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Legal aid meaning

What does Legal aid mean?
Publicly funded legal services providing free or subsidised legal advice, assistance and representation to eligible people in civil and criminal matters. The term is used in practice for statutory funding schemes rather than a single legal definition. In England and Wales, civil and criminal legal aid is governed by the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012 and administered by the Legal Aid Agency; civil scope is limited, with Exceptional Case Funding available. Scotland’s regime is under the Legal Aid (Scotland) Act 1986, administered by the Scottish Legal Aid Board, including advice and assistance, Assistance by Way of Representation (ABWOR), and full civil/criminal legal aid. Northern Ireland’s schemes arise under the Legal Aid, Advice and Assistance (Northern Ireland) Order 1981, administered by the Legal Services Agency Northern Ireland. In Ireland, civil legal aid is provided under the Civil Legal Aid Act 1995 by the Legal Aid Board; criminal legal aid is under the Criminal Justice (Legal Aid) Act 1962. Key features across jurisdictions include eligibility by means test, merits and scope tests; possible client contributions; and coverage of solicitor and counsel fees and disbursements.
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View the related Checklists about Legal aid

CHECKLISTS
Local authority meetings and decisions—access to information and transparency checklist for council, cabinet and officer (including key) decisions

Coronavirus (COVID-19): This Archived Practice Note provides guidance on areas that were temporarily modified to aid the handling of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. For more detail, refer to Practice Notes: Local authority meetings during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic [Archived], and Coronavirus (COVID-19)—governance tracker [Archived]. Elements of accessibility The table below outlines the position within a standard authority. Certain authorities extend further rights to councillors and to the public in some cases...

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CHECKLISTS
Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 (UK) subscription contracts: compliance checklist on scope, exclusions, disclosures, free trials, reminders, cooling-off, cancellation, refunds and payment timing

How to use this checklist This Checklist sets out the principal obligations for traders who provide subscription arrangements under the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 (DMCCA 2024). It addresses which agreements are captured by the subscription regime, how those rules operate for free trials, the pre-contract information to be given, reminder communications, and consumers’ rights to cancel. It also covers cooling-off entitlements and refunds. This Checklist serves as a practical aid to traders gearing up for commencement of the pertinent provisions of DMCCA 2024, Part 4, Chapter 2. DMCCA 2024 secured Royal Assent on 24 May 2024, with some elements taking effect from that day. Nevertheless, the bulk of the significant provisions and duties in the DMCCA 2024 will commence through secondary legislation. The government has set out its indicative schedule for commencement of the substantive elements of DMCCA 2024: DMCCA 2024, Part 4, Chapter 2 is among the final measures to begin, expected at the earliest in Spring 2026, though subsequent government signals indicate the rules...

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CHECKLISTS
Referral and fee sharing compliance checklist for law firms: SRA Standards and LASPO 2012 (England and Wales)

Intended for law firms This resource is aimed at law firms. It is designed to help you assess whether your systems are sufficient to comply with applicable regulatory and legislative obligations concerning referral and fee sharing arrangements. It reflects the SRA regulatory regime and the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012. The SRA Standards and Regulations are supported by case studies and guidance presented in a range of formats, such as Q&As, warning notices, decision trees and ‘topic guidance’. See Practice Notes: Referral and fee sharing arrangements and Personal injury referrals—SRA examples, flowchart and guidance. This resource addresses situations where a third party refers clients to you and/or you enter into a fee sharing agreement with a third party. For situations where you introduce clients to third parties, see subtopic: Introductions to third parties. For guidance on what amounts to a referral, an introduction or a referral fee, see Practice Note: Referral and fee sharing arrangements—Definitions...

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View the related News about Legal aid

NEWS
EU competition and State aid: pharmaceutical enforcement 2018–2022, MEO test guidance on risk finance, mergers update (26 January 2024)

Competition policy Commission publishes report on enforcement of EU antitrust and merger control rules in the pharmaceutical sector between 2018–2022 The Commission has issued a report on competition enforcement—covering antitrust and merger control—in the pharmaceutical sector, outlining the activities undertaken by the Commission and national competition authorities during 2018 to 2022. It updates an earlier 2019 report that examined the period from 2009 to 2017. Alongside a broad overview of enforcement in pharmaceuticals, the report describes the sector’s key features that guide competition assessments and, through concrete and practical examples, clearly demonstrates how competition law action protected undertakings and consumers, including in the course of the Covid-19 crisis...

