because they do not “apportion blame in an adversarial way”.
Deborah Coles, director of the Inquest charity, said the characterisation was “dishonest and denies the
reality of the uneven playing field which confronts bereaved families”. She added: “Their legal
representation at inquests performs a vital public interest in a highly complex process.”
Ms Boden with her partner James Hodder
(Supplied)“Intrusive and protracted funding processes are cruel and add further trauma. Families bereaved by
terrorism must be granted automatic non-means-tested legal aid for inquests.”
A solicitor who represented Mr Hodder at the London Bridge inquests and is supporting his campaign said
there should be “an equality of arms” between victims and public authorities in terror inquests.
“The coroner is prohibited by law from making a finding of blame but the proceedings are covering
contentious issues, so it’s important that the families are fully engaged and can ask all the questions they
need to,” added Helen Boniface, a senior associate at Hogan Lovells.
Dame Vera Baird, the victims commissioner for England and Wales, said other options could be explored to
address the imbalance, such as a potential levy on public authorities wanting legal representation or an
“independent public advocate”.
Brendan Cox, co-founder of the Survivors Against Terrorism group, said forcing families to apply for legal
aid was just one aspect of a “complete disregard for trauma”.
Mr Cox, the widow of murdered Labour MP Jo Cox, told The Independent: “We’ve got a growing list of
survivors who are worried about this. “We understand there is a need for process and but it feels like there’s
a lack of support for people going through that process, and a lack of emotional intelligence.”
A Ministry of Justice spokesperson said: “Our recent legal aid review found representation for bereaved
families is not necessary at the vast majority of inquests because the process is designed to establish the
truth and learn lessons, rather than apportion blame in an adversarial way.