The London Advocate

Advocate Issue 75

The consultation  document  from the Ministry of Justice is called Transforming Legal Aid. This is no exaggeration:  a transformation is certainly what has been proposed.  British justice has been - still is - the envy of the world. Not for much longer.

Price competitive tendering is a model completely at odds with the provision of legal services. It has been tried in New Zealand and it did not work - in a process which was ultimately enormously costly to the government there.

Just one of the proposals - for a defendant  no longer to be represented  by a lawyer of his or her choice - demonstrates how our democratic and respectful way of working is to be changed into a production line for cheap and and shoddy justice.

And it is all to be brought in at record speed, with a truncated  consultation  process, no pilot programmes  and an astonishingly rushed timetable for implementation.

Should the government's  proposals be brought in unchecked, the consequences will be grave - not just for our members but, crucially, for the administration of justice itself. This is not an argument  about fat-cat lawyer fees, as it may be spun in the tabloid newspapers, but about access to justice.

If justice is done on the cheap, outcomes will be poor. When the tribunal is not given all the information it needs, it will reach unsatisfactory decisions in many cases. This means that there will be miscarriages of justice - very expensive to correct and deeply damaging for social cohesion and national well-being.

The LCCSA has swung into action. This issue of the Advocate not only carries news of the campaign, it also brings you Andrew Keenan's personal take on where the profession now stands and a contribution on PCT from the Law Society. In addition,  there is an interview with a Commander from the Met Police (also under financial pressure at present),  not to mention  reflections on the tendering  process from our members' favourite columnist, Bruce Reid.

The association is already receiving financial contributions and messages of support.  Please join the campaign, come to the meeting on 22 May and, above all, respond to the consultation.

Make your voice heard: your business, your career - and the well-being of the country you live in - is at stake.

Click here to read the latest issue now!

View the back issues: -

1. March 2013 - Advocate Issue 74
2. January 2013 - Advocate Issue 73
3. November 2012 - Advocate Issue 72
4. September 2012 - Advocate Issue 71
5. July 2012 - Advocate Issue 70
6. May 2012 - Advocate Issue 69
7. March 2012 - Advocate Issue 68
8. January 2012 - Advocate Issue 67
9. November 2011 - Advocate Issue 66
10. September 2011 - Advocate Issue 65
11. July 2011 - Advocate Issue 64
12. May 2011 - Advocate Issue 63
13. March 2011 - Advocate Issue 62
14. December 2010 - Advocate Issue 61
15. November 2010 - Advocate Issue 60
16. September 2010 - Advocate Issue 59
17. September 2010 - Advocate Issue 58
18. May 2010 - Advocate Issue 57
19. March 2010 - Advocate Issue 56
20. January 2010 - Advocate Issue 55
21. November 2009 - Advocate Issue 54
22. September 2009 - Advocate Issue 53
23. July 2009 - Advocate Issue 52
24. May 2009 - Advocate Issue 51
25. March 2009 - Advocate Issue 50
26. January 2009 - Advocate Issue 49
27. November 2008 - Advocate Issue 48
28. September 2008 - Advocate Issue 47
29. July 2008 - Advocate Issue 46
30. May 2008 - Advocate Issue 45
31. February 2008 - Advocate Issue 44
32. December 2007 - Advocate Issue 43
33. September 2007 - Advocate Issue 42
34. June 2007 - Advocate Issue 41
35. March 2007 - Advocate Issue 40
36. December 2006 - Advocate Issue 39
37. August 2006 - Advocate Issue 38
38. April 2006 - Advocate Issue 37
39. January 2006 - Advocate Issue 36
40. October 2005 - Advocate Issue 35
41. July 2005 - Advocate Issue 34
42. April 2005 - Advocate Issue 33
43. January 2005 - Advocate Issue 32
44. October 2004 - Advocate Issue 31
45. April 2004 - Advocate Issue 29
46. January 2004 - Advocate Issue 28