Legal Aid for Family Mediation

We can provide our services fully funded by the Legal Aid Agency to those who qualify for Legal Aid.

If you are in receipt of any income-related benefits such as Universal Credit, or if your single or combined (if living with someone) gross income is less than £2,657 per month then you could be eligible for Legal Aid funding for mediation.

 

Do I qualify for Legal Aid Family Mediation?

Legal Aid is “means tested”, which means it looks at your income. There are two types of Legal Aid that you can apply for:

  • Based on receipt of a qualifying benefit; or

  • Based on low income.

If you are unsure, you can use this Legal Aid Checker  as a guide whether you are likely to qualify for Legal Aid.

 

How to get Legal Aid for Family Mediation

You will need to provide evidence to support your application. If you are applying due to receiving a qualifying benefit, you will need to submit evidence of this. For Universal Credit, a screenshot of your most recent payment will be sufficient, so long as it shows your full name, address and the date and amount that you have recently received this funding (along with the words Universal Credit being visible).

If you receive another benefit, you should provide an award letter from the Department of Work and Pensions (DWP) that shows your current award of benefit.

If you are applying based on low income, you will need to provide evidence of your payslips and bank statements, which show your income.

 IMPORTANT: Whether you are applying for Legal Aid mediation based on benefits or low income, this will be “aggregated” if you live with your partner. This means that the household income will be taken into account. If you receive joint Universal Credit, this will also be considered. 

There is also a test based on your capital. Our team will take you through this test based on the information that you provide us with. The capital test mainly looks at your property, your savings, any investments, and any valuables that you may own.

Often our largest asset is our property. We look at the ‘available’ net equity after deducting your outstanding mortgage debt from an estimate of the value of your property. Additionally, if you are coming to mediation to discuss finances, then there will be a disregard of £100,000 for the Subject Matter of Dispute (SMOD). Just because you receive a particular benefit or are on a low income, you may not qualify for Legal Aid if you have a sizeable asset; this is based on the rules set by the Legal Aid Agency.

 

Which Costs Does Legal Aid Cover?

If your Legal Aid application is successful, then you will receive fully funded mediation throughout the process. You will not need to pay any costs.

Your Legal Aid will also cover the costs for the other participant’s Mediation Information & Assessment Meeting (MIAM) and the costs of the first mediation session.

  

What is the threshold for low income?

The threshold set by the Legal Aid Agency is a disposable income of less than £733 per month after deductions from all net income for rent/mortgage payments made and an allowance for dependent children & childcare costs for employment or child maintenance payments made.

Here is a helpful calculator to explore whether you are likely to qualify for Legal Aid:

https://www.gov.uk/check-legal-aid

 

What evidence will I need to provide?

If you are applying for Legal Aid because you receive a benefit you will need to show your award letter, or if you receive Universal Credit,  a screenshot of your entitlement is sufficient. However, it must show your name, address, payment amount, date of payment and the words ‘Universal Credit’. For low-income applicants, you will need to submit your bank statements and payslips for the last 30 days.

 

 

What if I qualify for Legal Aid but my ex-partner does not?

If you qualify for Legal Aid funding, it will be for the duration of the mediation process. 

 Your Legal Aid will also cover some mediation costs for your ex-partner, unless they qualify for Legal Aid in their own right.

 If your former partner does not qualify for Legal Aid, you might be able to apply for the Mediation Voucher Scheme, which might mean that, combined with your qualification for Legal Aid, might mean that you can each attend a MIAM assessment and up to 3 mediation sessions without either of you needing to make a financial contribution to mediation. The mediation voucher is only available once.

 

 

What if I don’t qualify for Legal Aid, but my ex-partner does?

In these circumstances you can still receive the funding for your MIAM and the first mediation session if your partner attends their MIAM assessment meeting and applies for Legal Aid.

You will need to pay our fixed fee of £110 for the MIAM initially, which will then be refunded should the other participant accepts the invitation to mediate and be successful for Legal Aid.

The easiest way is for the person who qualifies for Legal Aid to come to mediation first. If you are able to communicate with the other participant before coming to mediation, it can be useful to ask them to come first so that the funding is available from the outset.