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Select Committee · Justice Committee

The Future of Legal Aid

Status: Closed Opened: 7 Sep 2020 Closed: 14 Sep 2023 32 recommendations 11 conclusions 1 report

This inquiry is looking at the major challenges facing legal aid clients and providers and how they might be tackled. The legal aid system in England and Wales was fundamentally changed by the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012 (LAPSO). Since then, there have been several legislative changes and post-legislative reviews of … Show more

Clear

Reports

1 report
Title HC No. Published Items Response
3rd Report - The Future of Legal Aid HC 70 27 Jul 2021 43 Responded

Recommendations & Conclusions

4 items
7 Recommendation 3rd Report - The Future of Legal Aid Accepted in Part

There are serious problems with the current fee schemes for criminal legal aid.

There are serious problems with the current fee schemes for criminal legal aid. The fees and rates do not reflect the work required. The schemes should be reformed to ensure that they offer a fair rate for the work required and are subject to regular review. Read more

Government response AI summary
The government injected up to £51m per annum into the criminal legal aid system in September 2020. Additionally, the Criminal Legal Aid Independent Review is considering a mechanism for regular fee review to ensure flexibility and fairness.
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Ministry of Justice
17 Recommendation 3rd Report - The Future of Legal Aid Accepted in Part

We recommend that the Government implement the recommendations of the Taylor Review of Youth Justice:...

We recommend that the Government implement the recommendations of the Taylor Review of Youth Justice: to review the fee structure of cases heard in the youth courts in order to raise their status and improve the quality of legal representation for children and to introduce a presumption that children should … Read more

Government response AI summary
The government states the Criminal Legal Aid Independent Review is considering youth justice fee structures. For the recommendation on presumed legal representation at police stations, the government is considering trialling a system that presumes uptake of advice for young and vulnerable individuals in police custody.
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Ministry of Justice
38 Recommendation 3rd Report - The Future of Legal Aid Accepted in Part

Online legal services should not be seen as a replacement for traditional face-to-face services, especially...

Online legal services should not be seen as a replacement for traditional face-to-face services, especially when such a high proportion of those who qualify for legal aid do not always have reliable access to digital technology. That said, we agree with a number of submissions that have suggested that there … Read more

Government response AI summary
The government has developed an online pilot for housing disrepair advice and signposting as part of its Legal Support Action Plan, accessible via GOV.UK, but does not address supporting legal aid providers to upgrade their digital infrastructure.
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Ministry of Justice
39 Recommendation 3rd Report - The Future of Legal Aid Accepted in Part

We commend the Legal Aid Agency for its work supporting legal aid providers since the...

We commend the Legal Aid Agency for its work supporting legal aid providers since the start of the pandemic. The approach taken by the Agency and its staff shows that it can be flexible and proactive if the circumstances allow. We recommend that the Agency continues with this approach in … Read more

Government response AI summary
The LAA has already made some pandemic-related changes permanent and continues to keep other active contingencies under review. It also commits to maintaining an open dialogue with providers and continuously seeking opportunities to improve processes and systems.
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Ministry of Justice

Correspondence

20 letters
DateDirectionTitle
21 Feb 2023 To cttee Letter from Mike Freer MP, Minister for Courts, Legal Services and Internationa…
21 Feb 2023 From cttee Letter to Mike Freer MP, Minister for Courts, Legal Services and International,…
7 Feb 2023 To cttee Letter from Lubna Shuja, President of the Law Society, dated 30 January 2023, f…
25 Jan 2023 To cttee Letter from Kirsty Brimelow KC, Chair, Criminal Bar Association, dated 9 Januar…
6 Dec 2022 To cttee Letter from Mike Freer MP, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Justice, …
8 Sep 2022 To cttee Letter from Sarah Dines MP, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State, dated 15 Au…
25 May 2022 To cttee Letter from the Bar Council, dated 24 May 2022, regarding income disparities at…
15 Mar 2022 To cttee Letter from the Lord Chancellor, dated 14 March 2022, on the legal aid means te…
16 Nov 2021 From cttee Letter to the Deputy Prime Minister and Lord Chancellor on the response to the …
23 Jul 2021 — Family Law Roundtable Transcript 14 December 2020
24 Feb 2021 To cttee Letter from Alex Chalk MP, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Justice, …
3 Feb 2021 To cttee Letter from Robert Buckland QC MP, Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for J…
27 Jan 2021 To cttee Letter from Alex Chalk MP, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Justice, …
13 Jan 2021 To cttee Letter from Rt Hon Robert Buckland QC MP, Lord Chancellor & Secretary of State …
4 Nov 2020 To cttee Letter from Alex Chalk MP, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Justice, …
23 Sep 2020 To cttee Letter from Alex Chalk MP, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Justice, …
9 Sep 2020 To cttee Letter from Alex Chalk MP, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Justice, …
22 May 2020 To cttee Letter from Alex Chalk MP, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Justice, …
28 Apr 2020 To cttee Letter from Alex Chalk MP, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Justice, …
28 Apr 2020 To cttee Letter from Alex Chalk MP, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Justice, …