An online system and new legal aid fees were introduced in June 2020, and the MoJ issued a call for evidence on the new system in November with a view to forming policy on fees for immigration and asylum appeals. The call closed last week.
However, the Immigration Law Practitioners’ Association (ILPA) said its members faced ‘numerous difficulties in navigating the new system’ while working remotely during the pandemic, while shortages of staff at the tribunal, Home Office and law firms added to the teething issues. Consequently ‘it is simply too soon to examine the efficacy of the system’. Moreover, any evaluation would be based on ‘an unrepresentative set of data’. It set out a list of questions for the MoJ to answer.
Also calling for more time, the Bar Council and One Pump Court, in a joint response, highlighted ‘a lack of proper engagement’ on the part of the respondent.
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