A career as a legal aid lawyer could soon be out of reach to those from low income backgrounds, as a result of cuts to the sector.
The Junior Lawyers Division (JLD) of the Law Society has warned that the government’s proposed £350m cuts to legal aid will impact badly on entry to the profession. Camilla Graham Wood, JLD executive chair and legal aid specialist, says trainees will struggle to make a career in legal aid unless theyare propped up financially by their families.
Either the grant scheme should be brought back or an alternative found,” she says.
Omar Khan, a trainee solicitor at TV Edwards who offers mentoring to students hoping to go into legal aid, says: “Aspiring legal aid lawyers have already been hit so hard by the loss of LSC training contract grants that the recruitment of trainees is virtually non-existent.
“Coupled with the uncertainty caused by the government proposals to remove from scope whole areas of legal aid provision, those from low income backgrounds who are willing to forego the riches of the City or other sectors such as banking, but equally cannot afford to risk indefinite periods of unemployment, will be forced to give up on the idea of pursuing a career in legal aid.”
