As of January 2025, the Ministry of Justice will consult on increasing legal aid fees for those working in housing and debt, and immigration and asylum.
The consultation aims to increase fees to around £65-69 per hour (non-London/London), or provide a 10% uplift – whichever figure is higher.
Any fixed fee work will be supplemented in proportion to the increase in the underlying hourly rate for that work.
The plans will be implemented in 2025/26, with costs reaching up to £20 million by 2027. The last time civil legal aid fees were increased was in 1996.
In 2023, the Ministry of Justice claims it spent over £1 billion on civil legal aid.
They said that the funding increase is the first step in response to evidence gathered from a review of civil legal aid. The evidence revealed that both housing and immigration sectors are under significant pressure.
The announcement follows last month’s £24 million increase for criminal legal aid, which specifically helps police station and youth court fees, which was supposedly £3 million more than what the former Conservative government had proposed.
Lord Chancellor, Shabana Mahmood said: “This government is determined to improve the civil legal aid sector which was left neglected for years. This is an important step as we rebuild our justice system, ensuring it is fit for purpose for the society it serves and those who serve within it.”
However, providers in other contract areas of law, such as education, mental health, community care and discrimination continue to wait for any increase in fees. The Ministry of Justice said it will keep considering fees paid to other civil legal aid categories, particularly as the second phase of the government’s spending review approaches next Spring.
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