Public Funding Cuts to Impact on Fathers
The Government is currently supporting through Parliament the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Bill. The Bill contains a variety of provisions which will impact on a number of areas of Legal Work and Society. One such provision is that Public Funding for Private Law Children Act proceedings will be removed in the majority of cases; this will mean that there will be no Government Funding of Legal Costs for parties applying for Contact with their children.
As 88% of Non-Resident Parents are Male then this is likely to have a major impact on Fathers seeking contact with their children. These proposed cuts are likely to come into effect in April 2013 Fathers unable to fund Legal Representation through their own funds will be forced to represent themselves within the Proceedings and deal with the Procedural requirements of pursuing and making an Application for contact with their Children.
The Bill is currently at the committee stage of the House of Lords and it is hoped that some amendments will be made and the cuts will not be so severe but if the Bill is passed in it’s current form then it is likely to have a devastating impact on a Father’s ability to get access to justice.
If a Father is thinking about making an Application for contact then they should seek advice as soon as possible in order to avoid the impact the cuts are likely to have.
For advice on seeking contact with your children or any aspect of Family Law then please contact Ryan Bickham at our Dawley office on 01952 403000 or ryan.bickham@pcblaw.co.uk.
