Legal Advice and Assistance - Green Form

Green Form  is the common name for Legal Advice and Assistance, which can provide initial legal advice or a quick resolution to a legal matter. An Advocate is able to give initial advice upon almost every aspect of Manx Law except property transactions and matters on behalf of a business or company.

An Advocate can only provide legal advice and assistance under a Green Form if they are listed on the Legal Aid Panel of Advocates.

General Rules

• The Advocate can only carry out work after the form has been completed and signed by the applicant in their presence (although the form may be posted to a non-Isle of Man resident with the permission of the Certifying Officer).
  
  
• Where more than one matter is involved, each matter will be subject to a separate application, apart from those dealing with matrimonial proceedings.
  
  
• You can't get advice and assistance under the scheme for the same matter by more than one Advocate without permission from the Certifying Officer.
  
  
• An Advocate can refuse to accept an application if they think it is right to do so.
  
  
• If you do not follow the requirements of the regulations (e.g. by giving a false statement), the Certifying Officer may decide that you need to pay for the advice you received.

Making an application

If you have a legal problem and you think that your financial situation may qualify you to receive assistance under the Scheme, the first thing you should do is consult an Advocate. You should make it clear to the Advocate that you are seeking their advice under the Green Form Scheme.

Amount of advice funded

The advice is limited to a maximum of 3 hours work. For a divorce application the maximum is 4 hours work.

These limits can be extended by exception, by a maximum of 6 hours only. Your Advocate can apply to the Certifying Officer for an extension, explaining what work has been carried out, further planned work and the amount of additional funding required.