header-logo header-logo

Home Login E-newsletter About us
13 March 2017 / Steve Hynes
Issue: 7739 / Categories: Opinion , Legal aid focus , Profession
printer mail-detail

Criminal actions

© Copyright LexisNexis 2026. All Rights Reserved.

Will the government learn from past criminal legal aid mistakes, asks Steve Hynes

Michael Gove’s time at the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) was mainly marked by a series of policy u-turns which dismantled the legacy of his predecessor, Chris Grayling, and earned him plaudits from the legal profession. For legal aid, it was the abandonment of two-tier contracts in criminal legal aid which was perhaps the most dramatic of his policy reversals. This was forced on him by a combination of effective campaigning by criminal legal aid lawyers and bad advice from his civil servants. Gove’s successor, Liz Truss, seems to not to have learnt any lessons from this debacle and is heading for another showdown with criminal legal aid lawyers.

Two-tier contracts

Successive legal aid administrators have been attracted to the idea of putting duty work for police and magistrates’ court work out to tender. In March 2009, the then Labour government announced it was going to introduce a system of best value tendering (BVT) for the work. At the time many practitioners

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

Read All
Sponsored by
Osbornes Law—Alex McMahon, Andrew Middlehurst & Harriet McMorrin

Osbornes Law—Alex McMahon, Andrew Middlehurst & Harriet McMorrin

Homegrown hat-trick: Osbornes Law promotes three former trainees to partner

mfg Solicitors—Sarah Bradford

mfg Solicitors—Sarah Bradford

Partner arrival boosts law firm’s growing real estate team

Freeths—David Smith

Freeths—David Smith

Freeths secures major tax hire with appointment of David Smith

NEWS
Read All
NLJ this week: Mazur ruling offers CILEX a fresh start
The Court of Appeal's decision in Mazur v Charles Russell Speechlys LLP has lifted months of uncertainty for Chartered Legal Executives while prompting a rethink of regulation and supervision
NLJ this week: Assisted dying proposal faces next parliamentary test
The assisted dying debate returns to Westminster as Lauren Edwards MP reintroduces legislation that stalled in the House of Lords last session despite clearing the Commons
NLJ this week: New offence rules widen corporate criminal exposure
A little-noticed provision of the Crime and Policing Act 2026 has fundamentally expanded corporate criminal liability
NLJ this week: AI shortcuts leave lawyers facing courtroom fallout
Artificial intelligence is transforming legal practice, but careless reliance on it is creating growing professional risks
NLJ this week: Why cohabitees may be better protected after death
The law offers cohabiting couples surprisingly greater protection after one partner dies than when they separate during life
Copyright © 2026 LexisNexis
back-to-top-scroll