Trying to get legal help for friend

[whataretheysaying]

I am trying to find a solicitor to help my friend and the good one I know said she hasn't got the capacity to take the case on and recommended 2 others who said same thing and then I contacted Duncan Lewis who also said they haven't got the capacity too.
I am wondering if perhaps they are turning it down because it will be a legal aid case
Below is the email I send them

Pls can anyone advise on what I can do or how I can get a legal expert to take this case on pls

I have been helping my friend for 2 years now and I want to continue but he needs a lawyer.
Advice would be helpful thanks.

I am wondering if you can help a friend of mine, through legal aid please.
He is got MS and he's deteriorated drastically over the past couple of years mainly due to the fact that the social services did not step in for over a year even though the university called and reported his condition to the social services several times over the past 2 years and nothing at all is come out of it and I think he needs the help of a capable legal expert to step in and help him. He is somethings unable to speak that is why I am contacting you on his behalf.
He was studying for his Phd at the university of XXXX up until last year when he had to interment his studies for medical reasons but he is still living on campus because the social services insist it is not their responsibility to find him a suitable accommodation for his needs and passed him on to the council who were also saying same thing. He is wheelchair bound and unable to help himself at all. care package was put in place but not enough at all. The university have served him an eviction notice since last year but he still living in a student accommodation not conducive at for his needs.
what I have written does not describe the state he is in - it is a very sad and bad situation with serious failings of the system. I would be glad and sincerely appreciate it if you could hep him, thank you.
I will also like to point out that if he loses his life (which seems inevitable if the social services does not step in urgently) it will be solely down to the fact that he did not get the help needed on time from the social services not MS.

I hope to hear from you and that you can assist with this issue

I'm not a legal expert or anything close, but I wouldn't be keen to take on a case given the last paragraph about losing his life.

Its also unclear what you want from a legal POV too.

I would start off by rewriting that without the emotive language, and be clear about what you actually want.

🤔

Thanks

I want a legal expert to help write to the social services reminding them of their duty of care

I also have no legal qualifications, but was coming on to say exactly the same as the previous poster, you need to rewrite this timeline of events chronologically, and clearly set out exactly what has happened, when your friend moved into accommodation, when he suspended his studies, who you have approached, and when etc. You need to take all the emotion out of what you have written above as well. If you would struggle to get this timeline written, can your friend not edit the sequence of events? Or perhaps student services at the university would help, although I assume he is no longer registered there as a student, so maybe not?

I'm in the legal industry & it's really not clear what you want.

I also don't think you can get legal aid for a solicitor to write to the council on your behalf. If you want that, you might be able to find a solicitor who is willing, but you'd almost certainly have to pay. I would reckon for a meeting/telephone call + writing a letter you're looking at £500ish.

I have to say that I'm not sure this is the right route. A letter to council from a solicitor is unlikely to do any more than a letter from you. If you're actually appealing a decision, you might find a solicitor who will represent you for an appeal.

Either way, legal aid for civil cases is extremely restricted & I think you will struggle to access it. I'd start with complaining to the council/SS and appealing their decision & go from there.

I'd imagine the firms you contacted will not take your friend's case as this is not a situation they can help with (I am a former local govt solicitor and now in private practice.)

Social services don't provide housing (only accommodation with care, eg care home or supported accommodation) and only for ppl ordinarily resident in their area so your friend may not meet the criteria in terms of need or perhaps residence. His best option would be to ask for a review of his needs and make a complaint if his eligible needs are not being met.(Not the same as council not giving him what he wants, obviously.)

Housing departments of local authorities do provide housing but only for ppl who meet their criteria - again your friend needs to understand why he's been declined and if they have misapplied the criteria he can ask for a review (and complain via that LA complaints procedure.)

None of the above is legal work per se. The university may have a law clinic staffed by supervised students who could help for free. Shelter has a housing advice helpline I believe.

You can look up the council complaints procedure on their website and perhaps also Shelter's useful guide to housing.

I think getting your MPinvolved would be more useful

You would be better off contacting shelter and citizens advice for help with this.

Your friend should contact Shelter.

Has your friend made a homeless application to the Councils housing advice/homelessness team?
They'd almost certainly have to offer him something suitable given he meets the tests of homelessness.

1. I assume he is eligible for assistance in the UK? I.e. British national or visa which allows him access to public recourse?
2. He is homeless/threatened with homelessness
3. He has a priority need given his health conditions
4. Given he is becoming homeless due to his health he isn't intentionally homeless
5. The last one is whether he has a local connection to the council he's currently living in. He might get passed to another council he does have a local connection to as historically student accommodation doesn't count as a Local connection.

As he passes the first 3 tests, the local authority housing department have a duty to help him. They might transfer him to another council if he doesn't have a recognisable local connection to their authority.

The council I work closely with would do similar to your authority as social services do no have their own housing (other than care home types) so the housing and homeless departments do the rehousing.

Hope it works out for you/your friend

Highly unlikely to get legal aid. Legal aid is very limited nowadays.

I’m not even sure what you want. You want him to be housed by the council?

Presumably if he was doing a phd he has money?

The best you can do? Contact your friends local MP

I don’t think a lawyer is really what you need. I would go to the local councillors or MP here for support.

There are lists of legal aid solictors online go tonthe legal aid website