Another Fine Mess

Yesterday I took a breather between lever arch files to chat with colleagues about the new fee regime that we will be paid under from next October. Some of the fees are clearly better than now, largely care work. For that I suspect we have the furore arising from the Baby P scandal to thank. [...]

One Last Sip…

I need a drink. Look away if you don’t want to hear me whine with self pity. On 4 August the demise of the SIP (Special Issue Payment), which just about makes the Graduated Fee Scheme worth doing, becomes a reality. The changes have only just been confirmed: in essence some SIPs are abolished altogether, [...]

Lord Bach To The Drawing Board

Lord Bach, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for the Ministry of Justice, yesterday made a written statement to the House in respect of the proposed cuts to family legal aid advocacy fees, in which he said:  Since the formal consultation ended, the Legal Services Commission has had a substantial amount of constructive engagement with stakeholders. They have provided a [...]

FAMILY LEGAL AID PLANS TORN APART IN DAMNING JUSTICE SELECT COMMITTEE REPORT

Ah, it’s just a roller coaster in this job. You never know what to expect – at court, or in your bank account. Don’t you just love it? Today the Justice Select Committee has blown a great big hole in the bow of the LSC proposals to cut our fees (I’d like to say it was [...]

The Final Straw

Justice Secretary Jack Straw has announced the second tranche of reforms in respect of the opening up of the family courts, reports the Times. It is no surprise that the government has announced its plan to relax the law in respect of reporting restrictions after the widespread disappointment voiced by the media when it realised [...]

Family Legal Aid – Update

On Tuesday I attended a second meeting at the House of Lords, hosted by the Parliamentary Justice Committee, this time chaired by Lord Thomas of Gresford. The meeting was convened to consider further the topic: ‘Vulnerable Children at Risk: How Will The Legal Services Commission’s Proposals Help?, which it might be thought was a rather leading [...]

House of Lords Part Deux

Am up in the big stink for a second meeting regarding vulnerable children and legal aid. Will report more when I have more to report…

CAFCASS Chief Exec Subjected to Very Cross Examination

In a slightly maverick move District Judge Carron has enlisted the support of the media in trying to right the injustices caused by the failure of CAFCASS to keep up with demand for their services. The resulting article in today’s Times can be read here. Oh, you can raise an eyebrow at the notion of [...]

Lordy Lordy!

Just on my way back from an interesting day at the House of Lords, where I gave my two penn’orth to a meeting hosted by Lord Thomas of Greshford (Shadow Attorney General & Justice Spokesperson) and co-chaired by Baronesses Butler Sloss and Walmsley (VC All Party Parliamentary Group for Children) to discuss the somewhat rhetorically [...]

Family Legal Aid – A Glimmer of Hope

Spring has sprung, the grass is riz, and I am feeling optimistic. Maybe its just the heady scent of daffodils and the twirting of blackbirds from my ever so soggy garden, but yes, things seem to be looking up. Perhaps I spy the ‘green shoots of recovery’ to steal a trendy pseudo-economics buzzphrase. The LSC has [...]