Access to Justice & Legal Aid Cuts in UK

Question 1

Part A

Introduction - UK Justice System: Barriers, Funding & Reforms Analysis

This study has been exploring the access to justice significant for the people within a country. This study has determined the different barriers and challenges regarding access to justices in the United Kingdom and explored the effects of legal aid cuts. Along with that, this study has been analyzing and identifying different sources of alternative grants. Justice is the most vital role played in protecting human rights, fair, impartial and just by the law. Justice is a moral rightness concept based on ethics, law, religion, equity, natural law and rationality. It is an act of being fair and just for the people by law. Access to justice is an important aspect of the "Rule of Law” and the “fundament rights” of the people as well as "international human rights law".

Important access to justice

Justice is important for all people as it restores a sense of humanity, or equal citizenship and prevents recurrences and forces acknowledgement regarding suffering. In other words, justice enables individuals to live in safety or security and increases awareness that they will be treat fairly and protected by law. Access to justice is one kind of fundamental right in the law and law of international human rights as well as it is a crucial segment of the "Rule of Law". Access to justice has covered different rights recognized in the law of human rights such as "equality before the law”, fair trial rights and the right of access to better remedy.

These kinds of rights have been protected by the treaties of international human rights such as “the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) and the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR)". The Government of the UK has been signed these treatises and accepts them through international law. It has been observed that the ECHR has a binding with domestic law that has incorporates into the law by "The Human Rights Act 1998". Besides that, it has been applied and interpreted extensively in European case law and domestic law. It has been noticed that access to justice right is protected and secure within the common law.

Recently, the Supreme Court in the UK has described it as considered "deeply embedded in our constitutional law". The Fundamental Right Charter of the European Union under Article 47 contains a concentrated guarantee of effective remedy and fairly trail rights to their citizens. This includes effective access to legal aid, while it is essential to ensure those people who have not afforded it can access justice. Therefore, the “Withdraw Act 2018 of the European Union” means that these rights of the charter have not been applicable in the United Kingdom flowing after Brexit.

The key challenges and barriers to access to justice contain the impacts of legal aid cuts

There are different kinds of challenges and barriers to access to justice due to the complex and comprehensive processes of government. The wider portions of people in the country are unable to access the justice system and this wider population faces a number of issues including the laws existing unnecessarily complicated. There are multiple unnecessary court formalities create lots of barriers and issues to access fairness for the self-represented, litigants and unrepresented in person. The other barriers have been associated with institutional and legal barriers such as inadequate judicial infrastructure, insensitive enforcement mechanisms, legal ignorance, legal ignorance towards costly and time, complicated procedural laws and many more.

Along with that, traditional and vulnerable marginalized populations have been suffering additional barriers regarding accessing justice and fairness. It includes relation to identity of gender, language, disability, literacy, income, geographical location, age, culture, and race. It has been observed that there are different kinds of civil legal problems such as defective products, buying, renting or selling property, estates, employment, any-social behavior, parking incidents and debt. Legal aid cutting has been improving the different kinds of state expenditure and has affected the individual. The justice system of the UK has been influenced by the crucial reduction in the whole funding since 2010.

It has been noticed that the "Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act (LASPO) 2012" has introduced different changes regarding the scope and nature of legal aid worker rates paid and eligibility regarding legal aid that outcome in the substantial fall towards the spends of legal aid. LASPO has more criticized regarding its adverse impacts in terms of access to criminal and civil justice, especially among the people of disadvantaged groups with protected characteristics. The impact of legal aid cuts has been hampering those people who have already faced inequality and discrimination and immigration issues within the country. Legal aid cuts have disproportionately affected those people on lower incomes, women, BAME groups and other minority groups. It has been noticed that in order to support and protect UK's most vulnerable population, the system of legal aid requires significant reforms and urgent reassessment.

Part B

Sources of alternative funding

Legal aid can assist meet legal advice costs, representation in a tribunal or court and family mediation. There are different sources of alternative financial helps regarding the legal aid services that counterbalance the cuts. Different alternatives have been partly funded through the effective legal aids that were affected by the “Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act, 2012" reform. The UK government has developed and taken some initiatives that can improve access the better legal aid services. It includes early legal advice, domestic abuse, criminal legal aid, means testing, litigants in person, legal support services, family legal aid and exceptional case funding.

