FAQs from LAPG’s COVID-19 Support Service

Download the first set of FAQs for our dedicated support service for legal aid providers dealing with COVID-19

See here for more information

LAA internal guidance on the Homes (Fitness for Human Habitation) Act 2018

The LAA has shared internal guidance on the interplay between legal aid and the Homes (Fitness for Human Habitation) Act 2018, which came into force on 20 March 2019.

See here for the guidance.

LAPG’s Annual Review 2017

We’ve launched our 2017 Annual Review, which highlights our work and achievements across our three work strands:

  1. – Community
  1. – Operational Support
  1. – Influencing

Download a copy here (April 2018 – PDF: 1.1MB)

Research by Dr Marie Burton comparing telephone to face-to-face legal advice

Research Summary

Calling for Justice: comparing telephone and face-to-face advice in social welfare law

Dr Marie Burton

There are significant consequences of replacing face-to-face advice with telephone advice in social welfare law. These consequences can seriously disadvantage many social welfare clients, particularly those who are more vulnerable and those with the most acute legal problems (who are often the same people). While some clients value telephone-only services, for many social welfare clients, face-to-face interaction is likely to be more effective than telephone advice.

Read the full summary of Dr Burton’s findings here.

Dr Burton’s paper has now been published in the Journal of Social Welfare and Family Law:

Marie Burton (2018) Justice on the line? A comparison of telephone and face-to-face advice in social welfare legal aid, Journal of Social Welfare and Family Law, DOI: 10.1080/09649069.2018.1444444

LAPG’s Manifesto for Legal Aid 2017

Government reforms to legal aid in April 2013 were a disaster for those who need to access the justice system to protect or enforce their rights.  Access to advice on family law, housing and homelessness, welfare benefits, employment, debt, judicial review, education, immigration…all decimated by the reforms. Hundreds of thousands of people have been unable to get advice each year as a direct result of the reforms.  Large areas of the country are now ‘advice deserts’ with vey few or maybe even no lawyers able to provide specialist advice.

Our Manifesto for Legal Aid (2nd ed. 2017) sets out a range of measures the government must take to ensure those who cannot afford to pay for advice can access still advice.

Download a copy here (October 2017 – PDF: 0.2MB) and speak to your local MP to help us reverse the cuts and restore legal aid – a fundamental right for all.

The Law Society’s Richard Miller summarises the latest IT issues for legal aid professionals

Richard Miller, Law Society Head of Justice, provides an interesting overview of the potential impact of IT innovation on the delivery of legal services, with a particular focus on services currently delivered under the legal aid scheme.  This speech was presented at the LAPG Annual Conference in October 2017.

Download a copy here (October 2017 – PDF: 0.1MB)

LAA Provides Guidance on Appeals, Enhancements and Hints for CCMS

Rob Damião, LAA Civil Finance Technical Lead, provides useful guidance to improve your experience of using CCMS.

Download here (PDF: 1.0MB)

(Presentation from the Association of Cost Lawyer’s September 2017 Conference)

LAA Releases New Top 10 Tips for Avoiding Problems with Means Assessments

The LAA has released an updated Top 10 Tips documents to ‘reduce the requirement for further information and requests and/or rejects, avoiding delay where possible’.  The tips cover state benefits, housing costs, childcare costs and bank statements.

The full document can be downloaded here.

New LAA Provider Pack for Exceptional Case Funding in Inquests

The LAA has published new guidance for providers wishing to apply for ECF for advocacy and other legal services in Inquests.  Download a copy here (April 2017 – PDF: 0.4MB)

LAPG Response to HPCDS Consultation

We have submitted a response to the Ministry of Justice’s consultation on proposals to, inter alia, consolidate contract areas and introduce price competitive tendering to the Housing Possession Court Duty Scheme tender process.

We have notified the MoJ that we have serious concerns that these proposals could undermine the sustainability of future contracts and the supply of housing providers more generally.

Read our full response here

LAPG Response to AGFS Consultation

We have published our response to the Ministry of Justice consultation on proposed changes to the Advocates Graduated Fee Scheme.

Read our full response here.

CCMS Survey – February 2017

We’ve launched a survey to capture user experiences of CCMS.  Our members are consistently telling us of issues they experience with the system.  We also know that a large number of applications are being processed.  We’d like to hear from anyone who is using the system so that we can analyse what needs to be done to improve CCMS for providers and for clients.

Take the survey here . It’s open until the 3rd of March and we’ll then use the findings to produce a report for interested parties.

The survey will take about 30 minutes if you provide us with detailed feedback about the issues you have experienced.

We’re collecting general feedback about stability, usability, support and time, but also specific examples of problems you may have encountered with applications, amendments and bills/POAs and examples of where the system has taken an incorrect or unexpected action.

LAPG Annual Review 2016

LAPG Annual Review 2016

LAPG Annual Review 2016

We’ve published our first ever Annual Review, which highlights our work over the last 12 months and looks ahead to the future for the organisation and the legal aid lawyers we serve.  Download a copy here.

The Annual Review also sets out our three primary objectives:

(1) Influencing policy and decision-makers to make the legal aid scheme simpler, fairer, more accessible and capable of facilitating access to justice

(2) Enabling legal aid practitioners to provide quality services to their clients by providing operational support

(3) Building a community of legal advice providers and to support that community through training, conferences and events

Feel free to contact us if you have any questions about the Annual Review or would like us to send you a hard copy.

CCMS – Member feedback on the challenges of using the system

LAPG members are still encountering a huge number of issues with CCMS.  From technical problems and design issues, CCMS is proving to be problematic and in some cases causing severe delays and practical issues for practitioners.

Read the full list of feedback here.  Members have provided general feedback, for which the LAA has provided responses where possible, and more specific feedback about making urgent funding applications.

If you want to provide us with your experiences please email office@lapg.co.uk using ‘CCMS Feedback’ as the subject line.

LAPG Manifesto March 2015

Read our manifesto for creating a fairer, more accessible and sustainable legal aid system.

Manifesto

We are currently updating our manifesto and will shortly publish the 2017 version.