The legal scene
While covid-19 worsened the existing problem, at the heart of the access to justice issue is funding – or lack thereof. In early 2020 the government proposed to inject an extra £32 to £50 million into criminal legal aid funding, but the Law Society stated that this wouldn’t be enough to alleviate the threat to “the very existence of criminal defence practitioners”. Meanwhile, in late 2021 the criminal legal aid review was published and proposed a minimum increase of 15% in legal aid fees. This was again rejected by the Criminal Bar Association (CBA) who requested a 25% rise instead. Responding to the ongoing disputes over legal aid funding, criminal barristers initiated strike action starting at the end of June 2022 lasting four weeks. Members of the CBA have been increasing their days of striking by an extra day each week, with plans to stage five-day walkouts every other week if no deal is agreed with the government. This strike action will continue to cause further delays to court hearings. As of July 2022, there’s a backlog of 58,653 outstanding cases in crown courts, a 42% rise on pre-pandemic levels, according to data revealed by the Ministry of Justice (MoJ), with fears that the backlog could reach around 70,000 in August 2022. After the first week of strike action, the MoJ revealed that it plans to fast-track legislation that’ll see barristers receive increased legal aid fees at a faster rate. It confirmed that barristers will receive a 15% fee rise from the end of September 2022, while criminal solicitors will also see a 15% fee rise for their work in police stations, magistrates’ and youth courts. However, the CBA continues to call for a 25% increase to make up for years of underfunding. It was also recently announced that the MoJ and the government will work together to provide additional support to those navigating the legal system, including: • an increased £4 million funding to help vulnerable people in civil and family legal disputes;
This chapter examines the key issues facing the UK legal profession that future lawyers should be aware of, as well as headline- grabbing cases and mergers. Lawyers interact with companies, national and local government, institutions and individuals in almost every area of life, so it’s no surprise that wider economic and political issues affecting their clients often have a knock-on effect on their work. Of these, six key issues are currently pressurising the sector and driving profession-wide change in various ways. They can be divided into: • external factors – access to justice and legal aid, tech and innovation, the war in Ukraine, and Brexit; and • internal issues – diversity and inclusion in the profession, and changes to training for solicitors and barristers. While the lasting impacts of covid-19 can be felt across the profession, it’s important to take a step back and consider other key issues that have been affecting the legal sector over the past year. Access to justice and legal aid Access to justice is an ongoing concern following years of financial cuts in the legal aid sector. Over the past couple of years, courts have adapted to hearings taking place remotely, or instead being postponed in light of covid-19. Delays to hearings coupled with court closures means that the already overwhelming backlog of cases has been exacerbated and remains a serious issue. According to the most recent Legal Needs Survey, it’s estimated that 3.6 million people a year in England and Wales “fail to have their legal needs met in resolving a dispute”. In addition, two-thirds of the UK population don’t know how to access legal aid and there are 14 million people living in poverty who are unable to afford it, according to The Access to Justice Foundation.
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