The British Law Society announced plans to launch a judicial review over plans the Legal Services Commission introduced in August to change the way family law contracts are tendered. The new regulations will mean a huge change to how the family court system is funded and will have a big effect on the many people who have in the past used legal aid to help fund their legal expenses. The same people will now find it much more of a struggle to get financial help should they need it again.
The Legal Services Commission and other legal practitioners were left shocked at the outcome of the new tender process rules. It has been estimated that around 1100 firms were unable to manage to secure new contracts leaving just 1300 firms to cover the rest of the country. This is a marked contrast with what happened when similar changes occurred in the criminal law sector, very few problems were reported after the changes took effect there.
The LAG understands that the law society has been under pressure from firms which had successfully bid for contracts not to challenge the process but the law society president argued back that they have a public duty to act. The fear is that the changes will have a detrimental effect on those who have formerly relied upon legal aid to cover their fees/
The LAG believes that certain areas of the country some clients will now find themselves forced to travel long distances to find a solicitor. The fact that remains is that a reduction in the number of solicitors providing legal aid certainly risks members of the public not being able to find adequate legal representation. This has the potential to raise problems where cases of domestic abuse and child protection are concerned.
It is only when the results of the appeals are known that the true effect of the minimised provisions will be revealed. The British legal system can only wait to see how these changes affect the current system.
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