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Public judicial aid – updated 2025

The guide explains the legal framework for public judicial aid, including income-based eligibility, types of assistance (lawyer, expert fees, court taxes) and the documents courts usually request. It also highlights frequent rejection reasons and offers practical tips on timing, evidence of hardship and combining public aid with private fee arrangements.

1. What “public judicial aid” actually is

Public judicial aid (“ajutor public judiciar”) is essentially a legal safety net for individuals who cannot afford to take a civil case to court without seriously undermining their basic standard of living. It is regulated by Government Emergency Ordinance (GEO) no. 51/2008 on public judicial aid in civil matters, as amended in 2023 by Law no. 31/2023.(Portal Legislativ)

The underlying purpose is to make the right of access to a court effective, not merely theoretical. Court proceedings come with costs – court fees, lawyers’ fees, expert opinions, court bailiffs – that can easily become prohibitive for a low-income person. Public judicial aid steps in precisely here: the State advances all or part of these costs if certain income and situation requirements are met.

The blog post you indicated captures this idea in plain terms: public judicial aid is not a “gift” or a bonus, but a tool to ensure that people do not abandon their rights simply because they cannot afford the price of justice.

2. Types of cases covered (and what is not covered)

A key point is that this mechanism, as set out in GEO no. 51/2008, applies only to civil matters, not to criminal proceedings.

In practice, you may request public judicial aid in:

  • civil cases (e.g. claims for damages, debt recovery, property disputes);
  • commercial cases between professionals;
  • labour disputes;
  • administrative disputes (challenges against administrative acts, fines, decisions by public authorities);
  • social security cases (pensions, social benefits);
  • enforcement proceedings and other situations relating to the execution of enforceable titles.

The article stresses that public judicial aid does not apply to criminal cases. Criminal legal aid (court-appointed defence counsel, etc.) follows a different legal regime, under the Code of Criminal Procedure and Law no. 51/1995 on the legal profession.

3. The concrete forms of public judicial aid

Public judicial aid is not just about having a lawyer paid by the State. GEO no. 51/2008 clearly lists the forms in which it can be granted:

  • payment of the lawyer’s fee for representation and legal assistance (and, where applicable, defence);
  • payment of the expert, translator or interpreter, when their costs would normally fall to the person asking for aid;
  • payment of the court bailiff’s fee for enforcement;
  • exemptions, reductions, staggered payment or deferred payment of court fees, including in the enforcement phase.

The article rightly emphasises that, when most people ask “how much will a lawsuit cost me?”, they instinctively think only of the lawyer’s bill. In reality, the total cost of litigation is often made up of several separate items, and public judicial aid can cover each of them, separately or together, within a statutory annual cap.

After the 2023 amendment by Law no. 31/2023, the total amount of aid (for lawyer, expert, bailiff, etc.) cannot exceed, within one year, the equivalent of 10 gross minimum wages per country.(Portal Legislativ)

4. What actually changed in 2023

Law no. 31/2023 amended several provisions of GEO no. 51/2008. From a practical standpoint, for an ordinary litigant, the most relevant changes are:(Portal Legislativ)

  1. Income thresholds for access to aid were expressly linked to the gross minimum wage:
    • 25% of the minimum wage – for full coverage of costs;
    • 50% of the minimum wage – for 50% coverage.
  2. The maximum annual aid value was defined more clearly: it cannot exceed the equivalent of 10 gross minimum wages.
  3. The way in which income is assessed was clarified: all periodic income must be taken into account (wages, allowances, fees, rents, profits from business activities or independent work), and, at the same time, certain essential periodic expenses (such as rent or maintenance obligations) must also be considered.(Portal Legislativ)

The article you referred to focuses on the first element – the income thresholds calculated by reference to the 3,000 RON gross minimum wage in 2023 – turning these percentages into clear figures: 750 and 1,500 RON per family member.

5. The 25% threshold – full coverage of costs

Under the amended Article 8 (1) GEO no. 51/2008, full public judicial aid (all costs advanced by the State) is available to persons whose average net monthly income per family member, in the two months prior to the application, is below the equivalent of 25% of the gross minimum wage.(Portal Legislativ)

In 2023, the gross minimum wage in Romania was set at 3,000 RON, by Government Decision no. 1447/2022, effective as of 1 January 2023.(AvocatNet)

  • 25% of 3,000 RON = 0.25 × 3,000 = 750 RON.

The article translates this abstract percentage into practical examples:

  • a 3-person family → total net income of the family must be below 3 × 750 = 2,250 RON;
  • a 4-person family → total net income must be below 4 × 750 = 3,000 RON.

