The Client Cost Management System (CCMS) has been broken since late last week.
Law Society president Simon Davis said the breakdown is ‘causing significant issues for civil legal aid practitioners trying to submit client applications and bills.
‘Civil legal aid solicitors have been working tirelessly since the beginning of lockdown to ensure everyone can access justice. These issues with the CCMS must be addressed as a matter of urgency.’
Davis said the breakdown cast doubt on recent LAA proposals to bring costs assessment in-house where costs are more than £2,500―currently, costs above that amount are assessed by the courts.
‘Given these issues, we have serious concerns about the LAA’s timetable for moving court assessed bills in-house on a mandatory basis and believe a longer and more realistic run in time should be put in place.’
The LAA this week set out contingency arrangements on its website for practitioners affected by the CCMS breakdown.
An LAA spokesperson said: ‘We are working hard to deal with this issue and our priority is to make sure firms can continue to make legal aid applications and get their payments processed.
‘We have put in place contingency measures to do so and apologise for any disruption in the meantime.’
