The eligibility criteria for legal aid, contained in the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders (LASPO) Bill, will mean victims having to provide "objective evidence" of the violence in order to qualify for legal aid, according to charities and campaign groups.
This could include evidence that the perpetrator has a criminal conviction for violence, an injunction or an active child protection plan. However, it would exclude evidence from a GP, accident and emergency department or a women’s refuge.
Campaigners fear the clause would make it more difficult for victims to obtain injunctions, gain custody of a child or resolve issues over housing.
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