What free legal aid do you provide?

As well as our free legal advice clinics, we provide a free legal advocacy service for individuals who need help accessing their legal rights and entitlements. Additionally we offer representation including court and tribunal representation. Community Law & Mediation focus in areas of law not catered for by the Civil Legal Aid Scheme.

We emphasise providing free legal aid in public interest cases, focusing on areas such as debt, employment, equality, housing, social welfare, and accessing services like health and education. We refer cases in other areas, such as criminal law and family law, to state legal aid and other services.

What’s the difference between legal advocacy and legal representation?

Our advocacy service assist individuals in accessing their legal rights and entitlements, such as through phone calls and letter writing. Our representation service includes representing clients before courts, such as the High Court, and tribunals, such as the Workplace Relations Commission and the Social Welfare Appeals Office.

Do you provide free legal advocacy or representation to everyone?

Due to the limits on our resources, we cannot always provide free legal advocacy for all those who require it. We take the following factors into consideration:

1. Priority areas fall within our areas of work: housing law, debt law, employment law, equality law, social welfare law, child law and access to education and other services. Within these areas, CLM’s legal team regularly reviews certain priorities that we have identified.

2. Strategic importance: Cases with the potential to benefit a wider group such as an area of law which has not been adequately developed or opportunities for legal innovation.

3. Urgency/Impact: Is the matter urgent or is the issue having a serious impact on the applicant?

4. Merits: Is the case likely to be successful?

5. Availability of other services: Are there other information, advice and representation services which the applicant can avail of?

6. Resources/Capacity: Having regard to existing workload and the likely work and resources required to progress the case, does CLM have the capacity and resources to open the file?

For further information, please contact us via phone on 01 847 7804 or email info@communitylawandmediation.ie