If you fall below this 750 RON net per family member threshold, and the other legal conditions are met, the State may pay, in full, the lawyer’s fee, the expert’s or translator’s fee, the bailiff’s fee and/or the court fees.(Portal Legislativ)

6. The 50% threshold – partial coverage (50%)

The second level is where the State covers only half of the litigation costs. Here, the average net income per family member must be below 50% of the gross minimum wage, and the article specifically focuses on the 750–1,500 RON band.(Portal Legislativ)

In 2023:

  • 50% of 3,000 RON = 0.5 × 3,000 = 1,500 RON.

So, if your income per family member is between 750 and 1,500 RON, public judicial aid may cover 50% of:

  • the lawyer’s fee;
  • the expert’s or translator’s fee;
  • the bailiff’s fee;
  • court fees (including various facilities such as reductions, staggered payment or deferred payment).(Portal Legislativ)

The blog post explains this in simple terms: if you are in a very vulnerable income situation (under 25% of the minimum wage), the State may cover all costs; if you are in a low but less critical income band, the State contributes half of the expenses so that litigation does not become an impossible financial burden.

7. What counts as “income” for these thresholds

The law does not look only at wages. Article 9 GEO no. 51/2008, as amended by Law no. 31/2023, states that all periodic income must be taken into account when calculating the relevant income level:(Portal Legislativ)

  • wages;
  • allowances;
  • fees;
  • annuities and pensions;
  • rents;
  • profit from commercial activities;
  • income from self-employment and similar sources.

The article summarises this point accessibly: it is “not just the salary”, but also rents, fees, annuities, allowances, business profits and other independent income that must be counted.

This is crucial to avoid situations in which a person with significant assets or diversified income streams might qualify for aid merely because a low wage is formally declared, while other substantial income sources are ignored.

8. What exactly public judicial aid may be used for

The blog post provides a clear breakdown of what the “cost of a case” means and how public judicial aid interacts with those costs. In practice, aid may be used for:

  • paying the lawyer’s fee;
  • paying the expert, translator or interpreter;
  • paying the bailiff’s fee;
  • obtaining exemptions, reductions, staggered payment or deferred payment of court fees (including judicial stamp duty).

GEO no. 51/2008 confirms these forms in Article 6: point (a) – assistance by a lawyer; point (b) – expert/translator/interpreter; point (c) – bailiff; point (d) – facilities regarding court fees.

In practical terms, a person can:

  • be fully exempted from paying court fees;
  • pay a reduced fee;
  • pay in instalments (staggered payment) or at a later date (deferral);
  • have a lawyer whose fee is paid by the State, within the annual cap;
  • avoid paying, out of pocket, for costly expert reports or translations.

9. Procedure – how to apply for public judicial aid

While the article focuses mainly on income thresholds and the idea of “how much a case costs”, there is also a relatively straightforward procedure in the background, set out by GEO no. 51/2008:

  • Which court decides? The application for public judicial aid is made to the court that has jurisdiction over the case in which the aid is requested. If aid is requested for enforcement, the competent court is the enforcement court.
  • When can you apply? At any time during the proceedings, for the procedural stage in which you need the aid (first instance, appeal, enforcement).
  • What documents are needed? The applicant must provide evidence of income, family composition and, where relevant, essential regular expenses (such as rent or maintenance obligations).
  • Stamp duty: the application for public judicial aid is exempt from stamp duty.

The court examines the application and may grant full aid, partial aid, or reject the request, depending on the applicant’s financial situation and the foreseeable cost of the proceedings.

10. The overall picture: what the article conveys

If we put together the content of the blog post and the legal texts it relies on, the overall picture looks like this:

  • Public judicial aid is a mechanism through which the State may cover, in whole or in part, the costs of bringing or defending a civil case.
  • In 2023, through Law no. 31/2023, the income thresholds were updated to:
    • 25% of the gross minimum wage (3,000 RON → 750 RON) – 100% coverage;
    • 50% of the gross minimum wage (3,000 RON → 1,500 RON) – 50% coverage.
  • All periodic income is taken into account, not just wages, and the annual cap is set at 10 gross minimum wages.
  • Aid may be granted in civil, commercial, labour, administrative and social security cases, as well as in enforcement proceedings, but not in criminal cases.
  • The “cost of a case” includes far more than the lawyer’s fee – it also covers court fees, expert reports, translations and enforcement – and public judicial aid can be directed at each of these items.
  • The application is lodged with the competent court, is exempt from stamp duty, and is assessed by reference to the applicant’s real income and the expected cost of the proceedings.

In short, the article translates into accessible language a fairly technical mechanism regulated by GEO no. 51/2008 and amended in 2023. It uses concrete figures (750 RON, 1,500 RON) and simple examples (families of three or four members) so that readers can immediately assess whether they might fall within the income thresholds and whether it is worthwhile for them to apply for public judicial aid.

 

 

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