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Scottish Legal Aid Board (SLAB)

The Scottish Legal Aid Board is the public body that runs legal aid in Scotland, including free advice at the police station.

The Scottish Legal Aid Board (SLAB) manages legal aid in Scotland. For criminal cases, it pays for advice to people in police custody, which is free whatever your income, and runs the Solicitor Contact Line. It also funds criminal advice and assistance, and criminal legal aid for court cases. You usually apply for criminal legal aid through a solicitor rather than directly. Whether it is granted depends on the type of case and your financial circumstances, and in summary cases also on whether it is in the interests of justice, for example because you could face prison or the case is complex. Solicitors must be registered with SLAB to do criminal legal aid work, and SLAB's website has a search tool to help people find one.

Checked as at 25 September 2026. General information only, not legal advice.

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Solicitors and Legal Aid in ScotlandWhen Someone You Know Is Arrested

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