Saving Civil Legal Aid and Judicial Review

Free Public Meeting

On: Tuesday 28 May 2013

At: 4-6pm

Location: Law Society, 113 Chancery Lane, London WC2A 1PL

The government’s proposals in the Transforming Legal Aid consultation have the potential to destroy access to civil justice for some of the most vulnerable people in society. In particular the government wants to:

• Make it much harder, and in some cases impossible, to bring an application for judicial review.
• Exclude migrants, even those who have been living here for many years, from legal aid altogether.
• Exclude prisoners from legal aid altogether (save for some very limited exceptions).

These changes come on the back of the wholesale changes to civil legal aid that came into force in April 2013 and are made alongside radical changes to criminal legal aid which have rightly given rise to widespread concern.

This public meeting has been called to assist NGOs and civil society organisations who work with vulnerable people to finalise responses to the consultation, which closes on Tuesday 4 June 2013. Hosted by the Law Society, leading legal aid lawyers will speak to the meeting about the proposals set out in the consultation and suggest key themes for responses.

This practical and focussed session will also provide an opportunity to debate some of the most contentious issues and explore campaigning opportunities to resist these proposals.

We hope that organisations representing the widest possible range of individuals and groups who may need legal aid will attend this meeting. The government’s attack on civil legal aid will only be stopped if civil society comes together to oppose the proposals.

Places at the meeting are limited and should be reserved in advance, please RSVP to

events@doughtystreet.co.uk 

or contact Jennifer Noone on +44 20 7 404 1313