Hundreds of angry legal aid solicitors voted last week for a formal boycott of competitive tendering in crime work, and are threatening to withdraw from negotiations with the Legal Services Commission (LSC) while polling members over strikes.

Some 600 solicitors met in London and voted almost unanimously that the Law Society should advise members not to bid for tendering contracts in London, which are expected to start next year.


The Criminal Law Solicitors Association (CLSA), London Criminal Court Solicitors Association (LCCSA), Legal Aid Practitioners Group (LAPG), Black Solicitors Network and Solicitors Association of Higher Court Advocates, urged Chancery Lane to give them the security of its support.


The motion passed calls on the council to issue a directive at its meeting in May stating: 'Firms should not bid for contracts unless or until such a time as, in the opinion of the council of the Law Society, a scheme is proposed which does not risk reduced access to justice or the quality of advice and representation available to legally aided clients.'


Law Society chief executive Janet Paraskeva, speaking after the meeting, urged the LSC to 'radically rethink' tendering. 'The Law Society Council believes that the current proposals will inevitably reduce access to justice and the quality of advice and representation available to legally aided clients,' she said.


CLSA vice-chairman Ian Kelcey, a council member, argued that the plans would force decent firms out of business and reduce quality of advice. 'In short, this scheme is plain barmy,' he insisted.


CLSA director Rodney Warren, also a member of the council, added: 'The key to this [campaign] is that there is unity across the profession.' He hinted that groups may withdraw from talks over tendering. 'We are prepared to talk about everything except these proposals,' he said, a stance backed by LCCSA chairwoman Angela Campbell.


The groups said the profession had to co-ordinate action, as talks with the LSC suggested that the plan was to roll out tendering across the country and beyond lower magistrates' court work.



LAPG chairman Roy Morgan said firms were also worried about a knock-on effect on civil legal aid, which could see firms close down.


Other worries concerned the impact on ethnic minority firms; CLSA chairwoman Helen Cousins said meetings with the LSC revealed it had done no research on what would happen to such firms.


Solicitors are now asked to inform the CLSA whether, at a local level, they would support forms of industrial action.


The LSC said the general election prevented it from commenting.


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