Court backlog grows
Solicitors Journal, the Morning Star and the Gazette Ireland cover our response to the latest criminal court statistics which show Crown court cases outstanding for more than two years have spiked to 4,893 – a 69% increase and the highest recorded number waiting this long since reporting started in 2014.
Law Society President Lubna Shuja said: “The fact that there has been a 69% increase, from September 2021 to September 2022, in Crown court cases that have been waiting for more than two years, is unacceptable. An inefficient system is ultimately a drain on public money.
“Investment is needed across all areas of the criminal justice system to ensure progress is made on reducing the backlogs, so victims and defendants no longer face such long waits for justice.”
Criminal law conflict continues
Criminal legal aid lawyers unionising is still on the cards, after two practitioner groups met with union leaders last week, the Gazette reports.
The piece notes Law Society President Lubna Shuja told the House of Commons Justice Select Committee that it was better for the government to have solicitors feeling militant over legal aid fees than solicitors quietly quitting the sector in large numbers. The Society has warned the government it risks a judicial review challenge if it does not increase legal aid rates for solicitors by the minimum 15% recommended by the criminal legal aid review.
In Scotland, a new deal for legal aid has received a lukewarm reception, reports the BBC.
Conflict of interest in public appointments
Law Society Council member Tony Fisher spoke to BBC News to explain conflict of interest issues in public appointments following news the new BBC chairman helped the then prime minister secure a loan shortly before his appointment.
Also worth a read:
- Spike in firms facing collapse – BBC News
- Missing asylum-seeking children scandal – Guardian
- Rule of law and the UK in the world – Mishcon de Reya