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I have served as an Expert Witness in a technical discipline for the last 15 years and have faced similar fee cuts to the solicitors who instruct me.

In real terms the Legal Aid hourly rate is now less than 50% of what it was 15 years ago, so we can reasonably expect that there will be a dearth of well qualified Experts in the future because the current fees just don't reward the skill, knowledge, experience and effort that is needed.

If judges and juries cannot rely on highly qualified individuals to serve as Experts then it's pretty obvious what this will do to the Criminal Justice system.