Despite assertions by Carolyn Regan, et al, that reforms are necessary 'to ensure the long-term sustainability of the legal aid system', I will be closing my criminal defence firm shortly.


I explained this to a regular client who had just been sentenced to a term of imprisonment and told him about the whole raft of unrealistic fixed fees. With very little formal education behind him, he said: 'But cutting prices will give a cut-price service.' Perhaps I could provide his details to the Legal Services Commission for any forthcoming consultations about legal aid reform.



Peter Ward, Peter Ward & Associates, Coventry