header-logo header-logo

12 February 2010 / Dr Jon Robins
Issue: 7404 / Categories: Opinion , Legal services
printer mail-detail

Bonfire of the quangos

Another review and another nail banged into the coffin of the Legal Services Commission (LSC).

Another review and another nail banged into the coffin of the Legal Services Commission (LSC). This time it is a damaging report from House of Commons’ public accounts committee which last week accused the LSC of “poor oversight” and “uncertainty and duplication” between its role and that of the Ministry of Justice (MoJ). Before Christmas another watchdog, the National Audit Office, blamed the beleaguered body for allowing lawyers to “exploit” legal aid and over-paying them £25m.

This provides the background for Sir Ian Magee’s review of the “delivery” of legal aid presently with ministers. It’s hard to resist the analysis that, if Labour doesn’t bin the LSC first, then should the Tories win the election, it will go straight on the top of their “bonfire of the quangos”.

So how should legal aid lawyers view the passing of an agency that has come to be their bête noire? “Scrapping the LSC” entails a number of possible outcomes.

If you are not a subscriber, subscribe now to read this content
If you are already a subscriber sign in
...or Register for two weeks' free access to subscriber content

MOVERS & SHAKERS

NLJ Career Profile: Daniel Burbeary, Michelman Robinson

NLJ Career Profile: Daniel Burbeary, Michelman Robinson

Daniel Burbeary, office managing partner of Michelman Robinson, discusses launching in London, the power of the law, and what the kitchen can teach us about litigating

Joelson—Jennifer Mansoor

Joelson—Jennifer Mansoor

West End firm strengthens employment and immigration team with partner hire

JMW—Belinda Brooke

JMW—Belinda Brooke

Employment and people solutions offering boosted by partner hire

NEWS

The Court of Appeal has slammed the brakes on claimants trying to swap defendants after limitation has expired. In Adcamp LLP v Office Properties and BDB Pitmans v Lee [2026] EWCA Civ 50, it overturned High Court rulings that had allowed substitutions under s 35(6)(b) of the Limitation Act 1980, reports Sarah Crowther of DAC Beachcroft in this week's NLJ

Cheating in driving tests is surging—and courts are responding firmly. Writing in NLJ this week, Neil Parpworth of De Montfort Law School charts a rise in impersonation and tech-assisted fraud, with 2,844 attempts recorded in a year
As AI-generated ‘deepfake’ images proliferate, the law may already have the tools to respond. In NLJ this week, Jon Belcher of Excello Law argues that such images amount to personal data processing under UK GDPR
In a striking financial remedies ruling, the High Court cut a wife’s award by 40% for coercive and controlling behaviour. Writing in NLJ this week, Chris Bryden and Nicole Wallace of 4 King’s Bench Walk analyse LP v MP [2025] EWFC 473
A €60.9m award to Kylian Mbappé has refocused attention on football’s controversial ‘ethics bonus’ clauses. Writing in NLJ this week, Dr Estelle Ivanova of Valloni Attorneys at Law examines how such provisions sit within French labour law
back-to-top-scroll