Family Law Week: Government's legal aid cuts will harm women and children.

Where, and how hard the axe will fall on legal aid is still open to some debate.


In the meantime, we've found this little snippet of news to keep you up to date...


http://www.familylawweek.co.uk/site.aspx?i=ed86242

A McKenzie Friend: A Helping Hand At Court

The planned changes to the legal aid system, together with the cuts that have already taken place, may affect many people who are either involved in, facing, or taking, legal action.

People may now find that their applications for legal aid funding is refused, whereas, in the past, not only would the funding have been openly offered to them, it would have been almost taken for granted that it would be available.

The funding ‘safety net’ is certainly getting smaller and a little worn out. Many people may just find that it doesn’t offer the same protection now that they had come to expect from it. So, how does one avoid just heading straight-on into that brick wall? Will the decision be to, either give up on the legal process altogether, or face having to find a way to hire a solicitor that they can ill afford?

There is no doubt that things needed changing, and that is not the argument here. Everyone has to work smarter in these ‘times of austerity’ and everyone has to ‘tighten their belts’ a little to survive. The legal system is no different.

There is another way for those having to tackle the legal minefield...

People need a friend. In fact, to be more precise, they need a ‘McKenzie Friend’.

Named after the case that started it all off, the term, ‘McKenzie Friend’, comes from a divorce case, McKenzie v McKenzie [1970]. Mr McKenzie, a litigant in person (i.e. not legally represented) was to have his friend, an Australian Lawyer, (who had no practising rights in the UK), sit next to him in court. The Judge refused permission. The Court of Appeal accepted that, Mr McKenzie should have been allowed to have someone sit next to him, to give him advice, and take notes, etc.

The Practice Guidance: McKenzie Friends (Civil and Family Courts), Lord Neuberger of Abbotsbury, Master of the Rolls, Sir Nicholas Wall, President of the Family Division 12 July 2010, states the following:

What McKenzie Friends can do:

i) provide moral support for litigants;

ii) take notes;

iii) help with case papers;

iv) quietly give advice on any aspect of the conduct of the case.

What McKenzie Friends cannot do:

i) act as the litigants’ agent in relation to the proceedings;

ii) manage litigants’ cases outside court, for example by signing court documents;

iii) address the court, make oral submissions or examine witnesses.

In certain circumstances, the court may grant a ‘McKenzie Friend’ the right to speak in court on behalf of a litigant in person. This is called a 'right of audience’. This may include making oral submissions to the Judge, and cross-examining witnesses. However, the courts are quite slow to allow this to happen, and unless the circumstances are exceptional, it is quite rare.

The most important thing that a ‘McKenzie Friend’ can do is offer moral support both in, and out of court, and help their client get through the process as smoothly as possible. Attending court is not a pleasant experience for most people, although there are some that like nothing better than to have ‘their day in court’. They are however, in the minority. The mere thought of courts can conjure up anxiety, confusion and total despair to all but the very strongest of people. In these difficult and emotional times, it can make all the difference, and a lot of sense, to have someone there to assist them, to guide them, and to prompt them in the right direction.

A ‘McKenzie Friend’ is not a substitute for good legal advice, if that option is available. But, in these financially difficult times, when legal aid is not as freely available as it was, and people still need to deal with legal matters, it can prove to be a very useful tool in their armour and is, above all, that helping hand at court.

Hello and welcome to the blog,

Hello and welcome to the blog,

My intention with the blog, over the coming weeks, months and possibly years, is to give you a little insight into the work of a McKenzie Friend (that's me, Steve Young), to keep you up to date with any legal stuff that is going on that I believe may be of interest to you, and to generally find out from you what you think about things.

So, to begin with, A Mc something what? I hear you say.

Basically, a McKenzie Friend is someone that can help you at court and outside of court with a variety of legal matters (although by help, they generally do not mean by having to pick you up off of the floor because you appeared before the Judge a little worse for drink). Usually, they are not legally qualified, although I am a member of the Institute of Legal Executives (Ilex) and aim to complete my Law Degree and Ilex Diploma in Law and Practice shortly.

To find out more about a McKenzie Friend, why not read my other post on here, ‘McKenzie Friend: A Helping Hand At Court’.

This post is just a short introduction. I didn’t want to appear rude by not introducing myself.

So, until the next time…