§ Lord Lester of Herne Hillasked Her Majesty's Government:
Further to the view expressed by the Lord Chancellor on 26 October (H.L. Deb., col. 168), 160WA what is the justification for requiring the costs of the civil courts to be paid by the parties who use them rather than by the public at large. [HL4508]
§ The Lord Chancellor (Lord Irvine of Lairg)The primary benefit from civil court action is to the parties involved: it is therefore right that in the main they should bear the costs of using the court. However, the Government do not consider that these costs should be paid by the parties in every case. The taxpayer subsidises the costs of Children Act applications, adoptions and domestic violence applications. The taxpayer pays in full from the Legal Aid Fund the court fees of those eligible for legally aided representation. The taxpayer also pays in full the court fees of parties who are in receipt of working families tax credit or disabled persons' tax credit, where the amount to be deducted from the maximum award is not more than £70, or are in receipt of income support, or income-based jobseeker's allowance. The taxpayer pays in full or in part the court fees of those for whom payment of the fee would involve undue financial hardship. The policy of recovering the costs of the civil courts through fees ensures the best targeting of scarce public resources.