Since 1950 the services of solicitors and barristers have been made available for those who could not afford them by Legal Aid (now known as public funding or Community Legal Service funding). Subject to a means test and a merits test for their particular case, individual clients were provided with advice and litigation services from any solicitor willing to do the work. There was increasing pressure on the legal aid budget which was used to justify fundamental changes in the legal aid system. The merits test was tightened up and legally-aided services are only now available from solicitors and non-profit agencies with contracts granted by the Legal Services Commission as part of the Community Legal Service. The Legal Services Commission is due to be abolished and its work will then be done by the Ministry of Justice.

Legal aid was aimed at providing those who lack sufficient resources with enough money to buy existing legal services. During the 1960s, it was increasingly realised that many disadvantaged people had problems which existing legal services could not provide for. The voluntary sector tried to fill the gap, particularly for advice on housing, employment, immigration, welfare benefits and debt. In the UK there exists the largest network of people's advice centres in the world, known as Citizens Advice Bureaux. CABx are promoted and assisted by NACAB (National Association of Citizens' Advice Bureaux). There are also a large number of independent advice centres, many of which are represented by Advice UK.

However, these CABx and advice centres normally lack fully-qualified legal expertise. Law centres have been set up in some areas to try to fill the gap, although most areas still do not have one. Typically, a law centre has at least two qualified lawyers, supported by non-legally-qualified caseworkers and administrative staff. Law centres are promoted and assisted by the Law Centres Federation. The law and advice centres are funded from public and charitable sources and their services are free.

The Government has now proposed to reduce substantially the areas of law for which public funding will be available and to reduce lawyers’ rates of pay. There is significant public opposition to these proposals (see Justice for All) and they have yet to be implemented.