A.

Legal Aid is a system created by the Community Legal Services Act, Cap 112A, to provide free legal services to persons of “insufficient means”, that is, unable to pay for their own legal representation.

To determine who may benefit is done in two (2) stages:

FIRST – The Legal problem, for which representation is being sought, has to be one of those matters either:

(a)                Listed in the FIRST SCHEDULE to the Act; or

(b)               Where the court thinks it appropriate, it may issue a certificate addressed to the director asking him to enquire into the person’s means and if appropriate, grant a legal aid certificate.

SECONDLY- in all cases, the applicant is examined with regard to income, assets and expenditure and if it appears that the applicant has insufficient disposable income [left after the payment of his or her allowable expenses], he issues a legal aid certificate.