Legal aid in family law

Legal aid in family law in England and Wales is public funding, administered by the Legal Aid Agency under the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012 (LASPO), for legal advice, family mediation and representation in the Family Court.[1][2] Since 1 April 2013 most private family law, including disputes about children and finances after separation, has been outside its scope; funding remains available for family mediation, for applications for non-molestation and occupation orders, for other family matters where the applicant has prescribed evidence of domestic abuse or of a risk of abuse to a child, for public law care proceedings, and for children who are parties.[3][4][5][6][7][8][9]

Two schemes operate under different rules. Legal aid for family mediation is means-tested only. Legal aid for a solicitor in a private family law case requires both a domestic abuse or child protection evidence gateway and the means test.[4][6][10] From 6 April 2026 the means test limits are gross income of £2,657 a month, disposable income of £733 a month and disposable capital of £8,000; income and capital contributions have been temporarily waived since 27 June 2025 following the cyber attack on the Legal Aid Agency.[11][12][13][14][15] In January to March 2026 legal aid applications supported by evidence of domestic violence or child abuse rose 6 per cent on a year earlier, while 49 per cent of private law children cases were disposed of with neither party represented.[16][17]

Written by Jess Knauf, Director of Client Strategy at Mediate UK and Associate Member of Resolution. Reviewed by Belinda Atkins, Managing Director of Mediate UK. Last reviewed 6 September 2026; last updated 6 September 2026; next scheduled review March 2027.

Definition and structure

Civil legal aid is delivered at three levels. Legal help covers advice and assistance short of representation, such as advice on a person’s position and correspondence. Help with family mediation covers a solicitor’s advice alongside mediation and the drafting of a consent order to record what has been agreed. Legal representation, granted by certificate, covers conducting proceedings and advocacy.[18][19] Family mediation itself, including the mediation information and assessment meeting (MIAM), is funded directly through a contract between the Legal Aid Agency and the mediation provider, which assesses eligibility.[19][4]

Section 9(1) of LASPO provides that civil legal services are available to an individual if “they are civil legal services described in Part 1 of Schedule 1, and the Director has determined that the individual qualifies for the services”.[2] Three conditions therefore apply in every case: the matter must be within scope, the individual must pass the means test, and the case must satisfy the merits criteria, which for representation include prospects of success and proportionality. The Director of Legal Aid Casework is a civil servant designated by the Lord Chancellor whose decisions on individual cases are independent of ministers.[20]

Part 1 of LASPO, in force from 1 April 2013, replaced the Access to Justice Act 1999, abolished the Legal Services Commission and transferred its functions to the Lord Chancellor, exercised in practice through the Legal Aid Agency.[3][21][1] Schedule 1, Part 1 lists the services within scope; Parts 2 and 3 list exclusions and exceptions.[2] The detailed rules are in secondary legislation: the Civil Legal Aid (Procedure) Regulations 2012 (applications and the domestic abuse evidence requirement in regulation 33); the Civil Legal Aid (Financial Resources and Payment for Services) Regulations 2013 (the means test); the Civil Legal Aid (Merits Criteria) Regulations 2013; and the Civil Legal Aid (Statutory Charge) Regulations 2013.[10][12][22]

Scope: what family legal aid covers

Family matters within the scope of civil legal aid are set out in Part 1 of Schedule 1 to LASPO. The principal paragraphs are: paragraph 1, care, supervision and protection of children (public law proceedings, in which the child and the parents are funded without a means test); paragraph 11, home rights, occupation orders and non-molestation orders under Part IV of the Family Law Act 1996, and applications for Domestic Abuse Protection Orders; paragraph 12, other family matters for an adult who “was, or is at risk of being, the victim” of domestic abuse; paragraph 13, orders about a child who is at risk of abuse from someone other than the applicant; paragraph 14, “mediation provided in relation to family disputes” and legal services in connection with it; and paragraph 15, children who are parties to family proceedings.[8][23][5][6][7][4][9]

