Legal aid provides free legal services for vulnerable groups such as financial difficulties, and lawyers who provide legal aid may not charge any fees to their clients. Even if the office expenses such as transportation, meals and data copying are paid by the government.
Citizens can apply for legal aid as long as they meet the following conditions:
1, which has sufficient reasons to prove that it really needs legal help to safeguard its legitimate rights and interests;
2, due to economic difficulties, unable or completely unable to pay legal service fees; (The standards for citizens' financial difficulties shall be implemented by all localities with reference to the provisions of local government departments).
3. The application matters are in line with the scope of legal aid.
Who else can apply for legal aid?
1, disabled/minors
The defendant is blind, deaf, dumb or a minor and has not entrusted a defender.
2, the elderly
Article 55 of the Law on the Protection of the Rights and Interests of the Elderly stipulates that if it is really difficult for the elderly to file a lawsuit to pay legal fees because their legitimate rights and interests have been infringed, they can reduce, postpone or waive the payment, and they can get legal aid.
3. Defendants who may be sentenced to death
If a criminal defendant who may be sentenced to death fails to entrust a defense lawyer, he shall obtain legal aid.
4. Foreigners
In criminal cases, if the defendant of foreign nationality has not entrusted a defender and the people's court appoints a lawyer to defend him, he can get legal aid.
How to apply for legal aid? Ways to apply for legal aid:
1. Residents in the jurisdiction can apply to the street legal aid workstation first, and then report to the district legal aid center for approval and assignment;
2. Non-litigation legal affairs that do not need to be solved by the court shall be accepted by the legal aid center where the applicant is located or where the work unit is located;
3. If two or more legal aid centers have jurisdiction over the same case, it shall be under the jurisdiction of the aid center that first accepted the application.
What proof materials do I need to bring to apply for legal aid?
(1) Resident ID card, household registration certificate or temporary residence permit;
(2) street (township), the labor department and the relevant units issued by the applicant and his family members;
(3) Basic information about the application for assistance and relevant case materials;
(4) Notice of filing a case by a court or arbitration institution;
(five) other materials required by the legal aid center. If the applicant is a minor or a person without legal capacity, his guardian shall apply on his behalf and submit a power of attorney.
It is worth noting that legal aid is a public welfare undertaking specially allocated by the state, aiming at helping people with financial difficulties to solve legal problems. However, when the recipient gets huge benefits from the solution of the aid case, he should pay the service fee to the legal institution. In this way, more people can get timely and professional help and build a better legal environment.
For clients, although legal aid is a free legal service, what they want most is that lawyers can provide the same service as paying fees, so the handling ability and responsibility of legal aid lawyers are equally important.