Civil Legal Aid Fee Uplifts Come into Force this Month, Government Confirms (3 December 2025)

Increase to Civil Legal Aid Fees

London, 2 December 2025 — Duncan Lewis Solicitors welcomes the action taken by the Lord Chancellor today to lay a statutory instrument before Parliament, which will introduce long-overdue increases to civil legal aid fees for housing, immigration and asylum work, an outcome directly resulting from litigation brought by Duncan Lewis against the Lord Chancellor.

The Civil Legal Aid (Procedure and Remuneration) (Amendment) Regulations 2025 will come into force on 22 December 2025.

The SI introduces substantial increases to Controlled Work fees, including:

• 42% uplift for housing (housing and debt) work
• 31% uplift for immigration and asylum work
• New minimum hourly rates of £65.35 (non-London) and £69.30 (London)
• Fixed fees uplifted proportionally or by at least 10% where applicable

These changes represent the first meaningful increase to civil legal aid rates for over a decade and form a central part of the £20m annual investment announced following the Government’s consultation Civil Legal Aid: Towards a Sustainable Future.

Statement from Jeremy Bloom, Consultant Public Law Solicitor at Duncan Lewis Solicitors

“This is a significant and hard-won development for the legal aid sector. For years, providers have operated under unsustainable financial pressure while continuing to support some of the most vulnerable individuals in society. We issued legal proceedings because the sector had reached breaking point; today’s announcement is a clear recognition that the Government had to act to try to fix a broken system. While further work remains to ensure long-term sustainability, today marks an important step forward for providers and clients alike.”

“We are concerned that the Lord Chancellor has taken the decision for the increase not to apply to matters opened before 22 December 2025, particularly in light of the long delay in laying this statutory instrument since the decision to do so was taken on 2 July 2025. This will have the effect of slowing down any increase in capacity within the sector, as it appears that providers will continue to be paid the same unsustainable rates for all ongoing work.”

Background to the Challenge

Duncan Lewis issued judicial review proceedings earlier this year challenging the Government’s failure to implement the fee uplifts it had publicly committed to following its civil legal aid consultation.

Despite assurances, the Ministry of Justice delayed implementation while the sector continued to absorb the financial impact of stagnated fees and the added strain of the Legal Aid Agency cyber-attack.

Today’s announcement confirms:

• The SI is being laid immediately.
• Controlled Work uplifts <strong>will</strong> be implemented this year.
• Licensed Work uplifts will follow once the Legal Aid Agency’s systems recover fully from the cyber incident.

Next Steps

Duncan Lewis continues to monitor the Government’s implementation of Licensed Work uplifts to ensure that the full package of reforms is delivered without further delay.

 About Jeremy Bloom – Consultant Solicitor 

Jeremy Bloom is a Consultant Solicitor specialising in Public Law and Immigration, representing individuals and organisations in challenges to unlawful decisions, policies and practices of public bodies. A strategic litigator, he has led complex and high-impact judicial review claims that have secured meaningful outcomes for clients and wider changes to the law, and he has particular expertise advocating for members of the Windrush generation across immigration, compensation and public law matters. Jeremy also leads work on access to justice and the application of legal aid regulations, and has obtained significant results in cases involving delays, certification decisions and unlawful detention. Recognised as the Law Society’s Junior Lawyer of the Year in 2021, he previously worked at the Equality and Human Rights Commission and Amnesty International, bringing extensive experience in human rights treaty monitoring, international advocacy and strategic campaigning.

About Duncan Lewis Solicitors

Duncan Lewis Solicitors is one of the UK’s leading legal aid and human rights law firms, recognised by The Legal 500, Chambers & Partners, and The Times as a top-tier provider of immigration, housing, public law and civil liberties representation.

With offices across the country and a longstanding commitment to serving vulnerable communities, the firm brings together award-winning teams dedicated to advancing access to justice.