Discover and read the best of Twitter Threads about #thecriminalbar
Most recents (2)
#TheCriminalBar facing oblivion @MaxJLHardy wrote perceptively that the public would get a distorted impression of our justice system because of the #WAGATHA trial. #criminaljustice is in crisis. And @jimrobottom suggested the same for the mass of civil litigation. 1/
The Tabloids don’t want to run this narrative. Clichés work. People, without wealth or financial resilience are far more likely to get dragged into a Criminal Court, a Family Court, or an Employment Tribunal.
Then, they’re not likely to encounter a ‘fat cat lawyer’ but a junior barrister and/or a high street solicitor, from a small to medium size practice. We’re not talking Baroness Shackleton or Lady Ward. 3/
For the whole of my practising career, which began at the time that Tony Blair became PM, lawyers and their fees have been under attack. Legal aid formed about 1/3 of my practice in 1997; I did many disputes concerning residential property interests where legal aid assisted.
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Within a few short years, legal aid was effectively withdrawn for the sort of cases I was involved in. The result is clear - people with few assets and middle incomes now find it impossible to litigate, largely unless insurance policies enable them to do so.
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Other systems to enable litigation have proved difficult - contingency fee arrangements are one example. Today, many lawyers will advise people for free who would not otherwise be able to litigate as a result of not having the funds.
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