Trainee Minimum Salary
YLAL submitted this response to Junior Lawyer Division's survey on whether a trainee minimum salary should be reintroduced.
Reports
The future of the legal market. Can paralegals meet market needs?
Based on research from our members, YLAL submitted a response to CILEx's paralegal enquiry earlier this year. Read our response here, and we anticipate the final report from CILEx later this year.
YLAL writes for Solicitor's Journal
YLAL now write a regular feature for Young Lawyer and Solicitor's Journal updating on government reforms to legal aid, and developments in the profession from a junior lawyer's perspective. See our recent articles here:
Provide safe passage for unaccompanied child migrants March 2017
Blind pursuit of policy (damage called by LASPO) January 2017
Ollie writes for Legal Voice
Oliver Carter, co-chair of YLAL has been writing articles for online journal Legal Voice since 2014. His latest article was 'Labour lambasts government over access to justice 'crisis' following legal aid cuts,' November 2016
All his posts can be found here
LAPG conference report
YLAL committee members Deena Blacking and Simao Paxi-Cato report back from the Legal Aid Practitioners Group conference for the online journal Legal Voice:
http://www.legalvoice.org.uk/2014/10/22/lapg-conference-legal-aid-and-su...
Crime legal aid cuts: your view
What is this all about?
The Government has announced a new consultation on cuts to criminal legal aid, specifically its plans to reduce the number of contracts that let firms do “duty solicitor” work. The Government wants to drop the number of contracts from the current figure of around 1,600 contracts to 525.
Legal Aid Update: Training notes
On 11 June we ran a seminar to update members on some of the key changes brought about under the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012 (LASPO) and the more recent changes put forth in the Government consultations, Transforming Legal Aid and Transforming Legal Aid: Next Steps.
We are very grateful to our speakers:
Connor Johnson, Co-Chair of Young Legal Aid Lawyers and a barrister at Garden Court Chambers, who gave an introductory session to provide an overview of the changes.
HoL debate 30 June 2014
On Monday 30 June 2014, after 1430, the second reading of the Criminal Justice and Courts Bill will take place in the House of Lords.
JCHR JR report
On 30 April 2014 the Joint Committee on Human Rights (JCHR) - a cross-party parliamentary committee composed of MPs and peers - published its report on the totality of the Government’s judicial review changes, including those contained within the Civil Legal Aid (Remuneration) (Amendment) (No. 3) Regulations 2014. These are the regulations which brought into effect from 22 April 2014 the new payment regime for judicial review work under legal aid. You can read more about the changes here.
Lords debate JR reforms - 7 May
On Wednesday 7 May the House of Lords will debate a regret motion tabled by Lord Pannick QC “to move that this House regrets that the Civil Legal Aid (Remuneration) (Amendment) (No. 3) Regulations 2014 make the duty of the Lord Chancellor to provide legal aid in judicial review cases dependent on the court granting permission to proceed. (SI 2014/607)”.
You can read more about the Judicial Review payment reforms here.