What if I cannot afford to pay legal fees? What is legal aid and when is it available?

• Not every country provides free legal aid. You need to ask your lawyer or your consulate for details on whether it exists and how to apply. When it exists, you may have to prove that you have a low income to be eligible. You should discuss your eligibility for legal aid with your lawyer.
   
• Make sure you clearly understand how often you have a right to meet your lawyer and how much communication s/he is allowed to have with you at the state’s expense. You should discuss this with your lawyer when you meet.
   
• You may not be able to instruct a lawyer of your own choice if you are receiving legal aid and sometimes you may only meet him/her when you are due in court.
   
• Legal aid may not cover the additional services of an interpreter, which may limit the communication possible with your lawyer.
   
• Be aware that the quality of the work done by legal aid lawyers varies greatly from one lawyer to another and from country to country.

This is not a substitute for legal advice and, because every case is different and legal systems around the world vary so much, we cannot guarantee that the answers will be applicable to your own case. For advice about your own situation, you should talk to a lawyer qualified in the jurisdiction where you are being prosecuted.

The information contained in this document is provided for information purposes only and is not intended as legal advice, nor does it constitute legal advice. Whilst we endeavour to keep the information up to date and correct, Fair Trials International makes no representations or warranties of any kind, express or implied about the completeness, accuracy, reliability, suitability or applicability to individual cases of the information contained in this leaflet. Any reliance you place on such material is therefore strictly at your own risk. Fair Trials International disclaims any liability to the fullest extent permissible by law for any loss or damage of any kind arising from the use of the information provided.

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