Lawyers for the Poor: Legal Advice, Voluntary Action, and Citizenship in England, 1890-1990 by Kate Bradley

T he access to justice issues experienced by people on a low income with everyday problems that involve the law are longstanding, 1 and Kate Bradley's excellent book offers a very useful investigation of what services were available, if any, for affordable or free legal advice and assistance in the late 19th century and onwards.Her fascinating historical study analyses the changing situation over the course of a century-from 1890 to 1990-a period of expanding legislation "much of which aimed to protect the citizen from the risks of the modern world, from health and safety at work to standards in housing" (page ix).The historical development that Bradley examines includes the various post-World War II developments, which Cappelletti and Garth also characterize as one where "'welfare state' reforms have increasingly sought to arm individuals with new substantive rights in their capacities as consumers, tenants, employees, and even citizens" (Cappelletti & Garth 1978: 8).This was therefore also