The History of Legal Aid - 1945 to 1997

Before "no win, no fee" agreements were invented, people with good claims (or even good defences to claims) in all varieties of case types could have lawyers deal with their case at public expense. 

There were no "success fees" or "after the event" insurance premiums to be taken from a successful claim. Cases were monitored by the "Legal Aid Board" who set limits on what could be spent on each case, and ensured that things were being dealt with properly. 

There were no faceless, bulk litigation factories and generally your local High Street solicitor could access the whole range of different categories of legal aid that were available.

It was not a perfect system, but it is difficult to fault the aspiration -

"to provide legal advice for those of slender means and resources, so that no one would be financially unable to prosecute a just and reasonable claim or defend a legal right; and to allow counsel and solicitors to be remunerated for their services."

Government White Paper, 1948

You can find a detailed history of the legal aid movement here in a post by the late Sir Henry Brooke, who became a Lord Justice of Appeal in 1996, retiring from judicial office in September 2006.