– Means Tips (Back to top)
1. Frequency of wages and benefits (Back to top)
Entering the wrong frequency for wages or State Benefits can incorrectly make your client appear eligible.
State Benefits are usually paid weekly, fortnightly or every four weeks, except for Universal Credit that is paid monthly.
Wages may be paid weekly, fortnightly, every four weeks, or monthly.
2. Childcare costs (Back to top)
A childcare deduction can be given when the client attends work or a place of study. We consider usual term-time childcare costs and require evidence of client payments such as receipts or payments evidenced on bank statements.
3. Housing costs (Back to top)
We require evidence of their rent or mortgage liability and of them making the payments.
If the client pays board and lodgings, provide a letter from the person they make payments to.
This should confirm:
- the amount paid
- how the payments are apportioned to rent, food, utilities and other incidentals
- They should highlight all corresponding payments on their bank statements.
4. Passported applications (Back to top)
Enter the client’s name, date of birth and National Insurance number accurately.
Incorrect details are the main reason for unconfirmed benefit checks.
If the check is not confirmed, a full benefit award letter is required.
5. Bank statements (Back to top)
Bank statements should cover the three months preceding the computation date. Statements need to:
- be legible and continuous
- have a visible name and account number
- show all transactions and balances.
6. Unclear transactions (Back to top)
Most further information requests relate to:
- credits from unknown sources
- transfers to or from undeclared accounts.
Reduce further information requests by highlighting and explaining such transfers, particularly where they are:
- marked with the client’s name or an account number that does not correspond to any of the declared accounts
- regular cash credits or credits from the same source or individual.
7. Further information requests (Back to top)
Answer all questions in requests for further information to avoid additional requests and delays.
8. Tasks and notifications (Back to top)
Amend the task status when replying to notifications or uploading documents to ‘documents sent’.
Updating a task status to ‘acknowledged’ will not return the request to the LAA and closes the task.
9. Outcomes (case concluded) (Back to top)
When the case has concluded and your bill is ready, submit your outcome codes to prevent:
- unnecessary requests for a means reassessment
- the client paying contributions which may no longer be required.
10. Requests (Back to top)
Submit the correct task relating to your request to avoid delays. For example, if a review of the means assessment is required, submit a request means review task.
– Merits Tips (Back to top)
1. Non-molestation applications (Back to top)
If the applicant’s statement to court does not address the question of recent police involvement, include this in the merits report or as a separate document.
Address the question of available alternative remedies on the statement of case or the Merits Report.
This is outlined in Paragraphs 10.28–10.30 of the Lord Chancellor’s LASPO guidance on GOV.UK and shows that the proportionality test is satisfied.
2. Injunction and children proceedings (Back to top)
You can delegate for injunction and children proceedings, relying on the injunction to bring the children matters into scope, if:
- the orders are obtained at the same time
- copies of the orders are uploaded to support the application
If the orders are not available when you submit the application, confirm the applications were made at the same time in the statement in the merits report.
3. Domestic abuse and child protection (Back to top)
Before uploading the evidence, check it contains all the required information and the format of the template letter has not been altered.
Where possible, encourage organisations providing supporting evidence to use the template letters provided on GOV.UK.
4. Family Help Higher applications (Back to top)
We need to be satisfied all reasonable alternatives have been exhausted prior to issuing proceedings (to satisfy Regulation 36 of the merits criteria regulations).
We expect negotiations to be attempted even if the application has been submitted relying on supporting domestic abuse evidence. This is unless negotiations are impracticable, such as due to urgency.
5. Children (Back to top)
A. Ongoing case cases and deprivation of liberty (Back to top)
You may add an application for a deprivation of liberty order to an existing Special Children Act (SCA) certificate, if it is:
- to be heard within ongoing care proceedings
- under the inherent jurisdiction of the High Court
You’ll need to add a hearing limitation and the proceeding wording.
