Even if you are working or have savings you could still qualify for Legal Aid.

Call now on 01642 293427 for a free thirty minutes appointment or free telephone consultation, regardless of your means.

 Paul J Watson Solicitor holds legal aid franchises in both Family Law and Criminal Law. This means that for clients who qualify for Legal Aid, we can undertake your Family or Criminal Legal Aid case.

 Generally, there are phrases that solicitors use, such as “Legal Help”, “Public Funding Certificate”, “Legal Funding Certificate” or “Legal Representation Certificate”.  All these phrases are simply for types of Legal Aid.

 Whether or not you will be granted Legal Aid does not just depend on your means. The type of case is also a consideration, as is whether or not you are likely to win your case.  This would initially be assessed by either our Family Solicitor or our Criminal Defence Solicitor.

If you want to find out whether or not you would qualify for Legal Aid for your case, then you can use the Legal Service Commission’s financial eligibility calculator by visiting:

http://www.communitylegaladvice.org.uk/en/legalaid/calculator.jsp.

Family Law cases:-

You can apply for Legal Aid for initial advice, negotiation and representation from our Family Solicitor, through the Legal Services Commission’s Legal Help Scheme. If your case needs to go to Court, or if Court proceedings are issued against you, then you would have to apply for a Legal (or Public) Funding Certificate in order to be represented by our Family Solicitor under Legal Aid.

You can get Legal Aid for many civil problems, such as contact with a child, divorce proceedings (whether defending or applying), or financial issues. We can help you with all such problems and whether or not you qualify for Legal Aid, our Family Law Solicitor will discuss your case with you initially in a free 30 minute appointment or via telephone consultation.

Criminal cases:-

Everyone qualifies for free legal assistance when their case is at the Police Station stage, regardless of how much they earn. It’s only when your case goes further that you need to be concerned about Legal Aid.

Paul J Watson Solicitor specialises in Criminal Defence and can advise you on whether or not you would qualify for Legal Aid. To do so, a means test must be undertaken, which takes into account the money you have coming in, and the money you have going out. If you can afford to pay to be represented at Court, then you must do so. Regardless, our Criminal Solicitor Paul Watson will see you for a free 30 minutes appointment to discuss whether you would qualify for Legal Aid, or alternatively can discuss this with you in a free telephone consultation.

 Ideally, before you go to Court, you will need to file an application for Legal Aid, if you are successfully means tested, with our Criminal Solicitor Paul Watson. He will assist you in filling in the relevant forms and will file the relevant documents for you at Court. Please note that if you are not on Benefits, you may be asked to provide financial documents to support your application, such as copies of your bank statements and wage slips, or if you have your own business, copies of your most recent accounts.

If you would like to know more about Legal Aid, we advise you to visit the Legal Services Commission’s website and download the leaflet “A Step by Step Guide to Legal Aid” ;-

http://www.legalservices.gov.uk/public/help/information_leaflets.asp.

Our Middlesbrough Legal Aid Solicitors at Paul J Watson would be pleased to discuss your case with you on 01642 293427. Alternatively, use our contact form, providing your contact details and a little about your case, and we will contact you.