A party to proceedings before a court usually uses the services of a counsel, even though this is strictly speaking not required by law. The duties of counsel are performed by an advocate, a public legal aid attorney, or another lawyer. Public legal aid attorneys (julkinen oikeusavustaja) are employed by the State to assist people in their legal affairs.

Legal aid is there to give individuals the possibility to obtain assistance for legal matters fully or partially at the expense of the State. It is granted on the basis of the applicant's income, expenditures and wealth. When these exceed a certain amount, legal aid will not be granted. Legal aid will not be granted if the applicant has legal expenses insurance covering the matter at hand.

Legal aid can be given both in court proceedings and in other matters.
In criminal proceedings, the defendant is under certain circumstances provided with a public defender at the expense of the State, regardless of his or her financial status.

The victim of domestic violence or sexual crime may be provided with a trial counsel at the expense of the State, regardless of his or her financial status.

In Finland a crime victim can recieve compensation from the State for damages caused by the crime, for instance for costs of medical care. If the victim has received compensation from the offender or an insurance company, it will be deducted from the compensation paid by the State.