Family matters within the scope of civil legal aid under LASPO 2012, Schedule 1, Part 1
Schedule 1 paragraphMatterGateway evidence needed?Means test?
1Care, supervision and emergency protection proceedings (parents and children)NoNo, for the child and the parents or others with parental responsibility in care, supervision and emergency protection proceedings (regulation 5(1)(c))[8][23]
11Non-molestation orders, occupation orders, home rights; Domestic Abuse Protection Orders; forced marriage protection ordersNo: the application is itself protectiveYes[5]
12Child arrangements, financial remedies and other private family matters for a victim of domestic abuseYes: prescribed evidence under regulation 33Yes[6][10]
13Child arrangements and related orders where the child is at risk of abuse from another personYes: prescribed evidence of child abuseYes[7][24]
14Family mediation and legal help alongside itNoYes[4]
15A child who is an applicant, respondent or joined party in family proceedingsNoYes, assessed on the child’s own means[9]

GOV.UK summarises the family strands as “protecting yourself or a child from abuse or harassment, for example domestic abuse or forced marriage”, “a child in your family being at risk of being taken into care”, “family mediation, for example if you’re deciding on child arrangements”, and “needing advice on finances, children or divorce if you’ve been in an abusive relationship”.[18] Divorce itself, child arrangements between parents where no abuse is evidenced, financial remedies and cohabitation property disputes are outside scope unless exceptional case funding is granted.[2][25]

The domestic abuse and child abuse evidence gateway

For paragraph 12 matters, regulation 33 of the Civil Legal Aid (Procedure) Regulations 2012 requires the application to include “evidence of the domestic abuse or the risk of domestic abuse” in one of the forms listed in Schedule 1 to the regulations.[10] The Legal Aid Agency’s guidance (version 15, 15 June 2026) sets out 22 forms of evidence, ranging from an arrest, caution or conviction, a protective injunction or undertaking, a finding of fact or a Domestic Abuse Protection Notice, through letters from health professionals, multi-agency risk assessment conferences, independent domestic violence advisers, local authorities, refuges and support organisations, to evidence of economic abuse, and nine forms of evidence of child abuse for paragraph 13.[24] There has been no time limit on the age of the evidence since 8 January 2018.[10] The list and how each item is obtained is explained on domestic abuse and family law and, item by item, on Legal Aid 60.[26]

Two schemes: mediation and solicitor legal aid

The most common misunderstanding about family legal aid is to treat it as a single scheme. It is two. Legal aid for family mediation under paragraph 14 is available to anyone who passes the means test; there is no requirement to show evidence of domestic abuse or any other gateway.[4][19] Legal aid for a solicitor in a private family law case about children or money under paragraph 12 or 13 is available only to a person who has prescribed evidence of domestic abuse or of a risk of abuse to a child, and who also passes the means test.[6][7][10] A person may qualify for one and not the other.

Where one person qualifies for mediation legal aid, the Legal Aid Agency pays for that person’s MIAM and mediation sessions and also for the other person’s MIAM and first joint mediation session, so that both attend free at the outset.[19] Eligibility is assessed by the mediation provider under its contract, using the same income and capital limits as other civil legal aid.[19][11] The mediation strand, including what happens when only one person is eligible and how legal help with mediation funds a solicitor to advise alongside, is covered on legal aid for family mediation at Family Mediation Wiki.

The solicitor strand is described on the pages about non-molestation orders and occupation orders, for which no gateway evidence is needed, and on domestic abuse and family law for the gateway itself. A person who has neither gateway evidence nor the means to pay privately for representation in a children or financial case is a litigant in person, the position of the larger party in most private law children cases.[17] Legal Aid 60, an information site published by Family Legal Ltd, the publisher of this wiki, maintains a route finder that distinguishes the two schemes and the separate mediation voucher, and an overview of family legal aid; it states that it is not a government service and cannot decide eligibility.[27][28]

The means test

The means test has three limits, set by the Civil Legal Aid (Financial Resources and Payment for Services) Regulations 2013 and uprated for dependants each April. From 6 April 2026 an individual is ineligible if their gross monthly income exceeds £2,657 (regulation 7), and eligible only if their monthly disposable income does not exceed £733 and their disposable capital does not exceed £8,000 (regulation 8).[12][13][11][29] Where the applicant receives Universal Credit, guarantee credit, income-related Employment and Support Allowance, income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance or Income Support, they are “passported” through the income test, but capital is assessed in every case.[30][31]

