Law Society takes legal action against the Legal Aid Agency

The Law Society has lodged a judicial review against the Legal Aid Agency (LAA) after claiming that they failed to consult properly around a decision to move legal aid cost assessments in-house.

“Cost assessments are vital in ensuring that when legal aid practitioners send a bill it is carefully scrutinised and they are properly paid for their work,” said Law Society of England and Wales president Simon Davis. “For years, legal aid cost assessments over the value of £2,500 have been conducted by the courts and bills under £2,500 have been assessed by the LAA – a system which has worked well for practitioners and clients alike. Calculating cost assessments can be a complicated process which requires a level of skill and experience, and sufficient time. The LAA’s predecessor – the Legal Services Commission – transferred larger cost assessments to the courts for this reason. In June, the LAA announced they would be moving all cost assessments in-house – which they claimed would allow them to process bills more quickly and help with legal aid firms’ cash flow issues during the Covid-19 pandemic. They also launched a consultation with a limited number of practitioner groups. However, the LAA did not consult on the decision to transfer the cost assessments in-house, just on which changes were needed to transfer the assessments over from the courts.”