Justice secretary Alex Chalk has said he wants legal aid work to be seen as attractive and called for a ‘reset’ on how the sector is perceived.

The lord chancellor told MPs on the justice select committee that he wanted publicly-funded work to be coveted by young people entering the legal profession, after years of it being derided in the media.

He did not make any fresh funding commitments and did not suggest the government would cave in to the Law Society in its fight to have criminal legal aid fees increased by the minimum 15% as recommended by the Bellamy review.

Chalk, making his first appearance before the committee since taking office in April, was effusive in his praise for legal aid lawyers and the work they do, stressing that the pipeline of people in this group needed to increase.

‘We want to show not just that legal aid barristers are respected and admired and do phenomenal work but that it is possible to make a good and decent living as well,’ he said.

‘This is not just about pay but about conditions as well. I want the condition of our [court] estate to be so as to ensure pride in the profession so people know they are joining a profession and not something that will give [them] pause for thought.’

Alex Chalk

Chalk: Publicly-funded work has to be seen as more attractive for law students

Source: Parliamentlive.tv

Chalk said that when he started doing criminal legal aid work in 2001 there was an atmosphere of ‘contempt and hostility’ towards the sector.

‘It was like "you are these fat cats and effectively robbing off the public" and it was just a complete nonsense,’ he said.

‘I know what it was like to work until the middle of the night and then go down to Snaresbrook Crown Court to do a mention hearing in a really serious matter for £46.50 plus VAT and it was demeaning. I want to really have a total reset. Legal aid barristers and solicitors work phenomenally hard and do an incredibly important job.’

Chalk pointed out that the sector received a £23m boost in 2018 and the CPS a further £30m a year later. The government is putting in a further £144m, but there remains division with the profession over the Bellamy review, and the Law Society’s ongoing threat of legal action.

The justice secretary said he would meet with the Society this week but did not appear to be willing to accede to its demands. Instead he pointed out that the government has already made an offer to increase spending to a sustainable level for future years.

‘Those things are being put in in good faith and I hope respectfully it doesn’t need to proceed to litigation,’ added Chalk.

Asked about the civil legal aid review, Chalk said the Ministry of Justice was building evidence to bid for funding in the Treasury’s next spending review. He reiterated that the option of choosing legal aid work should be promoted and properly remunerated.

‘This has got to be a dignified, decent, rewarding, stimulating career. We need to be able to say to young people in law schools where they have all these people from the chancery bar or tax bar saying come and join us [that] family work or civil work or housing is fascinating, stimulating, important work.’

 

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