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July 2025: UK Parliament Justice Select Committee announces inquiry into how providers of free legal advice have responded to restrictions on legal aid 

The Justice Commons Select Committee has announced an inquiry into access to justice. Following recent inquiries by the Committee into the Future of Legal Aid and the impact of civil legal ad funding, this inquiry will consider how the provision of legal advice and representation, have developed in response to the restrictions on the provision of legal aid. It will focus on the scope for future innovation in the nature of services, funding, regulation and technology to support effective access to justice in England and Wales. In its call for evidence, the Committee  invites evidence submissions by Tuesday, 30 September 2025 at 23:59 addressing the questions posed on its website.

This inquiry is of direct relevance to the Centre for Socio-Legal Studies Nuffield funded research on ‘Creating a New Mixed Funding Model for Free Legal Advice.’  The project team are particularly interested in providing an evidence base in debate about how free legal advice is being used to support access to justice and the extent of reliance being placed on it; how the current state of funding for free legal advice affect access to justice for clients; the role of advice services in supporting access to justice; the funding options which would increase access to justice and priority areas for spending.  

Our research team will be providing further updates and our response to the call for evidence on this site. 

Read more: Justice Committee launches new inquiry

Why Finding New Ways to Fund Legal Advice is Important

The legal advice sector supports the most vulnerable in society.  Funded through private, public and charitable funding, its funding is widely agreed to be in a state of crisis. This crisis is impacting access to justice. This research will explore potential creative and supplementary funding models to create a more sustainable future for legal advice and support. Which funding model can end the crisis in funding for legal advice?

  • Residual funds from collective action cases;
  • Interest on Lawyer Trust Accounts (IOLTA);
  • Legal expenses insurance;
  • Levies on large commercial law firms;
  • The apprenticeship levy; and
  • Re-direction of dormant client monies.

About the Project

This two year research project, launched in Spring 2025, is funded by the Nuffield Foundation. It takes the form of a research collaboration between the University of Oxford's Centre for Socio-Legal Studies, the Access to Justice Foundation, and the University of Surrey. The project is exploring a range of funding models operating successfully in other countries, which could be transplanted to the UK to support the work of organisations providing free legal advice.

The research that we are undertaking is informed by stakeholder engagement workshops involving jurisdictional experts, lawyers, advice providers, financiers, regulators, insurers, economists and academics. The project will result in an open-access database, policy briefings, an accessible project report with practical recommendations, and widespread dissemination of findings.

Our thanks go to Thomson Reuters and Dechert LLP pro bono teams for supporting us during the pilot stage of this research. 

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