If the application is timetabled separately from care proceedings, submit a means and merits application for inherent jurisdiction proceedings.
B. Section 37 reports (Back to top)
What happens when a court orders a section 37 report or makes an interim care order of its own volition in private law proceedings?
If the judge orders a section 37 report to be made and/or makes an interim care order of its own volition in ongoing private law proceedings under section 38 of the Children Act 1989 then means and merits tested legal aid funding is available.
NOTE: At this point the funding would be under private law and not public law matter type as no care proceedings are before court.
Special Children Act funding is not appropriate as no proceedings have been issued under section 31 of the Children Act.
How to apply
If the client already has an existing live certificate covering the main ongoing private law proceedings then no amendment is necessary and they are already covered for work in relation to the section 37 report and interim care order.
If the client does not have an existing certificate and has no evidence of domestic abuse or child abuse to bring the main private law proceedings into scope then funding is still available on a means and merits tested basis to cover work in relation to the section 37 report and interim care order. The work is in scope under schedule 1 part 1 paragraph 1(1) of LASPO.
The application should be made under the children miscellaneous matter type. You should select the proceeding ‘Represented on S37 report application-Misc Children’ and choose the scope limitation ‘Section 37 Report’. This will cover you for work up to and including the hearing that considers the section 37 report and interim care order.
If the judge discharges the interim care order and does not order another section 37 report then funding will cease at that stage unless your client has obtained evidence of domestic or child abuse in which case they can amend the certificate to add the ongoing proceedings.
If the Local Authority issues proceedings under section 31 of the Children Act then if the client is the parent, the child or has parental responsibility for the child then they can apply for Special Children Act funding at this stage.
If the client does not qualify for SCA funding then you can apply for public law means and merits tested funding under the public law category of law.
C. Article 21 – Rights of Access to a Child (Hague Convention 1980) (Back to top)
Where you are representing an applicant on article 21 of the Hague Convention 1980, the application must be entered as follows in CCMS.
CCMS setup:
- Category of Law: Family
- Matter Type: High Court jurisdiction
- Proceeding: Representation on an application to the High Court pursuant to Article 21 of the Hague Convention 1980
- Limitation: Final Hearing (Family / Public Law)
- The application should be a substantive application and you cannot use your delegated powers.
Supporting evidence
You must upload the instruction letter from the International Child Abduction and Contact Unit (ICACU), as this is required to evidence the nature of the application.
Additional action:
To ensure the application is identified and processed correctly, providers should email the following contacts once the application has been submitted:
6. Anti-social behaviour injunctions (Back to top)
Submit applications for representation on Part 1 Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act injunctions under your residual legal aid contract, not under housing.
Select the nuisance matter type.
7. Committal (Back to top)
Respondents to committal applications are funded under criminal (NOT civil) legal aid.
Apply in accordance with application guidance on GOV.UK.
Applicants for committal and respondents to enforcement applications, where liberty is not at stake, continue to be funded under civil legal aid.
8. Housing (Back to top)
A. Possession (Back to top)
Provide a detailed statement of case and all relevant supporting evidence, including:
- particulars of claim or claim form
- statement or affidavit in support
- any notice to quit or notice seeking possession
- the statement setting out details of your client’s defence
B. Appeals to the County Court under section 204 of the Housing Act 1996 (Back to top)
Select the correct proceeding option ‘Homelessness-Housing Act 1996-Housing’ and upload:
- copies of the original S.184 decision
- any representations to support the S.202 review
- the S.202 decision and
- your proposed grounds for appeal.
9. Appealing against refused applications (Back to top)
Submit a Legal Appeal Request (NOT a case enquiry) to enable us to properly set up the appropriate appeal task on our system.
10. Document requests (Back to top)
When responding to a document request, change the status to ‘Sent’ to return the task to our work queues.
NOTE: If you don’t upload documents and simply reply to the request, change the status to ‘Not Sent’.