FOI 00447 - Legal funding applications 2018 - 2023
Request:
Received: 12 September 2025
a) Approved,
b) Refused
Response:
Responded: 29 October 2025
RESPONSE 1: Due to a change in computer systems in 2020, we can only guarantee accurate data from 2021 onwards and so we have provided data pertinent to the request from 01/01/2021 – 31/12/2023.
|
Total PFEW applications |
10,992 |
|
Total GMP applications |
435 |
RESPONSE 2: The PFEW does not use the terms “approved” and “refused” in relation to applications for legal funding. In order to provide the data below, we have grouped the data in two ways:
- Applications that have been immediately rejected by the Claims department due to non compliance with Fund Rules etc
- Applications that were referred for legal review by a solicitor (either internally or externally)
It is important to note that an application can be terminated even after legal review however, it is not possible for us to accurately retrieve data from our system to reflect that.
|
|
Claims not satisfying funding criteria |
Claims referred for legal review |
|
Total PFEW applications |
427 |
10,565 |
|
Total GMP applications |
18 |
417 |
RESPONSE 3:
The PFEW does not routinely collect data relating to member’s ethnicity. It may be possible to determine a member’s ethnicity by manually reviewing each file but this would not provide an accurate dataset and would also exceed what is considered reasonable and proportionate under the Freedom of Information Act 2000. The current guidance for an appropriate time/cost limit is 18 hours or £450.
The PFEW estimates that it would take approximately 45 minutes to review each file in full which, given the number of files provided in the response to question one of this response, would far exceed the guidance. On this basis, the PFEW is exempting this part of the response under section 12 of the Freedom of Information Act 2000: cost of compliance exceeds appropriate limit.
RESPONSE 4:
The PFEW relies upon the Fund Rules and the Funding Criteria when making decision regarding the funding of applications for legal funding. The Fund Rules can be viewed on our website in Appendix 5 of our Rules here.
The Claims department also relies upon additional funding criteria where necessary. These are contained within an internal document which is not for disclosure to the public. Essentially, these criteria provide further guidance on other considerations that should be taken into account when making decisions on funding at all stages of the claims process and particularly emphasises the fact that the PFEW has absolute discretion as to whether or not to fund legal advice and/or representation in relation to any matter.
