The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) published the terms of reference for its Civil Legal Aid Review on 30 January 2023. The review will incorporate an external economic analysis of the civil legal aid market and a comparative analysis of civil legal aid in other jurisdictions. The terms of reference state that the overall objective of the civil legal aid system ‘is to provide advice and representation to those who most need it … This objective will provide the foundation for all analysis and recommendations.’ This will be achieved, the MoJ says, by ensuring that the civil legal aid system:

The latter is the only mention of financial sustainability in the terms of reference. Indeed, the focus seems to be on ‘what structural changes (eg in terms of how civil legal aid is commissioned, procured, contracted and delivered) could be made to ensure a more efficient and effective civil legal aid system’. However, as Legal Aid Practitioners Group CEO Chris Minnoch notes (see page 16 of this issue), ‘the central issue with conventional legal aid is the horrendously low payment rates, not that the lawyers are slow, inefficient or disproportionately expensive’.

The final outcome of the review and resulting policy is planned for March 2024.