If you are involved in legal proceedings, you will have to face costs. These costs that you must pay may be related to acts ordered by a judge such as an expert report, a social investigation, etc., or related to the remuneration of the legal assistants who intervene in your case. You must therefore pay, for example, costs related to the intervention of a notary, a bailiff, or a lawyer responsible for advising you and representing you in court. Lawyers' fees are not regulated. These professionals set and bill the cost of their services to their clients themselves, costs that can reach significant sums in some cases. So how do I pay for a lawyer if I can't afford it? Several solutions exist depending on your situation.
For people who do not have enough resources to pay for a lawyer to defend them in a legal case, there is a way for the costs thus incurred to be covered by the State. We are then talking about a procedure called legal aid, which concerns civil parties, witnesses, defendants, defendants, indicted or convicted persons.
This legal aid can take two forms. Either it is total, which means that all the costs related to legal proceedings are borne 100% by the State, except for a cost of 13 euros due for the pleading of your lawyer before certain courts. Either the legal aid is partial, that is to say that the State pays only part of the remuneration of your lawyer according to a rate defined in advance, in principle it is legal aid up to 25% or 55% of the costs incurred.
In France, legal aid can be granted in the context of civil proceedings linked, for example, to a divorce, a claim for compensation from insurance, etc., for trials before a criminal court, or even a court of assizes, but also for administrative procedures such as an appeal against a refusal of a driving licence, against an administrative sanction, etc.
To apply for legal aid, you must use a form (cerfa n°15626*02 from the Ministry of Justice) and send it, along with supporting documents, to the legal aid office of the court of your place of residence. if your case is not started or the court that is already dealing with your procedure if applicable. You can also submit your request to a single litigant reception service (SAUJ).
This support for low-income people for the payment of a lawyer, among other things, because legal aid can also make it possible to cover the costs linked to the intervention of a notary or a bailiff, or also those of a expertise, for example, that the legal procedure makes necessary, is granted under certain conditions.
To benefit from legal aid (total or partial) and thus not have to pay all or part of the costs of a lawyer, you must meet three conditions:
Concerning your reference tax income, calculated by the tax services according to your household income and mentioned on the first page of your last income tax notice, there are different ceilings not to be exceeded, defined according to your family situation. to apply for legal aid. The value of your movable and immovable assets is also taken into account to set the ceilings above which legal aid cannot be granted.
For example, in 2021, if you live alone, you benefit from full legal aid to cover your lawyer's fees if your annual reference tax income does not exceed 11,262 euros, if the value of your movable assets is a maximum of 11,262 euros and your property assets of 33,780 euros. In the case of a tax household made up of 2 people, your reference tax income must not be greater than 13,289 euros, as must the value of your movable assets, and that of your real estate assets must be a maximum of 39,860. euros.
If you meet the conditions, in particular related to your low income, to benefit from legal aid to pay your lawyer, you have complete freedom to choose the one you want. If your legal proceedings relate to a criminal case and you do not know a lawyer to advise you and ensure your defence, the president of the bar association will appoint a court-appointed lawyer for you.
If you benefit from full legal aid, all the costs of your lawyer are borne by the State according to a scale that it defines and you have nothing to pay. In the case of partial legal aid, as its name suggests, the State pays only part of your lawyer's fees, the rest being your responsibility. In this case, your lawyer can ask you to sign an agreement which sets the part of his costs which are not covered by legal aid, as well as the amount of ancillary costs (cost of opening a file, telephone , photocopies, travel, etc.).
Please note:even if you benefit from full or partial legal aid, your lawyer may still ask you to pay additional fees. For this, the court decision rendered must be final, you must have the right to significant damages and interest which result in you exceeding the income ceilings for the granting of legal aid and this financial assistance has been withdrawn from you, in whole or in part, for fraud, abusive procedure, increase of your resources or the value of your movable or immovable assets.
Other solutions exist alongside legal aid when you cannot afford a lawyer.
It is possible, first of all, to consult a lawyer free of charge during hotlines held by these professionals and organized by certain public institutions such as houses of justice and law, access points to law, departmental centers access to law (CDAD), or information centers for women's rights and families (CIDFF).
The local councils of the bar association also regularly organize free consultations, sometimes reserved exclusively for people with modest incomes. Lawyers also offer free consultations in town halls or courts.
In the same way, consumer associations allow their members to be advised free of charge by lawyers, as are trade unions, in particular with regard to labor law.
Finally, if you have insurance contracts which, in particular, include defense and legal protection guarantees, you can in certain cases benefit from free advice from a lawyer.
