Unlike low income earners in England and Wales who have had access to Conditional Fee Agreements since 1995, residents of Northern Ireland remain unable to make use of the CFA system. Yet solicitors and legal advice centres across Northern Ireland receive daily enquiries about Conditional Fee Arrangements from low earning individuals.  These potential clients enquire, only to find that Conditional Fee Arrangements’ are not a recognised part of the legal system in the six counties.

In his keynote speech on June 7th 2010 David Ford, the new Minister of Justice for Northern Ireland, proposed a radical reform to the legal aid system that would allow advice centres, such as the Citizens Advice, access to legal aid money. While this major reform – the first in forty years – may be of benefit to families in receipt of income support, jobseekers or similar state benefits, families on low income remain vulnerable as they continue to be ineligible for legal aid or CFAs despite recognition by the Government and the legal sector that a gap exists.

Many of these families have only one bread winner. A simple trip and fall from an accident at work may appear to be of little or no consequence, but it is often the minor or inconsequential appearing accidents that create the most difficulty. For many low income families a personal injury compensation claim can often mean the difference between having to endure considerable financial hardship and simply getting by.

David Ford is expected to report the findings of his review to the Northern Ireland Assembly when they reconvene in plenary session on September 13th. It is hoped that the report may contain a solution to the current situation in Northern Ireland because without access to legal aid, Conditional Fee Arrangements or viable alternatives, low income families in Northern Ireland will continue to fall through this hole in the system.