*/
The country’s ‘serious problem’ with access to justice will cause fragmentation, the President of the Supreme Court warned in a stinging attack on legal aid policy over the last 30 years.
Lord Neuberger, who retires in the autumn, told the Australian Bar Association’s biennial conference in July that it was ‘fundamentally wrong’ if ordinary citizens and businesses cannot obtain competent legal advice.
He said: ‘Access to justice is a practical, not a hypothetical, requirement. And if it does not exist, society will eventually start to fragment.
‘It is a fragmentation which arises when people lose faith in the legal system: they then lose faith in the rule of law, and that really does undermine society.’
Criticising successive governments, he said: ‘It verges on the hypocritical for governments to bestow rights on citizens while doing very little to ensure that those rights are enforceable.
‘It has faint echoes of the familiar and depressing sight of repressive totalitarian regimes producing wonderful constitutions and then ignoring them.’
Things, he said, had taken a ‘wrong turning’ with the Access to Justice Act 1999 and he doubted the clock could be turned back.
Commenting, Bar Chair Andrew Langdon QC said: ‘There needs to be a complete rethink on the availability and sufficiency of legal aid to prevent a dislocation of the law from the very many who cannot afford its protection.’
The country’s ‘serious problem’ with access to justice will cause fragmentation, the President of the Supreme Court warned in a stinging attack on legal aid policy over the last 30 years.
Lord Neuberger, who retires in the autumn, told the Australian Bar Association’s biennial conference in July that it was ‘fundamentally wrong’ if ordinary citizens and businesses cannot obtain competent legal advice.
He said: ‘Access to justice is a practical, not a hypothetical, requirement. And if it does not exist, society will eventually start to fragment.
‘It is a fragmentation which arises when people lose faith in the legal system: they then lose faith in the rule of law, and that really does undermine society.’
Criticising successive governments, he said: ‘It verges on the hypocritical for governments to bestow rights on citizens while doing very little to ensure that those rights are enforceable.
‘It has faint echoes of the familiar and depressing sight of repressive totalitarian regimes producing wonderful constitutions and then ignoring them.’
Things, he said, had taken a ‘wrong turning’ with the Access to Justice Act 1999 and he doubted the clock could be turned back.
Commenting, Bar Chair Andrew Langdon QC said: ‘There needs to be a complete rethink on the availability and sufficiency of legal aid to prevent a dislocation of the law from the very many who cannot afford its protection.’
Now is the time to tackle inappropriate behaviour at the Bar as well as extend our reach and collaboration with organisations and individuals at home and abroad
A comparison – Dan Monaghan, Head of DWF Chambers, invites two viewpoints
And if not, why not? asks Louise Crush of Westgate Wealth Management
Marie Law, Head of Toxicology at AlphaBiolabs, discusses the many benefits of oral fluid drug testing for child welfare and protection matters
To mark International Women’s Day, Louise Crush of Westgate Wealth Management looks at how financial planning can help bridge the gap
Casey Randall of AlphaBiolabs answers some of the most common questions regarding relationship DNA testing for court
Maria Scotland and Niamh Wilkie report from the Bar Council’s 2024 visit to the United Arab Emirates exploring practice development opportunities for the England and Wales family Bar
Marking Neurodiversity Week 2025, an anonymous barrister shares the revelations and emotions from a mid-career diagnosis with a view to encouraging others to find out more
David Wurtzel analyses the outcome of the 2024 silk competition and how it compares with previous years, revealing some striking trends and home truths for the profession
Save for some high-flyers and those who can become commercial arbitrators, it is generally a question of all or nothing but that does not mean moving from hero to zero, says Andrew Hillier
