Lib Dem Lawyers’ Open Memo calls for more vocal party support for legal aid
Imagine you are charged with a criminal offence. It has the potential to result in loss of your freedom, reputation, job, family, custody of your children and so on. You will want a trained professional to help you. Someone to explain to you the law that applies to the offence, what the state needs to prove against you and what defences may be available. Someone to scrutinise the evidence against you objectively and assist you in presenting your defence. Someone to protect you from any abuses of power by the state's police or prosecutors. And if you are guilty, someone to help you explain to the court any good reasons for a measure of leniency that might apply before you are punished.
