This article is from the source 'guardian' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.theguardian.com/law/2015/mar/25/legal-aid-solicitors-fail-stop-cuts-defence-permission-appeal-supreme-court
The article has changed 4 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 1 | Version 2 |
|---|---|
| Solicitors fail to stop cuts in legal aid defence contracts | Solicitors fail to stop cuts in legal aid defence contracts |
| (about 4 hours later) | |
| Criminal solicitors have failed in their attempt to prevent the justice secretary, Chris Grayling, imposing deep cuts on the number of legal aid contracts for defence lawyers. | Criminal solicitors have failed in their attempt to prevent the justice secretary, Chris Grayling, imposing deep cuts on the number of legal aid contracts for defence lawyers. |
| The Law Society and the London Criminal Courts Solicitors’ Association (LCCSA) are now seeking permission for an emergency hearing at the supreme court to overturn the judgment. | |
| Further legal action could cause severe problems for the government’s timetable for reform. The court of appeal on Wednesday, however, refused to extend an injunction delaying the Ministry of Justice’s tendering process for the new contracts. | Further legal action could cause severe problems for the government’s timetable for reform. The court of appeal on Wednesday, however, refused to extend an injunction delaying the Ministry of Justice’s tendering process for the new contracts. |
| Criminal solicitors are opposed to the MoJ’s radical reduction in the number of contracts for duty solicitors attending police stations and magistrates’ courts. | Criminal solicitors are opposed to the MoJ’s radical reduction in the number of contracts for duty solicitors attending police stations and magistrates’ courts. |
| Under the MoJ proposal, the number is due to fall from 1,600 to 527 in England and Wales. A further fee cut of 8.75% is also due to come into effect. | |
| The ministry has argued that there are too many law firms operating in the criminal defence market, which needs to consolidate so that those bidding for contracts can achieve economies of scale. | |
| Declining to extend the injunction suspending the tender process, the master of the rolls, Lord Dyson, said there was an “air of unreality” about the solicitors’ hopes of taking their case to the supreme court next week. | Declining to extend the injunction suspending the tender process, the master of the rolls, Lord Dyson, said there was an “air of unreality” about the solicitors’ hopes of taking their case to the supreme court next week. |
| Only four firms had submitted bids for the new legal aid defence contracts before the process was suspended before Christmas, the court heard. Labour has promised to scrap the new contracts if they come to power at the election and review the pending fee cut. | Only four firms had submitted bids for the new legal aid defence contracts before the process was suspended before Christmas, the court heard. Labour has promised to scrap the new contracts if they come to power at the election and review the pending fee cut. |
| The Law Society president, Andrew Caplen, said: “The court of appeal decision is a devastating blow. We remain concerned that vulnerable people may not be able to obtain legal representation if they are accused of wrongdoing. This is why we challenged government plans to reduce criminal legal aid contracts as they could affect anyone accused of a crime and the solicitors who provide high-quality legal help, including 24-hour coverage for police stations. | The Law Society president, Andrew Caplen, said: “The court of appeal decision is a devastating blow. We remain concerned that vulnerable people may not be able to obtain legal representation if they are accused of wrongdoing. This is why we challenged government plans to reduce criminal legal aid contracts as they could affect anyone accused of a crime and the solicitors who provide high-quality legal help, including 24-hour coverage for police stations. |
| “Without proper legal representation there may be miscarriages of justice. Criminal legal aid solicitors are critical for ensuring that anyone accused of a crime has a fair trial.” | “Without proper legal representation there may be miscarriages of justice. Criminal legal aid solicitors are critical for ensuring that anyone accused of a crime has a fair trial.” |
| The LCCSA has warned that two-thirds of criminal legal aid firms will go out of business as a result of the changes. | The LCCSA has warned that two-thirds of criminal legal aid firms will go out of business as a result of the changes. |
| Jonathan Black, the LCCSA’s president, said: “While the appeal court has found the devastating carveup of solicitor representation is technically legal, we and many others believe it’s immoral. We will do everything we can to continue the fight. | |
| “We are staring into an abyss of rough justice. Unrepresented defendants will clog up our criminal courts and thousands of legal aid solicitors will lose their jobs, leaving legal advice deserts in parts of the country.” | “We are staring into an abyss of rough justice. Unrepresented defendants will clog up our criminal courts and thousands of legal aid solicitors will lose their jobs, leaving legal advice deserts in parts of the country.” |
| He also condemned costs of £1,200 due to be imposed on those convicted at crown court in future as “exorbitant and prohibitive”. The costs, introduced in the Criminal Justice and Courts Act, come into effect on 13 April. Those convicted at magistrates court will have to pay up to £1,000 towards the cost of their trial on top of any fines and a victim surcharge. Defendants on legal aid will not be exempt from the charges. | |
| Robin Murray, the vice-chair of the Criminal Law Solicitors’ Association, said: “Mr Grayling has no experience of running a legal practice and yet his judgment was held above our collective experience as to whether we can withstand the storm about to sweep access to justice away. | |
| “The signal may well now be green but the Ministry of Justice should not ignore the views of experts and blindly drive over the precipice. The general election is just around the corner and if the Labour party are elected this highly controversial policy would be shelved. Therefore it is undemocratic and unreasonable to expect firms to prepare for a highly complex bidding process for a scheme that might not happen. | “The signal may well now be green but the Ministry of Justice should not ignore the views of experts and blindly drive over the precipice. The general election is just around the corner and if the Labour party are elected this highly controversial policy would be shelved. Therefore it is undemocratic and unreasonable to expect firms to prepare for a highly complex bidding process for a scheme that might not happen. |
| “We believe this makes a strong case for civil servants to intervene under the purdah convention and inform the lord chancellor that this issue must wait until the outcome of the general election. It would be a disgrace and a constitutional outrage to pursue these proposals before the short campaign kicks off.” | “We believe this makes a strong case for civil servants to intervene under the purdah convention and inform the lord chancellor that this issue must wait until the outcome of the general election. It would be a disgrace and a constitutional outrage to pursue these proposals before the short campaign kicks off.” |
| The shadow justice secretary, Sadiq Khan, called for the tendering process to be suspended. “Today’s ruling by the court of appeal is disappointing,” he said. “But as I have already made clear, the next Labour government will abandon the reckless two-tier contracting for criminal legal aid. | |
| “It’s clear it is unworkable and could lead to real problems with people accessing justice. The whole process should be put on hold for an incoming government to decide, and it would be breathtakingly arrogant of ministers to restart the tendering process just a matter of hours before the purdah period kicks in.” | |
| An MoJ spokesperson said: “We welcome today’s judgment and intend to continue with the tender for new criminal legal aid contracts on Friday. | An MoJ spokesperson said: “We welcome today’s judgment and intend to continue with the tender for new criminal legal aid contracts on Friday. |
| “Our legal aid reforms are designed to ensure the system is fair for those who need it, the lawyers who provide services as part of it and importantly the taxpayers who ultimately pay for it. | “Our legal aid reforms are designed to ensure the system is fair for those who need it, the lawyers who provide services as part of it and importantly the taxpayers who ultimately pay for it. |
| “We have one of the most expensive legal aid systems in the world and even after reform it will remain very generous – costing around £1.5bn a year. Anyone suspected of a crime will still have access to a legal aid lawyer of their choosing after reform, just as they do now.” | “We have one of the most expensive legal aid systems in the world and even after reform it will remain very generous – costing around £1.5bn a year. Anyone suspected of a crime will still have access to a legal aid lawyer of their choosing after reform, just as they do now.” |