[AccyMad]

I recently have had the misfortune of being taken to court by my spiteful ex-husband, trying to gain contact with my sons aged 12 & 17 who no longer want to have any contact with him (believe me they both have valid reasons for doing so). Anyway the point of this thread is that apparently because I work part-time I am slightly over the allowed income to obtain legal aid (or public funding as I think it's called now) and so will have to foot my solicitor's bill myself. He on the other hand, because he does not work will have it all paid for him. Apparently, all they take into account for my outgoings each month is my mortgage payment which because I have lived there for 20 years is quite a low amount and they reckon I have enough 'disposable income' to afford a solicitor. They do not take into account council tax, electric, gas or water bills or any other of the many expenses associated with running a home. I have paid all of these single handedly for the last 8 years or so, having never received a penny from him in maintenance. When I rang them for an explanation, I was told that if my circumstances change, i.e. I give up my job, I could apply again. I must add my solicitor has been very good about this and we have come to an arrangement where I can pay the bill off monthly, it just seems so unfair that he should be able to do this and not pay a penny. Sorry if I've gone on a bit but just needed to get this off my chest.