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NEWS
Daily EU competition law round-up: General Court appeals (Teva, Red Bull, Nvidia), mergers (Liberty/Dorna, Infravia/Iliad), State aid (Croatia, Austria), Foreign Subsidies Regulation (Amcor/Berry) — 24 February 2025

Antitrust A fresh appeal has been filed before the General Court in Case T- 19/25, Teva Pharmaceutical Industries and Teva Pharmaceuticals Europe v Commission, challenging the Commission’s decision in Teva (Copaxone) (AT.40588) and requesting that the fine-imposing infringement ruling be annulled—see further, application A fresh appeal has been submitted before the General Court in Case T- 682/24, Red Bull and Others v Commission, brought against the Commission for failing to reimburse additional costs incurred due to the disproportionate prolongation of an inspection—see further, application NOTE—For all...

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NEWS
EU competition law: Commission Phase I clearances (Kee Safety; Grand Bahamas Shipyard); new merger notifications; Broadcom/VMware decision documents; Finnish soft drinks tax not State aid

Mergers The Commission approved: the securing of joint control over Kee Safety Group by Inflexion Private Equity Partners LLP and 65 Equity Partners Pte. Ltd (M.11983) following a phase I investigation—for further details, see Midday Express the attainment of joint control of Grand Bahamas Shipyard Ltd...

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View the related Practice Notes about Legal aid

PRACTICE NOTES
UK DTR 2: issuer obligations on disclosure, delay, control and selective disclosure of inside information—FCA/ESMA guidance, case law, COVID‑19 context and enforcement (post‑Brexit UK MAR)

Resource Note This Resource Note signposts key commentary, analysis and materials to aid interpretation and offer practical direction on using Chapter 2 of the Disclosure Guidance and Transparency Rules (DTR 2). Where relevant, it draws on: the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) Handbook FCA Knowledge Base—Procedural and Technical notes (formal guidance binding on the FCA) FCA consultation and discussion papers, policy and feedback statements, and warnings Primary Market Bulletins and other FCA publications legacy UKLA technical and procedural notes and the UKLA’s newsletter List!, where still pertinent assimilated EU legislation EU Directives and EU Regulations, where helpful to construing a provision Lexis+® UK analysis and resources Setting the scene What it covers: DTR 2 prescribes the framework for issuers to disclose and manage inside information, supporting timely and even-handed release of market-sensitive information. It also identifies specific situations permitting a delay to public disclosure of inside information, together with the safeguards required to keep such information...

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PRACTICE NOTES
UK FCA DTR 1–1C: application, post‑Brexit and 2024 listing reforms, MAR interplay, audit committees, misleading disclosures and related party rules

This Resource Note spotlights commentary, analysis and materials to aid interpretation and give practical guidance on applying Chapters 1, 1A, 1B and 1C of the Disclosure Guidance and Transparency Rules: DTR 1, DTR 1A, DTR 1B and DTR 1C respectively. Materials referenced here include, where pertinent: the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) Handbook FCA Knowledge Base guidance—Procedural notes and Technical notes (constituting formal guidance and binding on the FCA) FCA consultation papers, discussion papers, policy statements, feedback statements and warnings Primary Market Bulletins and other FCA publications former UKLA technical and procedural notes and the UKLA newsletter List!, where still relevant to interpreting or applying a provision assimilated EU legislation EU Directives and EU Regulations, where relevant to interpreting a provision Lexis+ UK analysis and resources Setting the scene What it covers: DTR 1 sets out the Disclosure guidance, explaining its scope and purpose; DTR 1A sets out the transparency rules with their scope and purpose;...

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PRACTICE NOTES
Court of Justice of the European Union State aid appeals—live tracker of appeals from the General Court and recovery actions

This tracker monitors current Court of Justice appeals concerning State aid (Articles 107–109 TFEU) and other aid recovery actions. For concluded matters, consult Court of Justice State aid appeals—closed cases tracker. Note—closed appeals are transferred from this page to the closed trackers within seven days of the final ruling. For the Commission’s recent State aid decisions, see EU State aid decisions—ongoing cases tracker; for appeals pending before the General Court, see General Court State aid appeals—ongoing cases tracker; and for national references before the Court of Justice touching on State aid, see Court of Justice State aid national references—ongoing cases tracker. Appeals from the General Court Case C-306/26 P, LM v Commission — Appeal against the General Court’s order in Case T-261/25 declaring inadmissible an annulment action concerning parts of Commission decision SA.44944—Tax treatment of public casinos in Germany and SA.53552—Alleged guarantee for public casinos in Germany (Wirtschaftlichkeitsgarantie). Latest development: Lodged—07/04/2026. Case C-505/24 P, Condor Flugdienst v Ryanair —...

