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20 October 2017 / Sir Geoffrey Bindman KC
Issue: 7766 / Categories: Opinion , Legal aid focus , Profession
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Bach gets it right

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The balance sheet is important but humans & justice come first, says Geoffrey Bindman

The final report of the Bach Commission is an admirable blueprint for the restoration of our justice system. Lord Bach has stressed that the commission was made up of people selected for their expertise rather than any affiliation with the Labour Party (see ‘The right to justice & an agenda for change’, NLJ 6 October 2017, p 7). Lord Bach is a former Labour minister and the report is published by the Fabian Society, but the presence of the former Court of Appeal judge Sir Henry Brooke as vice-chair guarantees (to all who know him) its independence and authority. The report can thus be regarded not as a party political document but as a basis for cross-party consensus. The Government’s hopefully imminent review of the Legal Aid Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012 (LASPO) should follow its recommendations on legal aid.

More than a pillar

The NHS and legal aid are often described as the twin pillars

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MOVERS & SHAKERS

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NEWS
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NLJ this week: No such thing as a ‘Welsh seat’
Talk of a reserved ‘Welsh seat’ on the Supreme Court is misplaced. In NLJ this week, Professor Graham Zellick KC explains that the Constitutional Reform Act treats ‘England and Wales’ as one jurisdiction, with no statutory Welsh slot
NLJ this week: Jury reform risks justice for efficiency’s sake
The government’s plan to curb jury trials has sparked ‘jury furore’. Writing in NLJ this week, David Locke, partner at Hill Dickinson, says the rationale is ‘grossly inadequate’
NLJ this week: Crypto fightback offers ‘new frontier for law’
A year after the $1.5bn Bybit heist, crypto fraud is booming—but so is recovery. Writing in NLJ this week, Neil Holloway, founder and CEO of M2 Recovery, warns that scams hit at least $14bn in 2025, fuelled by ‘pig butchering’ cons and AI deepfakes
NLJ this week: Time to revive the duty to report crime?
After Woodcock confirmed no general duty to warn, debate turns to the criminal law. Writing in NLJ this week, Charles Davey of The Barrister Group urges revival of misprision or a modern equivalent
NLJ this week: When are experts truly ‘necessary’?
Family courts are tightening control of expert evidence. Writing in NLJ this week, Dr Chris Pamplin says there is ‘no automatic right’ to call experts; attendance must be ‘necessary in the interests of justice’ under FPR Pt 25
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