Danger of high legal bills must be reduced, warns judge. The Guardian

Senior High Court judge calls for an overhaul of the court costs system in environmental cases

Only the 'very rich or very poor' could afford to fight environmental schemes imposed by the government or local authorities, said Mr Justice Sullivan, who chaired an independent investigation.

The European Commission has asked the government to provide a detailed response to the Sullivan report, called 'Ensuring access to environmental justice in England and Wales'. It said it was concerned by the 'failure of the United Kingdom' to provide details showing court access was 'fair, equitable, timely and not prohibitively expensive'.

Anyone applying for an injunction is expected to give an undertaking agreeing to meet all parties' costs if they lose. The report calls for that to be scrapped in environmental cases. Legal aid is normally confined to people who receive benefits.

Sullivan said that ordinary citizens and non-governmental organisations were deterred from using the courts for fear of incurring huge legal bills. As a result, the location of landfill sites, recycling plants and housing developments often went unchallenged.

Unless the government ensures legal action is more affordable, it will be guilty of breaching the Aarhus Convention, an international convention on citizens' environmental rights which is ratified by the European Community.

More...