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View the related Precedents about Legal aid

PRECEDENTS
Completing the N1 claim form for trade mark infringement and passing off (England and Wales)

The purpose of the claim form A claim form initiates proceedings. It sets out information relevant to the case, including: the court reference number to be used on all subsequent court documents; the parties to the proceedings; what is being claimed; particulars of the claim (including any claim for interest); and contact details for the claimant, typically the claimant’s solicitor. Guidance on the contents of a claim form in general is available in the Practice Note: Claim form—the contents. This Precedent includes suggested text for use where the claim concerns trade mark infringement and/or passing off. The form provides direction on the particular points that should be considered when completing a claim form for use in such proceedings. The attached N1 claim form is provided as an example only. We recommend that practitioners download the latest N1 claim form in PDF from the official source for submission, and use the attached version solely as an aid to completing it....

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PRECEDENTS
UK private company share purchase (buyout) legal due diligence questionnaire: corporate, tax, finance, contracts, property, IP/IT, data protection, employment, pensions, EHS, competition, insurance and share schemes

Dated [ insert date ] Introduction This legal due diligence questionnaire concerns the intended acquisition by [ insert buyer name ] ( Newco ) of the whole issued share capital of [ insert name of target company ] Limited (the Target ) from [ insert seller name ] (the Seller ) (the Proposed Acquisition ). The questionnaire exists to enable Newco, Newco’s solicitors and its professional advisers involved in the Proposed Acquisition to obtain the information they require to aid the valuation of the Target and the subsidiaries of the Target (the Group and each a Group Company ). We reserve the right to raise further enquiries in relation to both your replies to this questionnaire and generally...

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PRECEDENTS
Workplace First Aid Incident Record Form: Accident, Injury, Treatment and HSE Reporting

1 Persons involved Name of person needing first aid [ Enter name of injured person ] Job title/role (if employed) Status (if not a worker, e.g. client/customer/visitor) Injured person’s address 2 About the accident Date and time of incident Exact location (room/area) and site address Summary of events (if known) [ Describe how the accident happened, if known ] Witnesses [ List witness name(s) and address(es) ] 3 About the injury Injury description [ Insert details of the injury ] Affected body part(s) Severity: minor/moderate/severe/severe requiring hospital treatment First aid provided and first aider’s name Taken to hospital? Yes/No Hospital details; if No, next destination (e.g. home/back to work) Reportable to the Health and Safety Executive? Yes/No/Not known If Yes, date referred to the organisation’s Health and Safety manager/representative(s)/officer(s) 4 Person completing this record I confirm...

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View the related Q&As about Legal aid

Q&As
Employer auxiliary aid in union paid time off; trade organisation duty?

Duty to make reasonable adjustments The Equality Act 2010 (EqA 2010) establishes a duty to make reasonable adjustments (referred to below as ‘the duty’), which contains three distinct requirements. The third requires that, where a disabled person would, without the provision of an auxiliary aid, face a substantial disadvantage in relation to a relevant matter when compared with people who are not disabled, such steps as are reasonable must be taken to supply the auxiliary aid. The situations in which the duty arises differ across workplace settings. Accordingly, the precise circumstances that engage the duty will not be uniform across all settings. For all three requirements, the duty is triggered only where a disabled individual is placed at a substantial disadvantage compared with non‑disabled people ‘in relation to a “relevant matter”’, and what counts as a ‘relevant matter’ (as defined in EqA 2010, Sch 8 Pt 1) varies according to the particular type of workplace. As a result, application of the duty is context‑specific to the workplace in question....

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Q&As
Are s106 TCPA contributions caught by State aid rules or exempt?

State Aid: The Basics Guide The Department for Business, Innovation & Skills’ July 2015 guide, State Aid: The Basics Guide, explains that state aid arises wherever public resources are used to give organisations an edge over others, potentially distorting competition and harming consumers and businesses across the EU. The concept is deliberately wide, as an “advantage” can be delivered in many ways, for example: grants loans tax breaks the use or sale of a state asset free of charge or for less than market value Public authorities, including local authorities in England and Wales, are accountable for ensuring their policies and projects comply with these requirements. During the implementation period following Brexit, state aid rules continue to apply in the UK. The annex to the Department for Education’s November 2019 publication, Securing Developer Contributions for Education, notes that unlawful state aid can occur in relation to developer contributions towards education...

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