Legal aid is not a gift. When publicly funded proceedings recover or preserve something of value, the LAA can claw back what it spent through the statutory charge — meaning a client who "wins" may keep far less than they expect. As a solicitor, you must understand this from day one, because clients rely on you to tell them what they will actually walk away with and to handle their money correctly. You also need to know what to do when the LAA gets a decision wrong.
This lesson builds that understanding step by step:
- The Statutory Charge and When It Attaches — what the charge is, the loan-like logic behind it, and the conditions for it to arise.
- Quantifying the Charge and Exemptions — how to calculate the net amount, the credit for costs recovered from the opponent, and what falls outside the charge.
- Postponement and the Client's Home — when enforcement against a home can be delayed, how interest accrues, and where the charge ranks against mortgages.
- The Solicitor's Duties — when and what to advise, the duty to account, and calculating net benefit before a settlement.
- Challenging an LAA Decision — internal review, appeal to the Independent Funding Adjudicator, and when judicial review applies.