The Costs/Benefit Matrix
In all civil and family cases the Commission will want to be sure that the money will be usefully spent. Obviously cases over children and domestic violence cannot be valued in financial terms, but the Commission will always set an initial limit to how much can be spent on Legal Aid. Where the dispute is over money or property, they will ask your solicitor to rate the prospects of success and balance against that the likely costs and the amount likely to be recovered. From this comes the cost benefit matrix which must be satisfied:
- Prospects excellent (80%) : value of claim must be at least equal to the likely costs
- Prospects very good (60- 80%) : value of claim must be twice likely costs
- Prospects good (50-60%) : value of claim must be four times likely costs
- Prospects less than 50% - Legal Aid unlikely to be granted at all