Love me Tender

Nearly Legal has posted a really important blog post on the LSCs shifting position on the question of matter starts given to firms under the recent tender process. He suggests that the LSCs new position may now put it in breach of its own tender rules and at risk of legal challenge from firms who [...]

Rozenberg on MoJ Cuts

Joshua Rozenberg warns of injudicious cost cutting of courts and legal aid: Many of the economies we can expect will be false ones. Cutting legal aid will simply lead to more litigants in person. Cases will take longer and court costs will rise. Vulnerable children will be at greater risk. There will be more miscarriages [...]

Smorgasbord

I managed to get away from court early today. No stringing things out just to earn an extra bob or two for me. No, common sense and good counsel prevailed and the public purse has been saved a pretty penny and justice done etc etc. But as always there is much to do back in [...]

WHY CARE?

Background to this post appears here. . Alas, this is not the beautifully crafted discussion piece I had wanted to post, but I cannot devote as much time to this as I would like, and so I offer it as your starter for ten in its slightly disjointed and unpolished form… . Firstly, let me [...]

Meltdown Imminent

Couldn’t have put it better myself. This letter from the ALC published in today’s Times is spot on. POSTSCRIPT: More superlatives – this time it’s implosion rather than meltdown (per Wall LJ).

It’s Carnage Out There In The Desert

LAG reports on the slashing of the numbers of legal aid solicitors up and down the country as a result of the tendering process – from 2400 to 1300 in one fell swoop. It’s pretty disastrous. I understand that there are now only approximately 5 firms in the whole of Cornwall able to undertake family [...]

PUBLICATION OF INFORMATION IN CHILDREN MATTERS – CHILDREN SCHOOLS AND FAMILIES ACT 2010

The Children Schools and Families Act 2010 made its way through ‘wash up’ and received Royal Assent on 8 April 2010. Amongst other things (not dealt with here) it makes substantial and controversial changes to the law concerning the publication of material relating to family proceedings, which are summarised below. There will be repeals and [...]

Kenya Project

A colleague is off in Kenya working on a project promoting equality in the law and through legal process in Kenya. It sounds like he is working very hard and also having a life changing time. If you’d like to read about what he’s up to you can see his blog here, or if you [...]

Reporting the Reporter

I have a current bugbear, but don’t get me wrong: I don’t want to add to the mass of negativity surrounding the dread word ‘social worker’. This post really only concerns the cases where the quality of s7 reports prepared by social workers in private proceedings falls far short of the expected standard. Most reports [...]

Family Legal Aid – The Fat Lady Sings

The Government announced its decision in respect of the family legal aid fee reforms on Wednesday this week. As a result of me seeming to have to do ever increasing amounts of work just to bring in the same amount of money I have not been able to look at the announcement in detail or to post anything [...]