Lexis®Library update: Addressing the Westminster Commission on Legal Aid’s inquiry, Bellamy highlighted that criminal legal aid practitioners are battling both a reduction in money and reduction in work, driven by fewer arrests.
He also noted the challenges of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, which has exacerbated the problem and ‘created the worst crisis the courts system has ever seen’.
Bellamy, who is leading the Independent Review on Criminal Legal Aid, will investigate the sustainability of criminal legal aid, looking particularly at efficiency and quality controls, and considering the position of the ‘user’, such as defendants, victims, witnesses and members of the jury. He intends to report the findings of his team to the government before 2022.
Source: 'Very serious situation': review chief highlights criminal legal aid challenges
This content was first published by LNB News / Lexis®Library, a LexisNexis® company, on 26 March 2021 and is published with permission. Further information can be found at: https://www.lexisnexis.co.uk/
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