Civil legal aid means test, England and Wales, figures applying from 6 April 2026
ElementFigure from 6 April 2026Rule
Gross income limit£2,657 a monthRegulation 7; increased by £222 for the fifth and each subsequent dependent child[12][11]
Disposable income limit£733 a monthRegulation 8, after deducting tax, national insurance, housing costs (capped at £545 for an applicant with no partner or dependants), childcare, maintenance paid, a partner allowance of £237.25 and a dependants’ allowance of £381.86 per child[13][29][32]
Disposable capital limit£8,000Regulation 8; savings, investments and equity in property after the mortgage and an equity disregard; up to £100,000 of an asset that is the subject matter of the dispute may be disregarded[13][11][32]
Passporting benefitsUniversal Credit, guarantee credit, income-related ESA, income-based JSA, Income SupportRegulation 6: income test only; capital still assessed[30]
Contribution bandDisposable income £316 to £733 a month, or capital over £3,000Contributions normally payable in this band; waived since 27 June 2025[11][14][15]

GOV.UK expresses the test as having “a joint monthly income of £2,657 or less (before tax and other deductions)” and states that “you will not usually be eligible if you and your partner have assets of over £8,000”.[31] The Legal Aid Agency publishes the figures each April in its civil eligibility keycard, the 2026 edition of which (keycard 62) records that the dependants’ allowances rose by 3.8 per cent to £237.25 for a partner and £381.86 per child, while the three main limits were unchanged.[29][11] The compiled table with worked examples is maintained by Legal Aid 60, an information site published by Family Legal Ltd, the publisher of this wiki.[32] The gross income limit has not been increased since 2009, a point central to the means test review described below.[33]

Contributions and the statutory charge

Under the rules as they stood until June 2025, a person whose disposable income fell between £316 and £733 a month, or whose disposable capital exceeded £3,000, was granted legal representation subject to a monthly contribution from income or a lump sum from capital.[11] On 26 June 2025, following the cyber attack on the Legal Aid Agency in April and May 2025, the Minister for Courts and Legal Services announced temporary measures including the waiver of civil legal aid income and capital contributions “for new and existing cases”.[34] The Criminal and Civil Legal Aid (Amendment) Regulations 2025 omitted regulations 44 and 45 of the 2013 Regulations with effect from 27 June 2025, “removing the requirement for individuals to pay capital or income contributions in relation to civil legal aid”, and waived contributions already due.[14] The Legal Aid Agency’s contingency guidance, updated for arrangements from 23 June 2026, states that “civil income and capital contributions remain temporarily waived” and that payments “will be reinstated when these changes are reversed later, when a new Statutory Instrument is introduced”.[15] No date has been given.

The statutory charge is separate and continues to apply. Section 25 of LASPO provides that the cost of civil legal services is “a first charge on any property recovered or preserved by the individual in proceedings” or in a settlement, so that a person who obtains money or property with legal aid, for example in a financial remedy case, repays the Legal Aid Agency out of it.[35][22] Regulation 5 of the Statutory Charge Regulations exempts periodical payments of maintenance, pension sharing and attachment orders, orders under the Family Law Act 1996, and the first half of a redundancy payment, among other items, .[36] GOV.UK describes this as having to “pay back some of the cost if you win money or property from your case”.[31]

Exceptional case funding

Section 10 of LASPO allows the Director to fund a case outside Schedule 1 where an “exceptional case determination” is made: a determination that failure to provide the services would breach the individual’s rights under the European Convention on Human Rights (in family cases, usually the right to a fair hearing under Article 6 or to respect for family life under Article 8), or that it is appropriate to fund having regard to the risk of such a breach.[25] The applicant must still satisfy the means and merits tests. In January to March 2026 the Legal Aid Agency received 884 applications for exceptional case funding across all categories, 8 per cent fewer than a year earlier, and granted 77 per cent of those determined.[16] Family cases without gateway evidence, such as a parent facing an application to remove a child from the jurisdiction, are among the situations in which exceptional funding is sought.

Help with Fees: a separate scheme

Legal aid pays for lawyers and mediators; it does not by itself deal with court fees, which are remitted under a separate HM Courts and Tribunals Service scheme, Help with Fees, applied for online or on form EX160 with the court application.[37] The scheme has its own tests: capital of no more than £4,250 for an applicant aged 65 or under where the fee is £1,420 or less (rising with the fee, to £16,000 for fees over £7,000, and £16,000 for those aged 66 or over), and either receipt of a qualifying benefit or gross monthly income at or below £1,420 for a single person or £2,130 for a couple, with additions for children; partial remission is available above those figures.[37] A person who has legal aid representation has the fee met under the certificate, but many family applicants, particularly litigants in person, rely on Help with Fees alone. Applications for non-molestation and occupation orders carry no fee in any event.[38] Current fees are on family court fees at Family Court Wiki.

