A report commissioned by the UK-based Access to Justice Foundation and the Bar Council of England and Wales presents new insights on the economic value of the free advice sector in the United Kingdom. The new report recognizes impacts of inflation, rising energy and food prices, and the cost-of-living crisis on the need for legal advice.

The main objectives of this research include:

• Provide current estimates of the direct economic benefits of the free legal advice sector to government finances.
• Examine the possible impacts of free legal advice on reducing costs and backlogs in the court and tribunal service.
• Weigh the possible need for free legal advice in the longer term.

Key findings include:

• The provision of free specialist legal advice saves the Treasury approximately £9,100 per case.
• For every £1 spent on free specialist legal advice and its outcomes in 2023, there was a saving to government of £2.71.
• Advice provision helps to ease pressure on courts and tribunals through improved efficiency and fewer litigants in person.
• Despite the positive impact on government finances and positive knock-on impacts, advice providers say the free legal advice sector is at a ‘breaking point’, with funding failing to meet current demand or expected future demand.

The Value of Justice for All: Evaluating the Case for Funding the Free Specialist Legal Advice Sector report was prepared by Pragmatix Advisory. The August 2024 Value of Justice for All report is available online here: https://atjf.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/The-value-of-justice-for-all-a-report-for-the-Access-to-Justice-Foundation-and-the-Bar-Council-from-Pragmatix-Advisory.pdf.