Bar Council

Legal Aid Fees Dispute: “It’s a farce.”

Pete Baker on June 14, 2011, 5:08 pm | Readers 391

More on the ongoing legal aid fees dispute. UTV reports that just 18 out of 500 law firms in Northern Ireland have said they are willing to work under the disputed new pay rates. A Department of Justice spokesman said: “Copies of the list of firms willing to undertake criminal legal aid work is available to all defendants seeking legal representation from court offices. “Copies of the list have also been provided to the Prison Service for clients on remand without …

Legal Aid Fees Dispute: “necessary to go outside Northern Ireland to bring in other lawyers”?

Pete Baker on June 6, 2011, 3:03 pm | Readers 122

As the BBC reports, Northern Ireland Justice Minister, Alliance Party leader, David Ford, has detailed the number of cases where solictors have come “off record” to date in the dispute over legal aid fees [134 between 13 April and 27 May]. Although the Minister adds that It is not the court practice to record the reason given by a solicitor for coming off record so it is not possible to state categorically that all of these cases represent the outcome of a …

“The basis of the action is that solictors will not be appearing in the Crown Court…”

Pete Baker on April 15, 2011, 3:36 pm | Readers 47

Earlier this week the BBC reported On Wednesday, defence solicitors signalled they will not be there to represent clients facing charges up to murder when they pass to the crown court. With barristers depending on these lawyers for their instructions, it means any legal representation is highly unlikely unless a solution is reached. And quoted a statement from the Bar Council In a statement, the Bar Council said: “The Bar acknowledges the well founded concerns of solicitors that these rules …