The non-governmental organization has been providing low costs advice such as Citizen Advice and charities including the law for life, shelter and support through the network. Besides that, Free Representation Unit and Law Centres Network have been providing effective legal services advice that has eliminated the issues of legal aid cutting. Legal aid is an effective welfare provision for the people to ensure access to legal advice, social housing and the court. Legal aid is an effective Governmental scheme that provides payments to lawyers for representing certain cases. It has been observed that legal aid funding has been available for certain persons depending on the kinds of cases and the person's financial circumstances and it is subject to effective financial means of testing. Lawyers can help people to determine their eligibility to apply for funding and analyze the appropriate uses that will assist people in making an effective application for legal service aids.

Conclusion

The entire study has been exploring the importance of access to justice for the people that have been provided fairness and just rights by the law. Access to Justice is an "International Human Right Law" and "Fundamental Right". It includes different rights such as fair trial, equality, effective remedy and anti-discrimination on the ground of race, religion, caste and gender. Justice is a moral rightness concept based on ethics, law, religion, equity, natural law and rationality. These rights have been protected and supported by the effective treaties of international human rights include “the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) and the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR)".

This study has explored the key barriers and issues of access to justice due to multiple unnecessary court formalities creating many issues to access fairness for the self-represented, litigants and unrepresented in person. Besides that, there are other barriers are institutional and legal barriers such as inadequate judicial infrastructure, insensitive enforcement mechanisms, legal ignorance, legal ignorance towards costly and time, and complicated procedural laws.

Question 2

Gibbs’ Reflective Cycle

Description

I have learnt the application of legal aid from different guidance for crime and civil work applies online by using the CCMS that deals with exceptional cases and high costs. In order to apply for the legal representation of criminal legal aid in the court, the clients need to complete a “CRM14 eForm" with lawyers. The eligibility for legal aid of civil work through filling the forms of civil means testing and proper civil application forms must need by the LLA.

Feelings

I felt that the control work from need before applying for lawful assistance funding and for controlling the legal representation at the condition of tribunal proceeding of mental health and before the first or foremost tire tribunals in immigration or asylum. CCMS can provide an effective evidence checklist as a segment of the process of online application.

Evaluation

I evaluate that many application has been rejected for different avoidable reasons including the form is not dated, incomplete or unsigned. Legal Aid can fund costs associated with cases including the costs of court fees, evidence gathering, legal advice, and representation. It will pay the costs of other parties if clients lose. However, it has been noticed that depending on their saving and income, people have been asked about their contribution towards their legal aid costs.

Analysis

I have analyzed that Legal aid services have been provided by the organization that has a contract associated with the LAA or Legal Aid Agency. These include voluntary sector organizations, Citizen’s Advice Bureau, law centres and solicitors firms.

Conclusion

I conclude that legal services have been including Free Legal Aid assistance to those people who have been belonging to the weaker section of the community who fall under the preview of “Section 12 of the Legal Services Authority Act, 1987". It has been creating legal awareness by spreading legal literacy using digital media, legal awareness camps, and print media.

Action plan

This action plan has included a helpline for legal advice that identifies and understands secretariat units, agencies, funds and programmes that might take in terms of promoting the effective implementation of international human rights law for the people.

References

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Lawsociety.org.uk (2023). LASPO Act. Available from:https://www.lawsociety.org.uk/topics/legal-aid/laspo-act. Accessed on: 31.01.2023.

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Legislation.gov.uk (2023). Access to Justice Act 1999. Available from:https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1999/22/notes/division/3/1.

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Partington, M., 2021. Introduction to the English legal system. Oxford University Press.

Steinberg, J.K., Carpenter, A.E., Shanahan, C.F. and Mark, A., 2020. Judges and the Deregulation of the Lawyer's Monopoly. Fordham L. Rev., 89, p.1315. https://dc.law.utah.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1278&context=scholarship.

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Uklsa.co.uk (2023). High inequality means high injustice. Improving equality is the most effective way of improving justice. Available from:https://www.uklsa.co.uk/equality/access-to-justice/#:~:text=The%20greater%20proportion%20of%20the,justice%20for%20the%20unrepresented%20%2F%20self%2D. Accessed on: 31.01.2023.