A devastating momentum

Over a year since the implementation of the legal aid cuts, and there are many signs of the devastation wreaked upon our justice system. But, as the latest government figures make clear, there was never any pre-LASP(O)arian paradise. The rot had set in a while back. The number of non-crime firms in business had “nearly halved” since 2007/08 and in the last 12 months shrunk by almost a quarter, according to the Ministry of Justice’s (MoJ’s) latest figures out last month. The number of acts of assistance under the civil legal aid scheme had collapsed by almost two-thirds over the last four years.

A lifeline for many vulnerable people has been severed. And a career path for idealistic young lawyers who want to help them is over.

At street level

Earlier this month, a new Bar Council study reported the impact on the courts. Eight out of 10 respondents who worked in the family courts, and over six out of 10 in the civil courts reported an increase in delays since