top of page
Writer's pictureRobert Spicer

Poverty and the Law

Poverty is not a legal issue. Poverty exists because wealth is unevenly distributed. The solution for dealing with poverty is the redistribution of wealth. This self-evident truth is widely accepted but seldom put into effect.

Law and lawyers have some influence on the fringes of poverty. They may be involved in welafre rights work. Human rights lawyers have a very limited role in poverty issues, because the emphasis of human rights law is on bourgeois individual rights rather than fundamental collective rights. As has been commented, it is of little comfort to a starving child to know that his or her right, for example, to freedom of religion, is protected by a well-fed coterie of lawyers.

1 view0 comments

Recent Posts

See All

THE DECLINE OF LEGAL AID

LEGAL AID Legal aid was conceived as a cornerstone of the welfare state. The system was created by the Legal Aid etc Act 1949 as part of...

MONEY AND THE LAW

Money is the key which unlocks the meaning of English law. Lord Bingham has commented that equality before the law is an aspect of the...

POVERTY AND THE LAW

In 2018 the UN Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights reported that in the UK 14 million people, a fifth of the...

Comments


bottom of page