Fourth pillar of the welfare state – Garden Court Chambers Blog
“On April 1 cuts of £350 million from the legal aid budget of £2.1 billion came into effect.”
Garden Court Chambers Blog, 16th April 2013
Source: www.gclaw.wordpress.com
Category: budgets
MoJ unveils tendering plans for criminal defence – Law Society’s Gazette
“Defendants will lose the right to choose their lawyer and instead be allocated a representative, under government plans to introduce price-competitive tendering (PCT) for criminal defence services.”
Law Society’s Gazette, 9th April 2013
Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk
Law Society president on legal aid change – BBC News
“The government has proposed cutting legal aid for prisoners, newly-arrived immigrants and people with incomes of more £37,500 to reduce the overall bill.”
BBC News, 9th April 2013
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
Making legal aid fairer for taxpayers – Ministry of Justice
“Plans to boost public confidence in the legal aid system and tackle towering bills have today been put out to consultation by Justice Secretary Chris Grayling.”
Ministry of Justice, 9th April 2013
Source: www.justice.gov.uk
Wealthy defendants to be denied legal aid in fresh cuts – The Guardian
“Wealthy criminal defendants with disposable incomes of more than £37,500 a year will no longer automatically be entitled to legal aid under a further round of cuts unveiled by the Ministry of Justice.”
The Guardian, 9th April 2013
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
Student solicitors step into the breach – The Guardian
“Following dramatic cuts to legal aid, universities are seeing increased demand for their free law clinics.”
The Guardian, 8th April 2013
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
Legal aid cuts: why law students are coming to the rescue – The Guardian
“We get the chance to work with real clients, and they get our help for free, says a volunteer.”
The Guardian, 8th April 2013
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
Army law: uniform instructions – Law Society’s Gazette
“Some press reports estimate that up to one in four of the army’s lawyers face being cut. And the overall picture for the army is one of drastically reduced headcount – the Ministry of Defence’s Future Force 2020 plans will see the army cut 20,000 regular soldiers by 2020, with the number of regular soldiers set to fall to 82,000. Last year, during the second completed phase of cuts, four Army Legal Services lieutenant colonels applied for voluntary redundancy.”
Law Society’s Gazette, 8th April 2013
Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk
How to cut the costs of getting divorced – The Guardian
“Legal aid for the 120,000 couples who divorce in a typical year all but disappears in England and Wales this week, except in cases where domestic violence can be proved. While many are predicting a big increase in DIY divorces, costing as little as £37, the changes have also prompted the arrival of a raft of new fixed-fee legal deals that keep lawyers’ bills below £500.”
The Guardian, 6th April 2013
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
No legal aid? How to represent yourself in court – BBC News
“The legal profession expects that changes to the legal aid system in England and Wales will lead to a rise in the number of people who have to represent themselves in court.”
BBC News, 6th April 2013
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
New migrants will have to wait a year for legal aid – The Guardian
“Foreign nationals are to be denied the right to obtain legal aid for civil cases until they have lived in Britain for at least a year, the justice secretary Chris Grayling will announce this week.”
The Guardian, 7th April 2013
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
No QOCS here: A Guide to the CPR Amendments you may have missed – Zenith Chambers
“In all of the furore surrounding LASPO and the very real concerns about funding, it seems that very little attention has been paid to the significant changes to the CPR which will come into force on 1st April 2013. This is not an article about funding, legal aid, CFAs, DBAs, or even QOCS. Instead it is intended to provide an overview and guidance on the amendments being made to the CPR.”
Full story (PDF)
Zenith Chambers, 28th March 2013
Source: www.zenithchambers.co.uk
Jackson: lawyers welcome implementation of long-awaited reforms – The Lawyer
“Disputes lawyers across the market have broadly welcomed the Jackson Reforms, which come into force today, saying they will ease the burden created by disclosure.”
The Lawyer, 1st April 2013
Source: www.thelawyer.com
Legal aid is being ruled out of court – The Guardian
“From the beginning of April 2013 the chances of getting help with legal bills will be slim. The Law Society estimates 650,000 cases will no longer qualify, including 20,000 employment cases and 200,000 in family law.”
The Guardian, 23rd March 2013
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
Family Law Week’s Budget Briefing 2013 – Family Law Week
“Jan Ellis, chartered accountant, of Ellis Foster LLP, a firm which specialises in advising family lawyers on tax-related family law issues, explains the budget changes of most relevance to practitioners.”
Family Law Week, 20th March 2013
Source: www.familylawweek.com
MPs warn of £42.8m data protection shortfall – BBC News
“England’s Information Commissioner’s Office could be facing a £42.8m shortfall
that may have to be paid for by the taxpayer, MPs has warned.”
BBC News, 20th March 2013
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
Barnet council faces high court review of budget cuts – The Guardian
“The ‘easyCouncil’ model of no-frills local services faces a high court challenge today, with locals from the London Borough of Barnet, including the disabled resident Maria Nash who is bringing the action, calling for a £320m privatisation deal to be scrapped.”
The Guardian, 19th March 2013
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
The Cost of Care……The position following the Tower Hamlets decision – Family Law Week
“Jacqui Thomas, barrister of 37 Park Square Chambers, Leeds, considers the implications of the recent Tower Hamlets judgment for the cost of kinship care.”
Family Law Week, 17th March 2013
Source: www.familylawweek.com
Public bodies ‘spending millions to snoop’ – BBC News
“A wide range of public bodies are using private detectives to do their surveillance work, with many using security firms to dodge legal restrictions, a campaign group says.”
BBC News, 17th March 2013
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
