Our clients need specialist legal advice and representation to give them access to justice that would otherwise be denied to them. By helping them to assert their legal rights, we not only defend their dignity and human rights, but promote their proper place as members of a fully functioning, genuinely inclusive society.
We meet the needs and address the disadvantage of around 1400 clients per year. They include women fleeing domestic violence, people who are in housing crisis, people with no income or recourse to public funds, those with complex benefit challenges, disabled children and adults. We are able to pursue cases all the way from initial enquiry to representation in the higher courts, if necessary.
Here are the stories of three of our recent clients:
Dianne and Mark’s story
When Dianne first came to see us, she had been struggling for years to support her son, Mark. He was suffering from mental health issues. He was a Council tenant, but what could have been the foundation of a better life for Mark soon turned into a nightmare for him and Dianne.
Gary’s story
Gary was referred to the law centre by Inspire, a consortium of organisations delivering mental health services across Tower Hamlets. He was a recovering alcoholic and substance abuser, and while he was no longer using alcohol and drugs he still had significant mental health problems and a history of self-harm.
Sabina’s story
Sabina and her husband were shocked when their adult son threw them out of their home, where he also lived. They had owned the property, but it had been transferred into their son’s name and Sabina and her husband, who were elderly and spoke little English, hadn’t really understood what was happening.
Dianne and Mark's story
When Dianne first came to see us, she had been struggling for years to support her son, Mark who was suffering from mental health issues. He was a Council tenant, but what could have been the foundation of a better life for Mark soon turned into a nightmare for him and Dianne.
Mark fell victim to a ‘cuckoo’ gang, who took over his flat, demanded money from him and used and dealt drugs. Rather than taking action against the cuckooers, his local Council accused Mark of anti-social behaviour and initiated possession proceedings against him.
Dianne came to Tower Hamlets Law Centre for help, and when it became evident that Mark lacked capacity to conduct proceedings, she became his ‘litigation friend’ and conducted the proceedings on his behalf. On that basis, our solicitor filed a Defence and a Counterclaim against the planned eviction. Mark tragically passed away shortly after, which Dianne believes was at least partly brought on by the stress of his potential eviction and what she felt was a lack of Social Services support.
After Mark’s death, Dianne decided to continue pursuing the Counterclaim for compensation. At the final hearing, the Judge took the view that the Council should be debarred from defending the Counterclaim, given their lack of compliance with previous Court directions. Having done this, the Judge ultimately ruled that Mark had been discriminated against by the Council and ordered a sum of compensation to be paid to Mark’s estate.
Gary's story
Gary was referred to the law centre by Inspire, a consortium of organisations delivering mental health services across Tower Hamlets. He was a recovering alcoholic and substance abuser, and while he was no longer using alcohol and drugs he still had significant mental health problems and a history of self-harm.
Gary lived alone, and suffered from terrible panic attacks whenever he left his home. He was unable to travel anywhere unfamiliar without someone to accompany him. He also had sciatica, which made it even harder for him to get about.
Gary was unable to prepare food for himself, so his mother would travel from Essex several times a week with food for him.
But when he applied for Personal Independence Payment, a state benefit that helps with the extra costs of a long-term health condition or disability, his application was rejected.
We interviewed Gary at length, and obtained strong supporting evidence from his GP and support worker before submitting his appeal. The tribunal awarded the maximum possible rate of PIP, amounting to over £7,000 in back-dated arrears and £5,000 in new weekly payments.
Sabina's story
Sabina and her husband were shocked when their adult son threw them out of their home, where he also lived. They had owned the property, but it had been transferred into their son’s name and Sabina and her husband, who were elderly and spoke little English, hadn’t really understood what was happening.
A family friend helped them apply to the council as homeless, and Sabina and her husband were placed in emergency accommodation while the council made enquiries about their situation. The council wanted to investigate whether the couple had made themselves homeless on purpose; in that case, it wouldn’t have to find them a new long-term home, even though they were vulnerable.
Sabina and her husband had to pay rent on their emergency accommodation, but a different department of the council then decided that they had too much money to qualify for Housing Benefit, treating their former home as though it still belonged to them.
The couple couldn’t afford to pay the rent without Housing Benefit, and built up arrears of £6000, which gave them another huge set of worries after everything else that had happened to them. Our welfare benefits team took on their case and succeeded in getting the decision changed, paying off all their arrears.
Meanwhile, our housing team represented Sabina and her husband in their homelessness application. The council finally accepted that Sabina and her husband had not made themselves homeless on purpose, and they were relieved and happy to be rehoused in ground floor sheltered accommodation with a back garden.