Several criminal legal aid firms missing out on three months’ duty solicitor work due to ‘administrative’ issues have instructed a prominent human rights firm to mount a legal challenge against the Legal Aid Agency.

As the Gazette revealed earlier this month, being left off a three-month duty solicitor rota beginning next month could have devastating consequences for some firms. Now London firm Bindmans, known for its public law challenges, has revealed that it has been instructed by some of the firms who have been left off the rota.

Bindmans said: ‘Once awarded a contract, law firms can apply to be on the relevant duty rota for the area in which their office is based. Bindmans’ clients submitted CRM12s within the prescribed deadline demonstrating their solicitors wanted to join the rotas, but the LAA rejected them because of administrative errors.

'The firms were only made aware of their omission from the rotas when they were published. The errors could have been corrected within the deadline, had the firms been alerted to them. It appears that many firms were alerted and asked to correct errors, but some were not.

‘It is far from clear why the LAA was unwilling to exercise the discretion it undoubtedly has to maximise the number of duty solicitors working on the schemes. As Lord Bellamy recently concluded in his criminal legal aid review, ever declining numbers of solicitors are willing to cover duty slots and in some parts of the country, the system is under extreme strain.’

The Bindmans team is being led by John Halford, head of public law and human rights; Salima Budhani, partner; solicitor Jessie Brennan and trainee Edward Hodgson.

A Legal Aid Agency spokesperson said: ‘We support all duty solicitors with bids to join the rota system, including providing technical IT support and regular updates on their application status. They play a crucial role in the criminal legal aid sector which will benefit from an extra £135 million a year, meaning professionals are better paid for the work they carry out.’

The agency told the Gazette it was the applicants’ responsibility to ensure the correct forms and information are submitted. Organisations that submitted non-compliant forms were notified on 8 August that they would not be added to the October rota, and told why. The agency said organisations unable to join the October rota have been given the opportunity to join the rota beginning in January.