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Legal assistance handbooks
- information about registering to provide different types of legal assistance and quality assurance
- all our policies on applications, and practical advice covering all stages of a case, including
- applying for, and providing, advice and assistance and ABWOR, and our approach to different types of case
- applying for, and providing, legal aid, and our approach to different types of case
- procedures after legal aid is granted – for example, the requirements for sanction for certain types of work, reporting procedures, amendments to grants or changes in circumstances
- clawback and expenses in civil cases
- a secton on legal aid for contempt of court
- guidance on accounts
- all current legal aid legislation, as amended, relating to that type of legal assistance
- an easy-to-use contents list and search service.
A separate handbook contains all Scottish legal aid legislation, as most recently amended.
The most up-to-date source of information on legal aid
We issue regular updates to the handbooks throughout the year, to reflect changes in legislation, our guidance and to provide information that helps with day to day working practices, such as how to complete our application forms.
The handbooks support our move from paper to providing our all services through Legal Aid Online.
If you need to refer back to an earlier version of one of the handbooks, all previous versions are available in our handbook archive section.
Other publications, not included in the handbooks, for use by providers of legal assistance
Other publications you will need to refer to, which are not in the handbooks, are:
Useful links
You may also find it useful to refer to Scottish legislation from the OPSI site. The site contains the full text of all Acts of the Scottish Parliament, the Explanatory Notes to the Acts of the Scottish Parliament and Scottish Statutory Instruments. However, for legal aid legislation, the simplest way to find the up-to-date amended versions of all legislation is to refer to the online legal assistance handbooks (see above).
Legal Aid Online
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Providers News
21, May, 2013
Children’s Legal Assistance and Duty Scheme registration update
Read article15, May, 2013
Court and Police Station Duty Schemes Update
Read article14, May, 2013
Applications invited for Streams 1 and 2 of the Making Advice Work programme
Read article07, May, 2013
Applications invited for Making Advice Work - Stream 3 – Thematic
Read article01, May, 2013
6 May Bank Holiday
Read article30, Apr, 2013
Equalities Mainstreaming Report Published
Read article29, Apr, 2013
Making Advice Work grant funding programme
Read article26, Apr, 2013
Basis for selecting the cost limits for grants of civil legal aid
Read article25, Apr, 2013
Board to manage £7.45 million advice funding
Read article12, Apr, 2013
Court and Police Duty Scheme Update
Read article20, Mar, 2013
Update to Civil Legal Assistance Handbook - cost limits
Read article19, Mar, 2013
Court and Police Station Duty Schemes Update
Read article14, Feb, 2013
Police Station Duty Update - 14 February2013
Read article06, Feb, 2013
Technical Difficulties with DWP Link - Applicants in Receipt of a Passported Benefit
Read article28, Jan, 2013
LAOL - system offline
Read article28, Jan, 2013
MSP Briefing on Part 2 of the SCJC & CLA Bill
Read article25, Jan, 2013
Update on disclosure in children’s cases and cap on reports in s11 cases
Read article23, Jan, 2013
Proposals on contracting
Read article15, Jan, 2013
Police Station Duty Update - 14 January 2013
Read article14, Dec, 2012
Clarification on the collection of contributions in A&A
Read article14, Dec, 2012
Provision of duty solicitors
Read article11, Dec, 2012
Police Station Duty Update - 11 December 2012
Read article05, Dec, 2012
IMPORTANT: Crown Office Systems
Read article