The Legal Aid Agency and finding a provider

The Legal Aid Agency is an executive agency of the Ministry of Justice which states that it administers “the legal aid scheme in England and Wales, in accordance with the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012”.[1] It contracts with solicitors’ firms, law centres, advice agencies and family mediation services, pays them under fixed fee schemes, and, through the Director of Legal Aid Casework, decides applications for certificates and exceptional funding.[1][20] An individual cannot apply for legal aid directly; GOV.UK states: “A legal adviser will apply for legal aid for you.”[39]

Providers holding a contract are listed on the Legal Aid Agency’s “Find a legal aid adviser or family mediator” service, which is searched by postcode and category; a search for family mediation returns providers across England and Wales, among them Family Legal Ltd trading as Mediate UK, which publishes this wiki.[40][41] The Civil Legal Advice telephone service (0345 345 4345) gives advice under legal aid on family matters involving domestic abuse and on separating from an abusive partner, and GOV.UK’s online checker asks about the legal problem, income and savings and directs the user to the appropriate route.[42][39] The Legal Aid Agency reports that the number of providers paid for civil work fell by 15 per cent in the year to March 2026.[16]

The means test review

The Ministry of Justice began a review of the legal aid means tests in October 2020 and consulted between 15 March and 7 June 2022.[33] Its response, published on 25 May 2023, proposed to raise the civil gross income threshold to £34,950 a year for a single person, the disposable income threshold to £946 a month and the upper capital threshold to £11,000, to increase the equity disregard for a main home to £185,000, to remove the capital test for non-homeowners on passporting benefits, and to remove means testing altogether for children under 18 and for parents opposing the withdrawal of life-sustaining treatment; it estimated that over 2.5 million more people would become eligible for civil legal aid. Implementation was to be in four phases.[43]

The Ministry later stated that the new schemes were “not expected to be fully operational until 2026”, citing competing priorities, a delay the Law Society attributed in part to the Legal Aid Agency’s IT systems.[44] As at September 2026 the revised civil means test has not been implemented: the Legal Aid Agency’s April 2026 keycard and the regulations as amended to 6 September 2026 continue to apply the £2,657, £733 and £8,000 limits.[29][12][13] The 2025 cyber attack, and the contingency arrangements that followed, have further occupied the Agency’s systems capacity.[15] The government’s current position is therefore that the 2023 decisions stand but have no announced commencement date.

Statistics

Selected legal aid and representation statistics, England and Wales
MeasureFigureSource and period
Civil representation certificates grantedUp 88 per cent on the same quarter in 2025Legal aid statistics, January to March 2026; the rise reflects backlog processing after the 2025 cyber attack[16]
Applications supported by domestic violence or child abuse evidenceUp 6 per cent; grants up 9 per centAs above[16]
Certificates completed for domestic violence workUp 27 per centAs above[16]
Legally aided MIAMsUp 2 per cent; mediation outcomes up 8 per centAs above; mediation starts data unavailable[16]
Exceptional case funding applications884 received; 77 per cent of determinations grantedAs above[16]
Civil closed case expenditure£387.2 million in the quarter, up 58 per centAs above; backlog effect[16]
Providers paid for civil workDown 15 per cent over the yearAs above[16]
Private law children disposals with neither party represented49 per centFamily Court Statistics Quarterly, January to March 2026[17]
Private law children disposals with both parties represented13 per centAs above[17]

The Ministry of Justice warns that the January to March 2026 bulletin is affected by the May 2025 cyber attack, which “has impacted data collection across all schemes”: legal help and mediation starts are unavailable, and the spike in certificates and expenditure reflects claims entered onto the system only since December 2025, which “will return nearer to pre cyber-attack levels within a few quarters”.[16] The longer-run picture is of a scheme roughly half the size, in family mediation terms, of the one that existed before April 2013.[45][16]

