Call to amend eligibility criteria for legal aid to increase accessibility

THE chairwoman of the Legal Aid Board has called on the Government to consider raising the eligibility levels for people to avail of its services on an annual basis.

Anne Colley yesterday recommended that increases in disposable income thresholds should in future be index-linked in line with inflation.

The Legal Aid Board which operates from 38 different centres around the country offers legal aid and advice on matters of civil law.

Ms Colley pointed out that many more people had access to the Board’s services over the past 12 months as a result of changes to the financial eligibility limits in September 2006.

Speaking at the launch of the annual report of the Legal Aid Board in Dublin, Ms Colley welcomed those changes as she said they highlighted how “out of date” the previous limits had become.

Last year, disposable income thresholds were raised for the first time since 2002 from €12,000 to €18,000 per annum. The value of a person’s home for the assessment of capital assets was also removed for the first time.

Ms Colley said such changes had played a part in the 7.5% increase in cases handled by the board last year with over 13,000 people availing of legal aid and advice.

A further 4,200 cases were handled by the board’s refugee and private practitioner legal services.

All people who avail of the board’s services are required to pay a minimum contribution of €10 for legal advice and €50 for legal aid.

The board’s chief executive officer, Moling Ryan, said the increases in income eligibility limits were hugely important in increasing access to legal services for disadvantaged members of society.

Mr Ryan predicted that the changes would result in a 10% annual increase in the number of people availing of the Board’s services over the next few years.

Family law remains the dominant area for legal advice and aid provided by the Board with most cases relating to divorce, separation, custody and access proceedings.

However, Mr Ryan expressed concern that many people were unaware that they offered other services besides id and advice on family law matters.

“There is a common perception that the Board deals only with family law cases. It is important to note that the Board does undertake other civil law work, including personal injury and judicial review cases as well as contract, employment and debt matters,” explained Mr Ryan.

Overall Government funding to the LAB fell by just over 3% in 2006 to €29.6m, although the reduction is largely explained by the decline in demand for legal services offered to refugees.

Launching the report, Justice Minister, Brian Lenihan, welcomed the reduction in waiting times for appointments at Legal Aid Board centres.

The average waiting time in the vast majority of centres is now down to two months or less.