Is Legal Aid to Cover The Cost of A Process Server Available?

Legal fees are an unfortunate necessity involved with any type of legal case. Legal processes such as divorces must be paid for – there may be a cost involved in processing paperwork, paying for usage of the court, and of course solicitor fees. It as actually possible to gain Legal Aid to help pay for these fees as you will see in this article.

One fee that is sometimes not considered, but it still hugely important in most court cases is that of a process server – a process server is responsible for delivering legal documents to a third-party and obtaining proof of delivery to prevent non-repudiation of data. This article also looks at if it is possible to claim legal aid for the cost of a process server.

Why May Someone Require Legal Aid? 

Legal Aid may be a necessity for several reasons. The most common is that for whatever reason, a person or family simply may not be able to afford the associated legal costs. Other reasons include if your family are at risk of severe harm, you are facing discrimination, your risk becoming homeless, or you require family mediation.

Eligibility Criteria To Claim Legal Aid

In most cases you must meet one of the instances described on the official government website section relating to legal aid –  – the overview provides a list of what you can claim legal aid for, and the following page provides more information about eligibility. In most cases, you must be able to fully prove that you are eligible. For example, if you are unable to pay for legal fees, you must be able to show bills and financial statements etc. proving your case.  

Are Process Server Fees Included in Legal Aid Funds?

A process server is often required during a legal case. For example during a divorce, a process server may be required to deliver the initial divorce notification to your spouse. Although this type of service does not cost the world, if you are struggling to pay for legal fees, any additional cost such as this will only serve as an extra burden.
 
If you look on the government website, it does not mention reimbursement for the cost of a process server. However, if you dig a little deeper, you can look through the official legislation website of the UK government. In particular you can check the attached link to read through The Civil Legal Aid (Remuneration) Regulations Act 2013 – this act describes what is covered. In schedule 5 a process server is listed under the expert fees that the government will provide remuneration for i.e. the government will pay for the services of a process server.

If you require a process server but cannot afford to pay for one, you must contact a process server who accepts Legal Aid cases – Diem Legal for example works with legal aid cases and can find a suitable process server to match your requirements. 

Writer’s Bio: Lewis Murawski is the Marketing Director at Kahootz Media. He has been ranking websites on the first page of Google for more than 10 years. Connect with Lewis on LinkedIn.