History

Development of civil legal aid in England and Wales
DateDevelopment
1949The Legal Aid and Advice Act 1949 created the modern civil legal aid scheme in England and Wales[46]
1988The Legal Aid Act 1988 transferred administration to a new Legal Aid Board[47]
1999The Access to Justice Act 1999 replaced the Board with the Legal Services Commission and the Community Legal Service, [48]
1 October 1997Part IV of the Family Law Act 1996 created the non-molestation and occupation orders that remain in scope today[5]
1 April 2013Part 1 of LASPO came into force, abolishing the Legal Services Commission, creating the Legal Aid Agency and removing most private family law from scope while retaining mediation, protective orders and the domestic abuse and child abuse gateways[3][21]
20 November 2014The National Audit Office reported that the reforms had cut spending by about £300 million a year but that mediation assessments had fallen by 56 per cent and cases with neither party represented had risen by 30 per cent[45]
8 January 2018Time limits on domestic abuse evidence were removed and the evidence list widened[10]
7 February 2019The Post-Implementation Review of Part 1 of LASPO was published with a Legal Support Action Plan[49]
25 May 2023The government response to the means test review proposed higher thresholds and removal of means testing for some groups, to be implemented in four phases[43]
27 June 2025Civil legal aid contributions were temporarily waived after the cyber attack on the Legal Aid Agency[14]
6 April 2026Keycard 62: dependants’ allowances uprated by 3.8 per cent; main limits unchanged[29]

Criticism and debate

The 2013 reforms have been criticised on three main grounds. First, the evidence gateway: the requirement that a victim of domestic abuse produce a document from a third party before a solicitor can be funded was found in practice to exclude many victims, leading to successive widenings of the list and the removal of the time limit in 2018.[10][24] Second, the means test: the thresholds were frozen from 2009 and, the Ministry of Justice itself accepted in 2023, exclude many people on low incomes; the promised uprating has not been implemented.[33][43][44] Third, the consequences for the courts: the National Audit Office found in 2014 that the Ministry “did not have a good understanding of how people would respond” to the removal of legal aid, that mediation fell rather than rose, and that the number of family cases with neither party represented increased by 30 per cent in the first year, with costs falling on the courts.[45]

A further concern is provider supply. The number of organisations paid for civil legal aid work fell by 15 per cent in the year to March 2026, and the National Audit Office found as early as 2014 that in 14 local authority areas no provider had started face-to-face legal aid work in the first year of the reforms.[16][45] The 2025 cyber attack, which disrupted the Agency’s digital services and led to the temporary removal of contributions and delegation of decisions to providers, exposed the dependence of the scheme on ageing systems that the Law Society had identified as a cause of the delayed means test reforms.[34][44][15]

Getting help

Legal aid can be applied for only through a contracted provider. The routes below are free to use; the first step in most cases is the GOV.UK checker or a call to Civil Legal Advice.[39][42]

