In-Court Advice
The In-Court Advice Service in Edinburgh Sheriff Court was introduced in 1997. It was the first service to be established in a Scottish court that provided free legal and other advice to unassisted litigants. The service mainly covers small claims, summary cause (including housing) and ordinary cause actions where the Debtor (Scotland) Act 1987 applies. The Edinburgh Service is managed by Edinburgh Central Citizens Advice Bureau.
Research conducted in 1998 and 2001 found that demand had increased steadily, particularly amongst tenants involved in housing repossession cases and those seeking advice relating to the Debtors (Scotland) Act 1987.
Following the success of the Edinburgh service and in the context of our wider aim of improving access to justice, the Scottish Executive has set up a further 5 pilot projects. They can be contacted at:
Aberdeen In-Court Adviser, Sheriff Court, Aberdeen Tel: 01224-638 859
Airdrie In-Court Adviser, Sheriff Court, Airdrie Tel: 01236-766 712
Dundee In-Court Adviser, Sheriff Court, Dundee Tel: 01382-202 371
Hamilton In-Court Adviser, Sheriff Court, Hamilton Tel: 01698-476 853
Kilmarnock In-Court Adviser, Sheriff Court, Kilmarnock Tel: 01563-549 367
In addition to the above pilots, the Executive also funds the Homelessness Advice Desk in Paisley Sheriff Court, which is run by Paisley Law Centre.
An evaluation of the first phase of the pilots has shown that the pilots are meeting their aims and demand for the service is high. Whilst it is too soon to consider rolling out to other courts, Ministers have decided that we should continue funding for a further 3 years until March 2009.
The full evaluation report entitled Uniquely Placed: Evaluation of the In-Court Advice Pilots (Phase 1) can be viewed here.