Our firm does both Criminal and Civil Legal Aid and is approved at the top level for both. Legal Aid is dependent on an income based application. Not everyone will be entitled to Legal Aid. Although for civil, you can choose a legal aid lawyer, your requirements to obtain legal aid are not only financial but will also require your lawyer/legal representative to elaborate on the key elements of the case and possibilities of success. This is then left to the discretion of the Legal Aid officer to determine legal aid.
In Criminal matters, if you are charged with a charge categorised as PAL 1 and 2, you cannot choose a lawyer when applying. However for PAL 3 and 4 cases, you are able to decide.