The Gazette 1989

GAZETTE

APRIL 1989

and (ii) "conveyancing".

may have the payments waived either in whole or in part in cases of severe hardship, ( i i i) Contributions may, in certain circumstances, be paid by instalments. Excluded Proceedings Certain matters are excluded from the scope of the Legal Aid Scheme, though the exclusions have been considerably modified over the years. From the outset, representation for proceedings could be provided only where the proceedings were before a court (District, Circuit, High or Supreme). Representation before tribunals is excluded. Law Centre Solicitors can (and regularly do) provide advice in connection with cases coming before tribunals (for example, the Employment Appeals Tribunal), but cannot provide representation at the actual tribunal hearing. If, however, the decision of the tribunal is appealed to the Courts, both legal advice and representation may be provided. One of the Schedules to the Scheme lists various matters in respect of which services will not be granted ag. defamation and debt collection (where the applicant is the creditor). Some of these exclusions have been the subject of criticism; it is not the purpose of this article to deal with the criticisms, however, but simply to outline the facts. Two particular exclusions which had been considerably modified i.e. (i) "disputes concerning rights and interests in or over land"

Criminal cases involving the defence of accused persons are excluded from the scope of the Scheme - they are dealt with under the Criminal Legal Aid Scheme. How does the Service Operete? The first step, usually, is to call to one of the Board's Law Centres or one of the "clinics". As with all services - and this is true particularly in the case of Dublin and Cork where there are con- siderable pressures - it is advis- able to 'phone a Law Centre, in advance, for an appointment. In very exceptional circumstances - for example, in the case of a disabled person or a prisoner - special arrangements can be made. At the Centre, the clerical staff, once satisfied that the applicant's spouse is not already a client, will ask the applicant to complete application forms. (If the appli- cant's spouse happens to be a client, however, and the parties are in conflict with each other, the applicant is immediately referred to another centre). The application forms deal mainly with the applicant's means; the staff will, if necessary, assist in having them completed. Prelimin- ary assessment as to eligibility is usually made there and then. Despite the apparent complex- ities of the means test, this part of the procedure is completed, in most cases, in about 10-15 minutes. The odd case, not sur- prisingly, presents difficulties - it may, for example, be necessary to ask the applicant to produce evid-

By virtue of Ministerial Policy Directives, provision for which is contained in the Scheme, disputes concerning interests in land are now regularly dealt with where they form part of a wider family law dispute (e.g. where the parties seek to have their respective interests in the family home determined by a Court). Conveyaning will also be dealt with in certain limited circumstances, for example, where a Separation Agreement is con- cluded and it becomes necessary to transfer the family home from one spouse to the other. Con- veyancing is dealt with under the Scheme, however, only where, the conveyance is an essential step in the settling of a matrimonial dispute and, in the opinion of the Board, it is reasonable to have it dealt with by a Law Centre Solicitor. Apart from land disputes that arise in matrimonial cases, the Board is also authorised to deal with such matters where the applicant appears to have been the victim of fraud or undue influence, provided that the property which is the subject of the dispute is the applicant's home and the applicant suffers from . . . "an infirmity of mind or body due to old age or to other circumstances . . .". This change (again introduced by a Ministerial Policy Directive) enables the Board to deal, for example, with the elderly person who has transferred his/her home to a close relative on the basis of promises which are subsequently unfulfilled.

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