Legalaidhandbook.com
This site supports and supplements the LAG legal aid handbook, flagging important changes and updates and helping busy practitioners stay one step ahead. The book is kept up to date between editions alongside regular news, updates and case reports and a comprehensive resources page.

Legal aid scope changes from 15 May 2020

Fri, 24 Apr 2020 16:37:14 +0000

From 15 May 2020, the existing Civil Legal Aid Procedure Regulations 2012 will be amended to enable more people to receive advice, representation and mediation funded under legal aid. Domestic abuse The supporting documents acceptable as evidence of domestic abuse … Continue reading

Law Society responds to LAA domestic violence changes

Fri, 17 Apr 2020 13:20:46 +0000

Last week, The Law Society criticised the government’s new guidance on domestic violence injunctions during the COVID-19 crisis, echoing the complaints made on this website on 6 April (post reproduced below). A day later, on 9 April, the government updated … Continue reading

LAPG COVID-19 update, 16 April 2020

Thu, 16 Apr 2020 13:58:20 +0000

LAPG have again kindly given us permission to post the update sent out to their members on 16 April 2020. If you are not currently a member of LAPG, but would like to be, you can download a form from … Continue reading

New LAPG update on COVID-19

Wed, 08 Apr 2020 15:39:33 +0000

LAPG have kindly given us permission to post the update sent out to their members on 7 April 2020. If you are not currently a member of LAPG, but would like to be, you can download a form from their … Continue reading

HMCTS on responding to coronavirus in our courts and tribunals

Wed, 08 Apr 2020 09:58:31 +0000

On the morning of 8 April 2020, Susan Acland-Hood, CEO of HMCTS, posted the information below on the Inside HMCTS blog. Of particular note is the paragraph inviting the submission of questions (relating to the operational running of HMCTS during the coronavirus … Continue reading

COVID-19: fewer courts operating

Tue, 07 Apr 2020 09:00:30 +0000

From Legal Action: In response to the COVID-19 crisis, the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) has been operating a reduced number of courts and tribunals from 30 March. According to the MoJ, a total of 157 court and tribunal buildings remain … Continue reading

Updated LAPG guidance on what the legal aid contract and LAA COVID-19 guidance allows

Mon, 06 Apr 2020 13:32:47 +0000

On 27 March, LAPG, with thanks to consultant Matthew Howgate, published the following updated guidance on Legal Aid Agency (LAA) contract compliance in the wake of the measures introduced by the LAA and the steps that providers are needing to … Continue reading

New guidance on domestic violence injunctions

Mon, 06 Apr 2020 12:10:10 +0000

On 3 April 2020, the government issued the guidance ‘Applying for a domestic violence (Family Law Act) injunction for unrepresented applicants’. These are the steps: Fill in an application form to apply for a Family Law Act injunction. You will also … Continue reading

LASPO review – still much to do

Sun, 03 Mar 2019 20:25:34 +0000

The Ministry of Justice published its analysis of the impact of LASPO in February. Although it acknowledges that the Legal Aid Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012 damaged access to justice in England and Wales, the scale of any … Continue reading

The Law Society Future of Law lecture: the future of justice and the justice system

Tue, 26 Feb 2019 15:44:00 +0000

Carol Storer reports back on the inaugural lecture of The Law Society’s 2019 thought leadership seminars with Lucy Frazer QC MP, Parliamentary under Secretary of State at the Ministry of Justice Christina Blacklaws, President of The Law Society, introduced the … Continue reading