Which statement about the cost argument is supported by the passage?
A right that cannot be afforded is a courtesy, not a right. When legal aid is cut so that tenants facing eviction or parents contesting custody must represent themselves, the court system continues to operate, but its procedures were built for people with training. Judges report that unrepresented litigants take longer to hear, so the saving to the legal aid budget is partly spent in extra courtroom time. This argument from cost is not the strongest; the strongest is simply that justice that depends on wealth is not justice. Still, it is worth making, because it speaks to those who would otherwise dismiss the principle as sentimental.
Answer and explanation
Correct answer: E. The author thinks it is not the strongest argument but is still worth making
- Step 1: Read the last two sentences: 'not the strongest' and 'still worth making'.
- Step 2: So the answer is the statement that "The author thinks it is not the strongest argument but is still worth making".
Answer
The author thinks it is not the strongest argument but is still worth making.
Why not the others: The author says the cost argument is not the strongest, so it is not the strongest; 'sentimental' is how opponents describe the principle; the argument is not limited to custody cases and judges' reports are cited only as an observation, not as proof.
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