Civil news: changes to scope of family legal aid
Family legal aid is being extended to include Special Guardianship Orders for both those with parental responsibilities and prospective guardians.
Changes to family legal aid took effect on 1 May 2023 which broaden the scope of legal aid in some private family law cases.
Details of private family law changes
The scope of family legal aid is being extended for both those with parental responsibilities and prospective guardians. The extension applies to:
- prospective guardians making applications for Special Guardianship Orders (SGOs) in private family law proceedings
- anyone with parental responsibilities when responding to applications for SGOs
The changes bring the financial eligibility requirement in line with cases covered by public family law cases.
Where can I find out more?
Amendments to the civil legal aid regulations are available to view and we have updated the appropriate guidance on GOV.UK.
This guidance includes details of the new family law proceedings codes which have been built into the Client and Cost Management System (CCMS).
Further information
LASPO 2012 (Legal Aid: Family and Domestic Abuse) (Miscellaneous Amendments) Order 2023 – rule changes available to view here
Civil legal aid application forms: supporting guidance – CCMS codes to use relating to public family law changes can be found in ‘post-April 2013’ guidance document (third attachment)
Legal aid guidance: Lord Chancellor – see Lord Chancellor’s guidance (under section 4 of LASPO), which has also been updated to take account of public family law change