What did the Justice Committee say about family court legal aid?

On 17 July 2026, the House of Commons Justice Committee published its report, Access to Justice: Legal Aid.

Its conclusion is blunt: access to justice in England and Wales has been severely damaged by the declining availability of legal aid.

In relation to family law and domestic abuse, the Committee found that:

• the number of litigants in person in family cases has increased significantly;
• there has been a 340% increase since 2012 in litigants in person seeking protective injunctions;
• family legal aid rates have not increased since 1996 and have previously been cut;
• research cited by the Committee suggests that private family legal aid work involving domestic abuse is frequently financially unsustainable for providers;
• survivors report that legal aid is either unavailable or ineffective in practice;
• people who satisfy the formal eligibility rules may still be unable to find a provider with capacity to take their case; and
• the Government has not committed to additional funding for family legal aid as part of its forthcoming Family Justice Strategy.

The Committee concluded that access to family legal aid is essential if the Government is serious about reducing violence against women and girls. It recommended that the forthcoming Family Justice Strategy include specific measures to improve legally aided advice and representation for survivors, including fee increases and simpler evidence requirements.

That recommendation matters. But the report also tells us something deeply uncomfortable about the system as it operates now: people seeking legal protection from abuse are increasingly having to navigate the court process alone.

What is a protective injunction in the family court?

“Protective injunction” is a broad term rather than the name of one single family court order.

In domestic abuse cases, the orders most commonly encountered are:

Domestic Abuse Protection Orders are also being piloted in certain areas. Other protective orders may arise in cases involving forced marriage, female genital mutilation or criminal proceedings.

A person can apply for a non-molestation order, an occupation order or both using Form FL401. A supporting witness statement is also required. There is currently no court fee for making an FL401 application.

Why does the 340% increase matter?

A protective injunction is not an ordinary piece of administration.

The applicant may be frightened, sleep-deprived, financially controlled, displaced from their home, caring for children, monitoring the risk of further abuse and trying to keep their location or communications safe.

At the same time, they may be expected to:

• identify the correct application and legal order;
• complete the relevant court form;
• prepare a supporting statement verified by a statement of truth;
• explain a pattern of behaviour clearly and proportionately;
• identify what protection is being requested;
• organise messages, photographs, police material, medical information or third-party evidence;
• understand whether an urgent or without-notice application may be appropriate;
• comply with service and court directions;
• attend a hearing, sometimes without anyone beside them; and
• respond to a represented opposing party.

The court must apply the law to the evidence before it. But the ability to present that evidence clearly is not evenly distributed.

A represented respondent may have a solicitor and barrister. The applicant may have a mobile telephone, a folder of screenshots, a distressed account of what has happened and no understanding of what the court needs to see first.

That is why this is not simply a funding statistic. It is a safeguarding, procedural fairness and access-to-justice issue.

Legal aid can exist on paper and still be inaccessible

There is an important distinction between being theoretically eligible for legal aid and actually obtaining a lawyer.

A person may be told:

• “Domestic abuse cases are covered by legal aid.”
• “You may qualify.”
• “Use the Government legal aid checker.”
• “Contact a legal aid solicitor urgently.”

They then telephone firm after firm and discover that:

• the firm no longer undertakes family legal aid work;
• the legal aid department has closed;
• the firm is not accepting new cases;
• the earliest appointment is after the hearing;
• the provider does not have capacity for an urgent application;
• their income or capital is above the applicable threshold;
• they do not yet have the precise evidence required for a related private family case; or
• the case is within scope, but no available provider will take it.

The Justice Committee distinguishes between a legal aid “desert”, where there is no local provider, and what has been described as a legal aid “drought”, where a provider technically exists but cannot or does not accept the work.

From the person’s point of view, the outcome is the same: they remain unrepresented.

Can you get legal aid for a non-molestation order?

Potentially, yes. Applications for non-molestation and occupation orders under Part 4 of the Family Law Act 1996 are within the scope of civil legal aid.

That does not mean that funding is automatic.

Legal aid for these applications remains subject to financial and merits assessments. A domestic abuse upper eligibility waiver may apply, but an applicant’s financial circumstances will still need to be assessed and a contribution may sometimes be required.

The position can be different again where the person also needs legal aid for related private children or financial proceedings.

Most private family cases involving child arrangements or finances are only within scope where there is prescribed evidence of domestic abuse or child abuse. The evidence requirements are technical and are set out in the Civil Legal Aid (Procedure) Regulations 2012 and Legal Aid Agency guidance.

A legal adviser must submit the legal aid application. An individual cannot make the formal legal aid application directly on their own, although they can use the Government checker to assess possible eligibility and locate providers.

What evidence may be relevant to a family legal aid application?

For related private family proceedings, the evidence must normally fall within a prescribed category. It is not enough simply to provide any document that appears to demonstrate abuse.

Depending on the circumstances, relevant evidence can include documents relating to:

• an arrest, caution, charge or conviction for a domestic abuse offence;
• a relevant protective injunction;
• an undertaking given in place of certain protective relief;
• a family court finding of domestic abuse;
• an expert report produced for court proceedings;
• evidence from an appropriate health professional;
• a referral to a specialist domestic abuse service;
• a Multi-Agency Risk Assessment Conference or safeguarding plan;
• support from an IDVA or ISVA;
• a letter from a local authority, housing association or qualifying domestic abuse organisation;
• refuge-related evidence; or
• evidence of economic abuse meeting the relevant requirements.

