnished to the Lord Chancellor. The Comptroller and Auditor-General are to examine statements and reports, inspect the accounts in relation to the legal aid fund, and must certify such statements together with his report thereon before Parliament.
If a person seeking or receiving legal aid, advice, or assistance willfully fails to comply with regulations in relation to information or knowingly makes a false statement, they commit a summary offence. This is subject to conviction to level 5 on the standard scale or imprisonment not exceeding three months or both.