Landmark legal aid cases
Legal aid helps people in their everyday lives.
But sometimes a legal aid funded case can:
- change the law
- transform public opinion
- influence government policy
- directly affect society.
Major cases funded by legal aid
Read about the role of legal aid in these important cases.
Cases in the 00s
Sean Hodgson walked free from the Court of Appeal in March 2009 after spending 27 years in prison.
Oliver got cerebral palsy at birth and was left blind.
Seb was four years old when he fell ill on Christmas Day.
6 Gurkhas won the right to settle in the UK.
Mark and Nicky were accused of physically abusing their children.
Legal aid helped clear a soldier´s name.
Ms L won a civil damages case for rape.
A New Cross house fire killed 13 young black people.
Kenyan villagers were injured by leftover bombs.
Cases in the 90s
South African miners won damages for asbestos exposure.
Lee has spastic quadriplegic cerebral palsy and requires various therapies, care and equipment.
Cases in the 80s
The Marchioness party boat collided with the dredger Bow Belle.
The Clapham Junction rail crash killed 35 and injured 500.
Cases in the 70s
Thalidomide was prescribed to pregnant woman to combat morning sickness and help them sleep.
Legal aid helped miners left with Vibration White Finger, a form of Raynaud´s disease.
Cases in the 60s
Ronan Point was a 23-storey tower block in Newham, East London.
Miners contracted emphysema due to lack of dust masks.
Cases in the 50s
Ronald took part in tests for the nerve agent sarin in Porton Down.
The majority of cases funded by legal aid in the 1950s were around divorce.
How legal aid helps every day
Read more about how legal aid helps people with their legal problems.