Abuse Victims Forced South To Find Legal Aid

Victims of domestic abuse are being forced to represent themselves in court or travel to the central belt for legal help because solicitors in Inverness can no longer afford to cover some civil legal aid cases.

Solicitors say the block fee introduced in October 2003 for civil cases does not meet the costs involved with family law cases which include domestic violence, divorce and child access rights.

The situation is so acute in the Highlands that members of the public are having to travel to Edinburgh or Glasgow to find a solicitor to take on their case.

Helen Hughes, who is associate chairman of the Family Law Association, which is demanding an overhaul of the civil legal aid system, confirmed that the lack of family law solicitors practising in the Highlands and the large geographical area to be covered was impacting on members of the public.

“They can’t find a solicitor so they have to represent themselves,” she said.

“Family law cases, for example domestic violence, are quite intensive. The victims are often looking to access interdicts and other protective orders.

“We are finding that in the Highlands they cannot find a solicitor to undertake that work on a legal aid basis. Solicitors have found that sometimes it does not even pay enough to cover their expenses.

“Solicitors who have to abandon this type of work do it with a heavy heart and the reason is they cannot afford to do it any more.

With the block fee, whether they see the client once or hundreds of times, they get handed the same fee.”

Caroline Graham, who specialises in family law as a partner of Macleod and MacCallum in Queensgate, Inverness, believed the situation was “making justice difficult”.

Although her firm still takes on family law cases on a legal aid basis, she admitted it was becoming more and more difficult. “Whilst it is not the case that no solicitors are doing legal aid work, most solicitors doing legal aid work are looking at the block fee and have to make hard decisions about the type of work they can do,” Ms Graham said.

“All family law solicitors across Scotland are in the same position. We all have to consider each case on an individual basis.

“There are some solicitors who have done legal aid work and who don’t anymore, others are continuing but they have to review the situation.”

She claimed the block fee was “unrealistic” in family law cases because of the time involved, particularly in the Highlands where travel and distance between courts was an issue.

The Family Law Association is now calling on ministers to review the rates paid to solicitors.

“To ensure access to justice, the Scottish Executive must immediately review the block payment system and put in place a system that pays Highland solicitors a reasonable rate for the very important work they do to protect people’s rights,” Ms Hughes said.

“The situation is unacceptable. Family law cases are not given the priority they deserve under the current arrangements and we are calling for urgent changes.”