Clik here to view.
Forms change on 1 April
The LAA has published preview copies of new forms in force from 1 April 2015. Not all forms are changing – you can see the full list on the LAA website here. In crime, only the LF3 is new. There is a...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Crime tender is on again
The practitioner groups failed in their Court of Appeal challenge to the MoJ’s Duty Contract tender today. You can read the judgment here. The LAA immediately announced that the tender will re-open on...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Legal aid and access to justice: what the manifestos say
The main political parties have published their manifestos, and some have also made other specific commitments. We have created a new page on the site to collate manifesto pledges and commitments made...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Crime deadlines
Firms with existing crime contracts have until 28 April to accept the LAA’s offer of a contract extension to 10 January 2016. If the LAA does not receive an acceptance, the firm’s contract will end on...
View ArticleClik here to view.
LALYs – deadline for nominations today
The annual Legal Aid Lawyer of the Year awards nominations close today. The ceremony is on 1st July. There are several new awards this year, and immigration is no longer a separate category. Details...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Legal aid for contempt in the County Court
In Brown v London Borough of Haringey [2015] EWCA Civ 483 the Court of Appeal considered the availability of legal aid for contempt proceedings in the County Court. It was considering an appeal against...
View ArticleClik here to view.
MoJ presses ahead with litigator fee cuts
The legal aid minister, Shailesh Vara, made a written statement to the House of Commons today. In it he said that the second cut to Crown Court litigator fees of 8.75% will go ahead, effective from 1...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Applying for legal aid for contempt
Following the judgment in Brown v London Borough of Haringey [2015] EWCA Civ 483 (our post here), the LAA has issued new guidance on applying for legal aid to represent those accused of contempt of...
View ArticleClik here to view.
LAA annual report 2014-15
The LAA’s recently published annual report shows how much less money has been spent on securing legal advice and representation for the poorest people in England and Wales. There was an overall net...
View ArticleClik here to view.
What a week
A week (and it’s only Wednesday) of significant developments on several legal aid fronts: Exceptional funding The High Court (Collins J) gave judgment today in IS v The Director of Legal Aid Casework...
View ArticleClik here to view.
The New Handbook – coming soon
The new edition of the LAG Legal Aid Handbook will be published in mid-September. With more content than ever before, it’s the only comprehensive guide to the whole legal aid scheme and is packed...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Crime fee cuts to be suspended
Just before 5pm on Friday afternoon, the LCCSA and CLSA released a statement setting out the terms of an offer from the Lord Chancellor, seemingly made in response to the suspension of the action last...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Labour to review legal aid policy
The Labour party has announced that it is to carry out a review of legal aid policy, led by Lord Bach with Karl Turner MP. The party leader, Jeremy Corbyn, said: “I have asked Willy Bach, the former...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Latest legal aid statistics published
The MoJ has published the latest quarterly statistics bulletin showing take up of legal aid cases. The figures make for depressing reading. In summary: The crime figures continue to fall year on year,...
View ArticleClik here to view.
MoJ consults on crime advocacy
The MoJ has issued a consultation paper on advocacy in criminal cases in the Crown Court and above. It is aimed at the preservation and enhancement of quality of advocacy, though most of its practical...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Crime duty tender outcomes delayed for further two weeks
Bidders were to have been notified of the outcomes of their crime duty tenders “in September”. The LAA has today emailed bidding firms to say that it hopes to get the results out on October 15, saying...
View ArticleClik here to view.
News from LAPG conference
As always, LAPG conference was packed with essential information, inspiring speeches (particularly Richard Miller from the Law Society and Steve Hynes from LAG) and practitioners sharing hints and tips...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Crime tender notifications released today
The LAA has been sending bidders for crime duty contracts the outcomes of their tenders today. At the time of writing, many firms still had not been told their result. The LAA have told the Law Society...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Solicitors Office Manual – new edition
Hundreds of law firms in private practice have used ‘The Solicitors Office Procedures Manual’ to update or replace their existing office manuals since it was published in 2009. The second edition is...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Legal Aid Agency to extend existing crime contracts
Despite previous statements which indicated its intention to press ahead with the introduction of new Duty and Own Client contracts in January, the LAA announced today that all existing contract...
View Article