See also

References

  1. Legal Aid Agency. GOV.UK. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  2. Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012, section 9: General cases. legislation.gov.uk. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  3. The Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012 (Commencement No. 6) Order 2013, SI 2013/453. legislation.gov.uk. Part 1 in force 1 April 2013. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  4. LASPO 2012, Schedule 1, Part 1, paragraph 14: Mediation in family disputes. legislation.gov.uk. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  5. LASPO 2012, Schedule 1, Part 1, paragraph 11: Family homes and domestic violence. legislation.gov.uk. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  6. LASPO 2012, Schedule 1, Part 1, paragraph 12: Victims of domestic violence and family matters. legislation.gov.uk. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  7. LASPO 2012, Schedule 1, Part 1, paragraph 13: Protection of children and family matters. legislation.gov.uk. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  8. LASPO 2012, Schedule 1, Part 1, paragraph 1: Care, supervision and protection of children. legislation.gov.uk. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  9. LASPO 2012, Schedule 1, Part 1, paragraph 15: Children who are parties to family proceedings. legislation.gov.uk. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  10. The Civil Legal Aid (Procedure) Regulations 2012, regulation 33: Supporting documents: domestic abuse. legislation.gov.uk. Time limits on evidence removed from 8 January 2018. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  11. Civil legal aid: means testing (eligibility keycard 62 and Means Assessment Guidance). Legal Aid Agency. updated 5 August 2026; figures apply from 6 April 2026. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  12. The Civil Legal Aid (Financial Resources and Payment for Services) Regulations 2013, regulation 7: Gross income limit. legislation.gov.uk. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  13. The Civil Legal Aid (Financial Resources and Payment for Services) Regulations 2013, regulation 8: Disposable income and disposable capital limits. legislation.gov.uk. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  14. The Criminal and Civil Legal Aid (Amendment) Regulations 2025, SI 2025/750. legislation.gov.uk. Regulations 44 and 45 of SI 2013/480 (contributions) omitted from 27 June 2025. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  15. Civil contingency. Legal Aid Agency, Legal Aid Learning. arrangements effective from 23 June 2026. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  16. Legal aid statistics England and Wales bulletin, January to March 2026. Ministry of Justice. 25 June 2026. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  17. Family Court Statistics Quarterly, January to March 2026. Ministry of Justice. 25 June 2026. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  18. Legal aid: what you can get legal aid for. GOV.UK. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  19. Practice Direction 3A: Family Mediation Information and Assessment Meetings (MIAMs). Ministry of Justice. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  20. Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012, section 4: Director of Legal Aid Casework. legislation.gov.uk. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  21. Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012, section 38: Abolition of Legal Services Commission. legislation.gov.uk. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  22. The Civil Legal Aid (Statutory Charge) Regulations 2013, regulation 4: Calculation of the statutory charge. legislation.gov.uk. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  23. The Civil Legal Aid (Financial Resources and Payment for Services) Regulations 2013, regulation 5: Exceptions from requirement to make a determination in respect of an individual’s financial resources. legislation.gov.uk. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  24. Evidence requirements for private family law matters (LASPO 2012): guidance, version 15. Legal Aid Agency. 15 June 2026. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  25. Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012, section 10: Exceptional cases. legislation.gov.uk. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  26. Evidence of domestic abuse for legal aid. Legal Aid 60 (Family Legal Ltd). Accessed 5 September 2026.
  27. Legal aid route finder. Legal Aid 60 (Family Legal Ltd). Accessed 5 September 2026.
  28. Family legal aid in England and Wales. Legal Aid 60 (Family Legal Ltd). Accessed 5 September 2026.
  29. Civil eligibility keycard 2026. Legal Aid Agency. 8 April 2026. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  30. The Civil Legal Aid (Financial Resources and Payment for Services) Regulations 2013, regulation 6: Individuals in receipt of certain support. legislation.gov.uk. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  31. Legal aid: financial eligibility. GOV.UK. updated 2 September 2026. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  32. The legal aid means test, explained. Legal Aid 60 (Family Legal Ltd). Figures in force from 6 April 2026. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  33. Legal aid means test review: consultation. Ministry of Justice. consultation 15 March to 7 June 2022; response 25 May 2023. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  34. Minister announces temporary legal aid reforms after cyber-attack on Legal Aid Agency. Electronic Immigration Network. 26 June 2025. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  35. Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012, section 25: Charges on property in connection with civil legal services. legislation.gov.uk. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  36. The Civil Legal Aid (Statutory Charge) Regulations 2013, regulation 5: Exceptions to the statutory charge. legislation.gov.uk. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  37. Get help paying court and tribunal fees. GOV.UK. updated 2 September 2026. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  38. Family court fees (EX50). HM Courts and Tribunals Service. updated 13 July 2026. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  39. Legal aid: check if you can get legal aid. GOV.UK. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  40. Find a legal aid adviser or family mediator. Legal Aid Agency. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  41. Find a legal aid adviser or family mediator: family mediation providers near RG12 8FB. Legal Aid Agency. Listing includes Family Legal Ltd T/A Mediate UK, Bracknell; retrieved 6 September 2026. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  42. Civil Legal Advice (CLA). GOV.UK. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  43. Government response to the legal aid means test review. Ministry of Justice. 25 May 2023. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  44. Law Society’s fury at legal aid means test reform delay. Law Society Gazette. 2024. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  45. Implementing reforms to civil legal aid. National Audit Office. 20 November 2014. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  46. Legal Aid and Advice Act 1949 (12, 13 and 14 Geo 6 c. 51). legislation.gov.uk. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  47. Legal Aid Act 1988 (c. 34). legislation.gov.uk. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  48. Access to Justice Act 1999 (c. 22). legislation.gov.uk. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  49. Post-implementation review of Part 1 of LASPO. Ministry of Justice. 7 February 2019. Accessed 5 September 2026.

This article is part of Family Law Wiki, published by Family Legal Ltd. It is general information about the law of England and Wales, not legal advice. Last reviewed 6 September 2026. About this site and editorial policy · Report an error.