1. English for Lawyers 1 Lecturer: Miljen Matijašević
G10, room 6/I, Tue 11:30-12:30
Session 10

2. Today’s session
Revision of the last session
Legal Aid

3. Revision of the last session
Criminal Procedure

4. Revision – Criminal Procedure
Who are the parties in a criminal procedure?
What is the job of the police in criminal justice?
What are the categories of criminal offence?
What do you know about the burden and standard of proof?
Are all crimes prosecuted?
What do you know about summary offences?
What are triable either way offences?
What do you know about trials at the Crown Court?

5. Legal Aid
Unit 8

6. Legal Aid Answer the question with your partner:
Equality before the law is a requirement laid down in the European Convention on Human Rights. Is that really the case in practice? Why (not)?

7. Access to Justice EQUALITY BEFORE THE LAW - implications:
Everyone knows the law
Everyone will be able to afford the same quality representation
Two main needs:
obtaining good quality LEGAL ADVICE
being represented in a court of law
(LEGAL REPRESENTATION)

8. Access to Justice
Legal Aid Act 1988 – brings together various systematic schemes of legal aid
Candidates for legal aid were put through a means test, and the case itself through a merit test
(means – sredstva; merit – predmet spora)

9. Access to Justice
MEANS TEST – aimed at establishing whether the candidate is sufficiently financially disadvantaged to be eligible for legal aid
MERIT TEST – the case is evaluated in order to establish whether it was relevant enough to receive public funding
financially disadvantaged, adj. – poor
eligible (for sth), adj. – meeting the criteria for sth

10. Access to Justice
This system did not function very well - a lot of money was being spent and a very low percentage of the disadvantaged was actually getting free legal aid
As a consequence alternative voluntary services developed to deal with the ‘unmet legal need’
The legal aid system radically reformed by the Access to Justice Act 1999

11. Access to Justice Act 1999
Introduces new criteria and selection mechanisms
Establishes the main authority for the organisation and provision of free legal aid:
the Legal Services Commission (LSC)
Set up as an executive non-departmental public body of the Ministry of Justice

12. Legal Services Commission (LSC)
CONTRACTING
In the earlier systems, any solicitor could provide legal assistance and then claim fees from the State
Within the new system, only those legal professionals who meet certain quality criteria and then conclude a contract with the LSC can provide free legal aid.
Contracted firms undergo regular quality audits, but are also provided training in areas of the law where free legal aid is regularly sought (homelessness, repossession of property, human rights, immigration and asylum, etc.)

13. The Funding Code
Funding for legal advice and representation available for:
very expensive cases, judicial review (sudsko preispitivanje odluke), claims against public authorities (tužbe protiv upravnih tijela), clinical negligence (liječnički nemar), housing, family, mental health, immigration and asylum
means test may apply

14. The Funding Code
Funding for legal advice and representation NOT available for:
personal injury claims, boundary disputes (sporovi oko međe), wills, defamation (kleveta), company law, etc.

15. Criminal Defence Service (CDS)
CDS provides legal advice and representation to people under police investigation or facing criminal charges
Run by the LSC in partnership with criminal defense lawyers and representatives
Makes contracts and employs attorneys directly to provide legal advice and assistance (Public Defenders)
Defendants have the right to choose another legal representative, other than the public defender

16. Conditional Fee Agreements (CFAs)
“No Win No Fee”
Defined as “an agreement with a person providing advocacy or litigation services which provides for his fee and expenses, or any part of them, to be payable only in specified circumstances”, i.e. only if the lawyer wins the client’s case
Available only for civil cases, prohibited in criminal proceedings and virtually all family proceedings.

17. Legal Aid Agency 2013
Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012 abolished the LSC
instead, the Legal Aid Agency set up as of 2013
carries out similar work but no longer part of the Ministry of Justice
greater independence in funding-related decision making

18. Key vocabulary
equality before the law legal advice legal representation means test merit test eligible Legal Services Commission Legal Aid Agency contracting Conditional Fee Agreement ("no win no fee")

19. Thank you for your attention!