The Justice Committee is conducting an Inquiry into the future of legal aid and launched a consultation on 7 September 2020 with the following terms of reference:

• How LASPO has affected access to justice views on the post-implementation review and the criminal legal aid review;

• The role of the Legal Aid Agency;

• Recruitment and retention problems among legal aid professionals;

YLAL has engaged with the Ministry of Justice ('MoJ') Criminal Legal Aid Review ('CLAR') throughout the consultation process and has now responded to the consultation on the Accelerated Areas for criminal legal aid review.

You can read our response below.

On 16 February 2020, YLAL responded to the Solicitors Regulation Authority's Survey about the Solicitors Qualifying Exam ('SQE'). 

SQE will be the new way for people to qualify as solicitors. It will be in place from 2021. 

YLAL has been engaging throughout the SRA's Training for Tomorrow project.  You can view all of YLAL's previous responses about SQE. 

In Autumn 2018 the President of the Family Division invited Mr Justice Keehan (public law) and Mr Justice Cobb (private law), to lead two cross-professional Working Groups, to look at practices and processes in these two areas. On 29 September 2019, YLAL responded to the Interim Reports on public and private law. 

You can read our responses to this consultation below.