The exact wording and required contents of the document matter. A genuine survivor can therefore experience the deeply frustrating situation of having substantial evidence of abuse but not yet having it in a form that satisfies the legal aid regulations.

The Legal Aid Agency now publishes sample letters that can be used to request evidence from courts, police, health professionals, housing bodies and domestic abuse services.

Why domestic abuse cases are particularly difficult to present alone

Domestic abuse is rarely a neat sequence of isolated incidents.

Coercive and controlling behaviour may involve a pattern of monitoring, financial restriction, intimidation, humiliation, threats, manipulation through children, interference with work, isolation from support, repeated unwanted contact or the use of legal proceedings to continue control after separation.

The person experiencing it may remember the pattern as a continuous atmosphere of fear. The court, however, needs dates, examples, context, evidence, impact and a clear explanation of the protection being sought.

This creates a translation problem.

The applicant is not merely being asked to remember what happened. They are being asked to convert a prolonged and traumatic experience into a structured legal document while remaining accurate, proportionate and focused.

Too little information may fail to communicate the risk. Too much unstructured material may obscure the strongest evidence. Emotional language can be understandable but may distract from the factual case. Screenshots without dates or context may be difficult to use. A long narrative may not make clear what order is being requested or why.

This is precisely where early legal representation should matter. Where representation is unavailable, structured litigation support can at least help the person organise the material and engage with the process more effectively.

What can you do if you cannot find a legal aid solicitor?

Being unable to secure a legal aid solicitor does not mean that you must abandon an application for protection. It does mean that you may need to approach the next steps carefully and obtain whatever support is available.

1. Prioritise immediate safety.
   If you or a child is in immediate danger, call 999. Consider contacting a specialist domestic abuse service for safety planning and practical support.
2. Check legal aid eligibility promptly.
   Use the official Government checker and contact legal aid providers. Explain immediately if there is an urgent risk, a hearing date or an application already before the court.
3. Gather prescribed evidence.
   Obtain copies of relevant court orders, police documents, findings, medical material or letters from qualifying support organisations where available.
4. Keep a record of your attempts to obtain representation.
   Record the firms contacted, the dates, the response and whether the firm lacked capacity. This will not create legal aid provision, but it provides a clear record of the difficulty you have faced.
5. Use the correct court documents.
   HMCTS provides Form FL401 and a supporting witness statement template. The supporting statement must be truthful, accurate and verified by a statement of truth.
6. Organise evidence rather than sending everything.
   Create a clear chronology, identify the strongest examples, preserve the original messages or documents and explain the context and impact.
7. Seek practical litigation support if appropriate.
   A McKenzie Friend or litigation-support professional cannot replace a solicitor, but may be able to help with document organisation, court preparation, note-taking and understanding the process.

What needs to change?

The Justice Committee has recommended fee increases and simpler evidence requirements. Both are necessary, but the wider problem is structural.

A legal aid scheme cannot deliver access to justice if:

• financial thresholds exclude people who plainly cannot afford private representation;
• eligible people cannot find a provider;
• providers lose money by taking the work;
• specialist lawyers leave the sector and are not replaced;
• survivors must obtain technically prescribed evidence before help becomes available for related proceedings;
• urgent preparation is undertaken without adequate funding; and
• the burden of system failure is transferred to traumatised court users.

Simplifying a form will not solve a shortage of lawyers. Expanding eligibility will not help if no provider has capacity. Increasing the number of litigants in person without investing in safe, reliable support does not make justice more accessible; it merely moves the work and risk onto the person least equipped to carry it.

The forthcoming Family Justice Strategy must therefore address both eligibility and actual delivery. The test is not how many people appear eligible on a spreadsheet. The test is whether a survivor can obtain competent help when protection is urgently needed.

Frequently asked questions

Practical Family Court Support

Are you facing family court without a solicitor?

If you have been unable to secure legal aid or representation, JSH Law can provide calm, structured litigation support to help you prepare and present your own case more clearly.

Support may include:

• organising your documents and supporting evidence;
• preparing a clear chronology of relevant events;
• helping you structure factual statements and exhibits;
• identifying gaps, duplication and irrelevant material;
• preparing for family court hearings;
• position statements and other court documents;
• understanding directions and procedural next steps; and
• McKenzie Friend support, subject to the court’s permission.

JSH Law does not provide legal aid, does not act as your solicitor and does not provide legal representation. You remain responsible for your case and documents. The purpose of the introductory call is to understand what stage you have reached and whether practical support may be appropriate.

Official sources and further reading

• Justice Committee: Access to Justice—Legal Aid, published 17 July 2026
• GOV.UK: Check if you can get legal aid
• Legal Aid Agency: Sample letters to obtain domestic abuse evidence
• HMCTS: Apply for a non-molestation or occupation order using Form FL401
• JSH Law: Can You Actually Get Legal Aid? The Family Court Access Crisis

Important information

This article provides general information about family court legal aid and protective injunctions in England and Wales as at 18 July 2026. It is not legal advice and should not be relied upon as a substitute for advice from a regulated legal professional. Legal aid eligibility and court outcomes depend on the facts, evidence, financial circumstances, merits and applicable law in each case.