Non-means-tested legal aid for Article 2 inquests won

INQUEST has campaigned for equality of arms in the inquest system since is was set up by bereaved families and campaigners in 1981.

When a state-related death happens, state bodies (eg police, prisons or hospitals) automatically access public funding for lawyers.

Bereaved people have long talked about walking into the coroner's court with the state body having multiple lawyers, while they either had to represent themselves, find pro bono representation, or go through the arduous and intrustive means testing process, all whilst grieving.  

INQUEST have always campaigned for bereaved people to automatically access legal aid following a state-related death. The right to legal aid is fundamental to makng the inquest system more just.  

The removal of means testing for Article 2 inquests is a testament to the hard work of thousands of bereaved families who have spoken out about their experiences, as well as lawyers, supporters and the staff of INQUEST, past and present. 

While means testing was removed for representation at Article 2 inquests from 12 January 2022, there is an ongoing fight for those cases that may sit outside Exceptional Case Funding criteria, as many mental health-related deaths do. 

The legal aid for inquests campaign will persist until there is automatic non-means-tested publicly funded advice for bereaved people from the day of a death at all inquests involving the state and corporate bodies. Only then will bereaved people have the access to justice and greater equality of arms that is required. 

Watch a video about legal aid at inquests and read more about the campaign here.

Click below to read examples of how INQUEST campaigned and its achievements.