As has been widely reported, in light of Justice Secretary Dominic Raab’s refusal to implement the urgent recommendations of the government-commissioned Independent Review of Criminal Legal Aid, criminal barristers have voted in record numbers in favour of an unprecedented indefinite walkout. Barristers defending in legally aided criminal cases will no longer be attending Crown Courts,…
Read moreGuest blogpost: Why we should accept the deal
I am pleased to host this guest post from a junior member of the criminal Bar, who argues why we should vote to accept the deal arising out of the Criminal Bar Association’s negotiations with the government. I’m a junior criminal barrister. I’m not a member of the CBA Executive, nor associated with them. This post was…
Read moreGUEST POST: An open letter to the Chair of the Criminal Bar Association
An open letter to the Chair of the Criminal Bar Association in relation to legal aid rates under the Advocates’ Graduated Fee Scheme (AGFS), signed by 193 criminal barristers. Dear Chris, We write to you and the CBA executive as junior Criminal barristers of 0-12 years’ call, in the wake of the government’s consultation…
Read moreA few thoughts on the “£23m extra” for legal aid
Just a few thoughts about this story on the proposed “£23m increase” in legal aid criminal defence fees, which has been making some headlines. The Ministry of Justice has loudly publicised the agreement struck with the Criminal Bar Association over legal aid rates paid to criminal defence advocates – the story was even towards the…
Read moreGUEST POST: An open letter to The Criminal Bar Association, The South Eastern Circuit and The Bar Council
Below is an open letter published by five junior criminal practitioners in relation to the new Advocates Graduated Fee Scheme (AGFS), which for non-lawyers is the scheme for payment of defence advocates in legally aided criminal cases. 19thNovember 2018 We write in relation to a case which has just collapsed at the Crown…
Read moreGuest post: Some calculations on the new Advocates’ Graduated Fee Scheme
In the latest of a series of guest blogposts looking at the consultation on the proposed new Advocates’ Graduated Fee Scheme, a contributor has offered the following calculations and comments. Dishonesty For dishonesty offences (category 6), we propose increasing the basic fees for trials, guilty pleas, and cracked trials: in band 6.1 by around…
Read moreGuest post by Francis FitzGibbon QC: A response to Michael Turner QC on Advocates’ Graduated Fees
Another former Chair of the Criminal Bar Association, Francis FitzGibbon QC, writes in response to this week’s guest post by Michael Turner QC. This is my reply to Michael Turner QC’s post. He doesn’t seem to have read the first ‘Monday Message’ by Chris Henley QC, the current Chair of the Criminal Bar Association….
Read moreGuest post by Michael Turner QC: Advocates’ Graduated Fees – Where are we now? Up the creek
Michael Turner QC, former Chair of the Criminal Bar Association, writes regarding the new Advocates’ Graduated Fee Scheme. Much of what I would wish to say has been more ably put by Polly Toynbee in this recent article. However, now that the cuts under the new Advocates Graduated Fee Scheme are beginning to bite,…
Read moreNo Returns: A non-lawyer’s guide
Last night, following an intriguing debate in the House of Commons in which members displayed the full gamut of understanding of criminal justice, MPs voted to bring forth the “cost neutral” changes to the way barristers are paid on legal aid, which in some cases amount to cuts of 40%. (Technically the Commons voted against Labour’s…
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