criminal legal
Westminster update: lord chancellor doubles down on legal aid policy
One thing you need to do
We are taking the government to court over its failure to increase criminal defense solicitors’ legal aid rates by the 15% minimum its own commissioned review recommended.
Our president, Lubna Shuja said:
“The government has failed to satisfactorily address the serious concerns we raised about the collapse of the criminal legal aid sector following years of chronic underfunding.
“We have therefore applied to the High Court for permission to challenge the government’s implementation of the recommendations made in the independent review of the sector.
We believe the UK government’s decision not to increase criminal defense solicitors’ legal aid rates by the recommended minimum of 15% is both unlawful and irrational.
“It has had, and will continue to have, dire consequences for access to justice and puts the future of the criminal justice system in jeopardy.”
Read more about the fight for criminal legal aid
What you need to know
1. The Lord Chancellor doubles down on legal aid policy
On Wednesday 1 March, the lord chancellor, Dominic Raab, was challenged on the government’s approach to criminal legal aid at the Lords Constitution Committee.
Raab said that the government has taken important steps in making the criminal legal aid system fit for the future.
He said that he has set the foundations for a sustainable criminal legal aid profession, having followed all the recommendations set out in the Independent Review of Criminal Legal Aid.
This is despite the fact the government has not met the review’s recommendation of a minimum 15% increase in solicitors’ rates.
Challenged on whether the government had invested sufficient funds into criminal legal aid, Raab said that:
- there has been an overall increase of spending to over £138 million
- criminal legal aid expenditure per annum is now £1.2 billion pounds
EU dispatch: Irish criminal barristers to strike over legal aid funding – JURIST
James Joseph is UK Senior Correspondent for JURIST.
On May 2, 2023, Irish criminal barristers plan to go on strike in response to the crisis in funding for Irish criminal legal aid. The barristers are protesting the failure of the Irish government to comply with Ireland’s “Rule of Law obligations” by downing tools in what they deem a necessary measure. The strike is due to the level of fees paid to practitioners in the District Court, which has reached a crisis point. This lack of funding is concerning and comparable to a parallel situation in England.
Darren Lalor and Luigi Rea, both Irish criminal barristers who have been campaigning on this issue, argue that the Irish State has neglected barristers practicing at District Court level by holding the overdue restoration of cuts imposed long ago in that time of financial emergency. Fee rates have remained unchanged since 2002, rendering them insufficient. Lalor suggests that this lack of funding has made Ireland the “laughing stock” of the European Union and that “Leprechaun legal aid” does not provide adequate funding. Anyone accused of a crime qualifying for legal aid defense services should be entitled to adequate funding.
Mr. Lalor told Irish Legal News that: “I fully support a withdrawal of services. The sooner the better.” In official communications seen by JURIST Lalor claims that “The Irish state has not taken any steps to deal with its failure to bring Ireland into compliance with the Rule of Law funding requirements”.
The Irish Central Bank’s Governor, Gabriel Makhlouf, wrote in the Financial Times on February 19 that financial growth in Ireland over the year was expected to be “more than treble growth in the overall EU,” which is seen as an affront to those working to uphold the rule of law
Westminster weekly update: lord chancellor grilled on legal aid by MPs
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The extension of a Swiss-UK professional services travel agreement is good news for lawyers and law firms doing business between the two countries.
Lawyers and other service providers from the UK can continue to travel to Switzerland for up to 90 days a year without a short-stay permit. The two countries agreed to extend their Services Mobility Agreement (SMA) until the end of 2025.
What you need to know
1. Lord Chancellor grilled on legal aid by MPs
On Tuesday November 22, the lord chancellor, Dominic Raab, appeared before the Justice Select Committee and was questioned on:
- criminal legal aid
- the proposed Bill of Rights
- the Ministry of Justice’s budget
MPs pushed Raab on evidence we gave last week in the country many criminal legal aid firms are in and asked why he had not implemented the 15% increase recommended by the Bellamy Review.
The lord chancellor argued that most fees had been increased by 15% and the full consultation response would come at the end of this month.
Labor MP Karl Turner highlighted that there are under 1,000 firms left, and asked what the contingency plan was if these firms collapsed.
Raab felt there were enough practitioners in the market to do the work and the government’s investment would support them.
The lord chancellor was also pushed by MPs on when he would meet with us.
Raab confirmed a meeting would be arranged soon. We look forward to meeting in the coming days.
The session also touched on the proposed Bill of Rights.
The lord chancellor confirmed it would return to Parliament “soon”, with a few changes made from the original bill published earlier this year.
In his view, the bill would help protect free speech and prevent abuse of
Legal aid ‘at breaking point’ as number of solicitors hits record low | Scotland
The number of solicitors providing criminal legal assistance to those unable to pay for representation has fallen below 1,000 for the first time since records began. The crisis in accessing legal aid has prompted the Law Society of Scotland to warn that people living in some of the most deprived parts of the country are being denied justice.
In response, the Scottish government has proposed an £11 million increase in both criminal and civil legal aid fees.
The additional funding has been cautiously welcomed by Murray Etherington, the president of the Law Society, but he said it was not enough to resolve “deep-rooted” problems. The body that represents Scotland’s solicitors said a growing number of lawyers were leaving the legal aid sectors.
Stephanie Clinkscale, a solicitor advocate in Galashiels, claimed the system was nearing “breaking point”. “The number of solicitors providing criminal legal assistance in Scotland has now dropped below 1,000 for the first time and the rate of departure has accelerated massively,” she said.
Jacqueline Doyle, who is based in Glasgow, said: “I am not prepared to continue to subsidise criminal work from our civil work as that is becoming unsustainable too.”
Etherington remains concerned about the future. “Access to legal services is a key part of living in a fair and just society,” he said. “Across Scotland, the network of legal aid support is diminishing while the demand for help is increasing.”
He said the government’s proposals were only a “step towards” addressing the society‘s concerns. “It does not fully resolve the deep-rooted issues in the legal aid sector.”
Ash Regan, the community safety minister, said the support being offered to legal aid practitioners was “substantial and credible”. The Scottish government said: “We are pleased that the Law Society has acknowledged our genuine and credible offer of
Labor conference: Society renews legal aid plea | News
The Law Society has used Labor’s party conference to renew calls for the government to commit to funding to restore legal aid for early advice.
Society vice-president Lubna Shuja told a Society of Labor Lawyers fringe event, which was attended by shadow justice secretary Steve Reed MP, that solicitors are the ‘silent backbone’ of the justice system and economy.
‘They help small firms with their transactions and contracts. They advise clients going through a divorce, they deal with immigration and asylum cases, they support people going through court generally. The work we are doing impacts everyone in this room,’ Shuja said.
‘Access to justice is a foundational part of the justice system… If you cannot access legal help, you are not equal before the law. If you cannot access legal advice, you are not getting access to justice. The situation is pretty dire. There are large areas in England and Wales where people cannot access free, legal advice when they are entitled to it.’
In the civil sphere, Shuja urged the government to commit to funding to restore legal aid for early advice ‘so solicitors can be involved early in the client’s journey’. She also called for an urgent review of the sustainability of legal aid, which must cover fees, the provider base and geographical demands of the system.
The availability of criminal legal aid had been severely restricted as a result of systemic underfunding, Shuja said – telling the event the number of criminal legal aid firms has fallen by 43% over the past 12 years.
Labor delegates heard that Chancery Lane was recently contacted by a criminal defense solicitor in his sixties who is about to retire. ‘Because criminal legal aid work is unviable, there is no young solicitor willing to come in and take over his practice.