Legal aid was one of the UKs most used resources. Financial assistance during times of legal need has always been a must. But, the government cuts to legal aid means that Britain’s poorest now have to go without legal assistance.
For matters such as divorce, family issues and child access, legal aid is no longer accessible. The impact on families can be monumental. But, there have been cuts to criminal cases too. Now, more and more people are getting into debt to pay astronomical legal fees.
Lexis Nexis Legal Research has confirmed that more British citizens are yet to suffer from a lack of financial, legal support. Now, there are proposed plans to cut financial help with criminal cases. It seems that the legal aid, which was once accessible for those who were in severe financial hardship, will no longer be available.
The Impact of Legal Aid Cuts
There has been a lot of controversy in the UK regarding cuts during the term of the Conservative government. But, the cutbacks that affect legal aid are hitting people the most. By 2015, it is said that legal aid will be cut even further. This means that the legal aid in the UK will soon become obsolete.
The impact of this is detrimental. The legal aid system was put in place of six decades ago. This was to ensure that even the poorest in the UK had access to the legal system. After all, everyone deserves the right to legal representation. The system was considered as one of the most generous in the world. While the legal aid fund has been expensive to run, it has provided help to those that need it the most.
The impact of legal aid cuts will have a detrimental effect on family life. Families are the ones that suffer the most from this kind of cutbacks to funding. Lawyers and judges have stated they are concerned that injustices will occur. This is due to people representing themselves in a court of law. In some circumstances, people are not fit to do these themselves.
According to a recent poll, over 48% of family cases have gone to court without legal representation. This means that there is a severe disadvantage to those who can provide legal representation to those who cannot. With these disadvantages being apparent, it is said that there is a lack of confidence in the justice system. Of course, those who can afford legal representation are not affected. But, this means that they have an unfair advantage in the courts.
More Cuts…
Criminal cases will now be cut too, under proposed guidelines from the government. Typically in the UK over £2 billion per year was spent on criminal cases. In the forthcoming year, this is going to be slashed. Those who are affected by criminals will not be able to represent themselves in court. They will have to compile their own cases.
The social impact on people in the UK is going to be huge. Many are going to be hit by these deep cuts.
