How do people gain access to legal advice and representation, and what has happened to public funding?
Access to justice and funding: the meaning of access to justice, sources of legal advice and funding (legal aid and LASPO 2012, conditional fee agreements, the advice sector and pro bono), and the barriers to access.
An Eduqas A-Level Law guide to access to justice and funding. Explains what access to justice means, the sources of advice and funding (legal aid and LASPO, conditional fee agreements, the advice sector and pro bono) and the barriers, with worked exam answers and the evaluation the paper rewards.
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What this dot point is asking
Eduqas Component 1 requires you to understand access to justice: what it means, the sources of advice and funding (legal aid and the effect of LASPO 2012, conditional fee agreements, the advice sector and pro bono), and the barriers that prevent people enforcing their rights. The skill is to explain the sources of funding (AO1) and to evaluate how effective access to justice is (AO3).
The answer
What access to justice means
Sources of funding and advice
A person can fund legal help in several ways:
- Legal aid: state funding administered by the Legal Aid Agency for those who pass a means test (income and capital) and a merits test (the case is worth funding). After LASPO it is largely confined to serious criminal cases and a narrow range of civil matters (for example where life, liberty or homelessness is at stake, or domestic abuse).
- Conditional fee agreements (CFAs): no win, no fee. The lawyer charges nothing if the case is lost but adds a success fee if it is won. Common in personal injury. "After the event" insurance can cover the other side's costs.
- The advice sector: free advice from Citizens Advice, law centres and charities, often the only help available for social welfare law.
- Pro bono: lawyers giving their time free, coordinated by schemes such as the Bar's pro bono unit.
- Other routes: trade union legal assistance for members, legal expenses insurance, and direct (public) access to a barrister.
LASPO 2012 and the barriers to access
Examples in context
A strong answer uses LASPO and its effects as the central evidence rather than discussing funding in the abstract.
Try this
Q1. Explain what is meant by a conditional fee agreement. [10 marks]
- What the marker wants. Precise AO1: a no win, no fee arrangement under which the lawyer is paid nothing if the case is lost but charges a success fee if it is won, commonly used in personal injury, sometimes with after-the-event insurance.
Q2. Nadia has a housing dispute with her landlord and limited income, and cannot afford a solicitor. Advise Nadia on how she might obtain legal help. [15 marks]
- Cue. An AO2 application: housing is largely out of legal aid scope after LASPO unless homelessness or serious disrepair brings it in; consider the advice sector (Citizens Advice, law centres), pro bono and, if she has cover, legal expenses insurance, and note the risk of being a litigant in person.
Exam-style practice questions
Practice questions written in the style of WJEC Eduqas exam questions on this dot point, with worked answer explainers. The year tag is the paper they imitate, not the source.
Eduqas Component 1 2022 (evaluation)15 marksAnalyse and evaluate the extent to which there is effective access to justice in England and Wales. [an analysis/evaluation question in the style of Component 1, AO3]Show worked answer →
A mainly AO3 essay. Explain what access to justice means and the sources of funding, then evaluate how effective access is.
Meaning and sources. Access to justice means people can use the legal system to enforce their rights, which needs affordable advice, representation and open courts. Sources include legal aid (now narrow after LASPO 2012), conditional fee agreements (no win, no fee), the advice sector (Citizens Advice, law centres), pro bono work, trade unions and legal expenses insurance.
Evaluation. Strengths: criminal legal aid survives for serious cases; CFAs fund personal injury; the advice sector and pro bono fill some gaps. Weaknesses: LASPO 2012 removed most civil matters (housing, debt, family, welfare) from legal aid, creating advice deserts and a rise in litigants in person; means tests exclude many; and cuts have closed law centres. Access is therefore uneven and weakest in civil and family law.
A top answer explains the sources, evaluates with the impact of LASPO, and reaches a reasoned judgement.
Eduqas Component 1 2021 (explain style)10 marksExplain the different ways in which a person might fund legal advice or representation. [an explain question in the style of Component 1, AO1]Show worked answer →
A mainly AO1 explain question. Set out the main sources of funding with a short description of each.
Legal aid: state funding for those who pass a means test and a merits test, now largely confined (after LASPO 2012) to serious criminal cases and a limited range of civil matters. Conditional fee agreements (no win, no fee): the lawyer is paid only if the case succeeds, plus a success fee, common in personal injury. The advice sector: free advice from Citizens Advice, law centres and charities. Pro bono: free work by lawyers. Other routes: trade union assistance, legal expenses insurance, and the Bar's direct access.
A top answer names each source and explains who it helps and when it is used.
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Sources & how we know this
- Eduqas A Level Law (A150) specification — WJEC Eduqas (2017)