A visitor must be aware of whether or not the person detained who they are visiting has a legal advisor. If they are unrepresented, they will need a legal representative and a visitor may be able to help them to find one. It is very common for a visitor to be asked to help find a legal advisor for someone they are visiting, and visitors frequently contact AVID to express their concern about poor access to immigration advice for a person detained under immigration powers. Some AVID member organisations have successfully lobbied the Legal Aid Agency for more legal surgeries in IRCs, but it still feels like a struggle for a person detained under immigration to get advice, and this can be most hugely stressful and upsetting when removal is only days or hours away.
People detained in IRCs may seek immigration legal advice free of charge through the The Legal Aid Agency Detention Duty Advice Scheme in IRCs.
You can find out who the legal aid provider firms with an IRC contract are by checking the current rota, available from AVID or your group coordinator. You should check with your group coordinator how sign-up works locally so you are ready to offer this information to people in detention - it is usually done by making a request for a lawyer in either the library or the welfare centre. Referrals can also be made to a provider who has a contract for that centre outside of the surgeries. However, the provider can refuse instructions in this circumstance and are only obliged to take on clients seen at a surgery. Research shows that many in detention are not aware of the scheme, that it operates in all IRCs, or that the advice given will be free of charge. Visitors can help by ensuring that this is understood. You can also prepare someone with what to expect before an appointment, encouraging them to attend the appointment prepared and make sure that they ask for an appointment summary.
Solicitors firms and other advice organisations who operate under legal aid cannot give immigration advice under legal aid to someone detained in an IRC unless their firm or organisation holds an exclusive IRC contract with the LAA to do so. A firm that purports to be able to give legal aid advice but does not have an IRC contract is probably best avoided.
Those who can pay fees for private work are free to choose their own representative from any firm or other legal advice provider, they are not limited to a firm on the rota for their IRC that week. It is a good idea for a detained person to conduct their own research on the quality of a legal advisor before handing over money to them. Unfortunately, rogue solicitors or people who pass themselves off as immigration lawyers have been known to operate in detention centres, preying on the desperation of people who want to remain in the UK. Their names are generally passed around by others in detention. Typically, they ask for substantial payments in advance and then disappear.
People in detention may also seek advice from a law centre, or an accredited legal charity like Asylum Aid, Coram Children's Legal Centre, or Bail for Immigration Detainees (BID). Not for profit advisors and private firms are not restricted by the LAA’s exclusive arrangements for providing legal aid advice in IRCs and can operate in any IRC or prison.
In certain circumstances, visitors can refer to solicitor firms who specialise in human rights and public law detention cases. These firms can support people when there is reason to believe that detention is unlawful, for example because of a human rights abuse or someone is detained when they should not be (e.g. because there is no real prospect of removal). These firms are usually unable to meet the demands for their services and will often prioritise cases for existing clients or where the facts of a case are particularly egregious. You can find out more on their websites on the types of claims that they specialise in and they might be looking for cases to support a specific type of claim where they have existing public cases in that area.
If you believe that the person you are visiting is detained unlawfully, and the person has given you expressed permission, you can contact a law firm to see if they can assist that person. The best way to do this is via email, providing as much detail of the case as you can.
Essential information you can give a lawyer
If you are helping someone to find a lawyer, having some basic information to hand about their case may help a lawyer in making a decision about whether they are able to assist (e.g. what stage of the asylum process are they at, their nationality, any immediate family members in the UK, is removal imminent?). If you are able to provide additional paperwork, the better informed the lawyer will be. Make sure you have the person’s written consent to share information about them with other people.
The Immigration Law Practitioner's Association (ILPA) website has a list of members searchable by geographic area via the ‘Find immigration advice’ button on their homepage. ILPA’s list allows you to restrict your search to legal aid or free advisors, and to find advisors that can work with clients in particular languages.
The Law Society website Find A Solicitor feature has searchable lists of members operating in England and Wales, including approved immigration legal advisors and public law specialists. See also The Law Society of Scotland and The Law Society of Northern Ireland.
The Immigration Advice Authority (IAA), which regulates immigration advice provided by non-solicitors barristers, has a “Adviser Finder” feature on its website which allows you to search the register of accredited advisors. Available here: Adviser Finder (oisc.gov.uk).
This flyer from Migrants Organise includes the government list of legal aid lawyers.
You can try contacting your local Law Centres Network and Citizens Advice may be able to help people find solicitors in some cases.
Right to Remains Toolkit is available in multiple languages and includes a section on Lawyers and Access to Legal Advice.
The Joint Council for the Welfare of Immigrants (JCWI) have produced an Access to Justice toolkit on understanding the different types of lawyers, knowing what to expect from them and finding a solicitor.
Further reading and resources: