MARITAL BREAKDOWN: £10m annual legal aid saving


The Legal Services Commission (LSC) should do more to encourage mediation in family cases and prevent 'avaricious lawyers' from cashing in by keeping quiet about the alternatives to court, MPs have claimed.



The LSC spends around £300 million a year on legal aid for family breakdown, and on average a referral to court costs around £930 more than a mediated case. The National Audit Office recently estimated that increased mediation would save £10 million a year.



The House of Commons public accounts committee said fee rates had acted as a financial disincentive. Chairman Edward Leigh MP said: 'It is important to avoid courtroom confrontations as far as possible - even if some avaricious lawyers are more than happy to cash in by keeping quiet about the mediation alternative.'



The committee said LSC proposals, including a requirement that clients be screened for their suitability for mediation before being given public funding, would help address the issues.



The MPs also recommended that the LSC set a target for the number of cases it expects to be resolved by mediation - and make sure that solicitors take that target seriously.



Jane McCulloch, chairwoman of family lawyers' group Resolution, said: 'What is good for one [family], isn't necessarily appropriate for another. What is important is that families are given the options and guided towards the process best suited to their individual circumstances.'



Robin ap Cynan, chairman of the Law Society's ADR committee, said: 'Some solicitors are referring effectively, but others are not taking the Law Society's family law protocol, which obliges them to discuss ADR options with clients, as seriously as they should.'



The LSC could not comment before formally responding to Parliament.



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Catherine Baksi