Domestic Abuse: Legal Aid Scheme

Ministry of Justice written question – answered at on 22 October 2020.

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Photo of Mike Amesbury Mike Amesbury Shadow Minister (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many survivors of domestic violence have been ineligible for legal aid due to the capital means test since the implementation of the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012.

Photo of Alex Chalk Alex Chalk Assistant Whip, The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Justice

Legal aid is available to obtain an injunction to protect survivors of domestic violence, and this is not subject to any upper capital means limit; applicants cannot be found ineligible for this form of support.

Save for the above, whether someone is a survivor of domestic violence is not recorded for types of legal aid for other categories of law, eligibility for which would be subject to the applicable means and merits tests.

Some capital may be ‘disregarded’ for means assessment purposes in civil matters, for example to take into account equity in an applicant’s home, their outstanding mortgage, and instances where the property is in dispute. The first £3,000 of capital held (after all relevant ‘disregards’ have been applied) is also not assessed by the Legal Aid Agency in matters of civil law.

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