Lawyers sign up to new pay scale but vow to fight on

Nov 1 2007 by Vicky Anderson, Liverpool Daily Post

MERSEYSIDE’S criminal solicitors last night sent a letter of protest to the Govern-ment, after “reluctantly” signing up to a new pay scale they fear could send some of them out of business.

Lawyers in Liverpool had threatened to refuse to sign a contract binding them to the new Legal Aid rates for criminal work, which they say would slash their incomes by up to 25%.

That would have caused chaos throughout the region’s criminal justice system as any solicitor who refused to sign would have been unable to take on new criminal cases come January.

But last-ditch talks led to a decision yesterday by the majority of solicitors across the region to sign up in line with colleagues across the rest of the country.

Liverpool LS branch mem- bers said they had been left with “no alternative” but to sign up, after the LSC refused to negotiate. Solicitors from around 25 local firms signed a letter of protest to the LSC, and vowed to continue to fight for change.

Under the new system, due to come into force in the new year, criminal lawyers will be paid a fixed hourly fee for work representing defendants on legal aid, no matter what time of day or night the service is required at police stations or courts.

But lawyers warn the loss of the current flat fee will lead to a lack of availability of legal aid as fewer firms take on cases for fear of losing revenue, and that the knock-on effects could lead to redun-dancies, businesses failing, and a clogging up of the court system from police cells to magistrates court.

Chairman of Liverpool Law Society’s criminal law com-mittee said the contract had been signed “with great reluc-tance and under duress”.

John Ballam said: “We had no alternative if we wanted to continue in business. Earlier in the day we had a meeting, and signed a letter of protest and have lodged that with the LSC. We all felt it was better to enter into the contract because there was to be no negotiation with the LSC.

“We are now going to fight within the contract to improve the terms and conditions for everyone – lawyers and clients.

Last night the Legal Services Commission said that the majority of service providers had signed up to the new contracts and there would be a “positive outcome” with no empty duty solicitor slots in the court system.

vickyanderson