2015 No. 838

Legal Aid And Advice, England And Wales

The Legal Aid, Community Legal Service and Criminal Defence Service (Amendment) Regulations 2015

Made23rd March 2015

Laid before Parliament23rd March 2015

Coming into force in accordance with regulation 1

The Lord Chancellor makes these Regulations in exercise of the powers conferred by sections 7, 10, 17A, 25(8) and 26 of, and paragraphs 3B and 8(2) of Schedule 3 to, the Access to Justice Act 19991 and sections 14(h), 21(2) and (3), 22(3)(f), 23(1) and (6) and 41(1) and (2) of the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 20122.

Citation and commencement1.

(1)

These Regulations may be cited as the Legal Aid, Community Legal Service and Criminal Defence Service (Amendment) Regulations 2015.

(2)

These Regulations come into force for the purposes of Regulation 7 on 24th March 2015 and for all other purposes on 13th April 2015.

Amendment to the Community Legal Service (Financial) Regulations 20002.

In the Community Legal Service (Financial) Regulations 20003—

(a)

in regulation 19, for paragraph (b) substitute—

“(b)
any direct payments made under sections 31 to 33 of the Care Act 20144 (direct payments) or under regulations made under section 17A of the Children Act 19895 (direct payments), section 57(1) of the Health and Social Care Act 20016 (direct payments) or section 49(3) of the Children and Families Act 20147 (personal budgets and direct payments);”;

(b)

in regulation 33(b), after “regulations made under” insert “section 49(3) of the Children and Families Act 2014 (personal budgets and direct payments) or”.

Amendment to the Criminal Defence Service (General) (No. 2) Regulations 20013.

In paragraph 8(1)(d) of Schedule 1 to the Criminal Defence Service (General) (No. 2) Regulations 20018, after “regulations made under” insert “section 17A of the Children Act 1989 (direct payments), section 49(3) of the Children and Families Act 2014 (personal budgets and direct payments) or”.

Amendment to the Criminal Defence Service (Financial Eligibility) Regulations 20064.

In the definition of “gross annual income” in regulation 2(1) of the Criminal Defence Service (Financial Eligibility) Regulations 20069, for paragraph (b) substitute—

“(b)
any direct payments made under sections 31 to 33 of the Care Act 2014 (direct payments) or under regulations made under section 17A of the Children Act 1989 (direct payments), section 57(1) of the Health and Social Care Act 2001 (direct payments) or section 49(3) of the Children and Families Act 2014 (personal budgets and direct payments);”.

Amendment to the Criminal Defence Service (Information Requests) (Prescribed Benefits) Regulations 20095.

In the table in regulation 2 of the Criminal Defence Service (Information Requests) (Prescribed Benefits) Regulations 200910, for the entry—

“Any direct payment
The Community Care, Services for Carers and Children’s Services (Direct Payments) (Wales) Regulations 200411

substitute, in the first, second and third columns respectively—

“Any direct payment
Regulations under the Children Act 1989
Section 17A
Any direct payment
The Care Act 2014
Sections 31 to 33
Any direct payment
Regulations under the Children and Families Act 2014
Section 49(3)”.

Amendment to the Criminal Defence Service (Contribution Orders) Regulations 20096.

In the definition of “gross annual income” in regulation 2(1) of the Criminal Defence Service (Contribution Orders) Regulations 200912, for paragraph (b) substitute—

“(b)
any direct payments made under sections 31 to 33 of the Care Act 2014 (direct payments) or under regulations made under section 17A of the Children Act 1989 (direct payments), section 57(1) of the Health and Social Care Act 2001 (direct payments) or section 49(3) of the Children and Families Act 2014 (personal budgets and direct payments);”.

Amendment to the Criminal Legal Aid (General) Regulations 20137.

In regulation 9 of the Criminal Legal Aid (General) Regulations 201313, after paragraph (j) insert—

“(ja)
proceedings in a youth court (or on appeal from such a court) in relation to the breach or potential breach of a provision of an injunction under Part 1 of the Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 201414 where the person who is subject to the injunction is aged under 14;”.

Amendment to the Criminal Legal Aid (Financial Resources) Regulations 20138.

In regulations 11(3)(f), 20(2)(e) and 33(2)(e) of the Criminal Legal Aid (Financial Resources) Regulations 201315, after “regulations made under” insert “section 49(3) of the Children and Families Act 2014 (personal budgets and direct payments),”.

Amendment to the Civil Legal Aid (Financial Resources and Payment for Services) Regulations 20139.

In the Civil Legal Aid (Financial Resources and Payment for Services) Regulations 201316—

(a)

in regulation 24(1)(g), after “regulations made under” insert “section 49(3) of the Children and Families Act 2014 (personal budgets and direct payments),”;

(b)

in regulation 40(b)(ii), after “regulations made under” insert “section 17A of the Children Act 1989 (direct payments), section 49(3) of the Children and Families Act 2014 (personal budgets and direct payments) or”.

Amendment to the Criminal Legal Aid (Contribution Orders) Regulations 201310.

In regulation 10(2)(e) of the Criminal Legal Aid (Contribution Orders) Regulations 201317, after “regulations made under” insert “section 49(3) of the Children and Families Act 2014 (personal budgets and direct payments),”.

Amendment to the Legal Aid (Information about Financial Resources) Regulations 2013F111.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Shailesh Vara

Parliamentary Under Secretary of State

Ministry of Justice

23rd March 2015

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

The Access to Justice Act 1999 (c. 22) (“AJA”) and the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012 (c. 10) (“LASPO”) make provision for the determination of financial eligibility for legal aid and liability for contributions towards the cost of legal services. Regulations under the AJA and LASPO make provision for assessing an individual’s financial resources for those purposes, including seeking information about the individual’s receipt of prescribed benefits for the purposes of such determinations.

Section 49(3)(d) of the Children and Families Act 2014 (c. 6) provides for regulations to be made to allow for direct payments to be made to a child’s parent or a young person in order to secure for the child or young person the provision identified in an education, health and care plan.

Regulations 2 to 6 and 8 to 11 amend the relevant regulations made under the AJA and LASPO to allow for such direct payments to be disregarded for the purposes of determining eligibility for legal aid and liability for contributions towards the cost of legal services and included for the purposes of requesting information about prescribed benefits. Regulations 2 to 6, 9 and 11 also update the relevant regulations to reflect current provision for other direct payments in England and Wales.

Finally, Regulation 7 amends regulation 9 of the Criminal Legal Aid (General) Regulations 2013 (S.I. 2013/9) to prescribe as criminal proceedings for the purposes of section 14(h) of LASPO proceedings for breach of an injunction under Part 1 of the Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014 (c. 12) where the person who subject to the injunction is aged under 14.

A full impact assessment has not been produced for this instrument as no impact on the private or voluntary sectors is foreseen.

“Any direct payment	Regulations under the Children Act 1989	Section 17A
Any direct payment	The Care Act 2014	Sections 31 to 33
Any direct payment	Regulations under the Children and Families Act 2014	Section 49(3)”.