SIX OF THE BEST
Swain and Co solicitors are celebrating the fact that all six members of its Prison Law Team who applied have met the strict new Legal Aid Supervisor Standards for supervising prison lawyers. These new and tough requirements were brought in to ensure that prison law work is only undertaken by teams of lawyers headed up by out and out prison law specialists with an established track record of work in prison law, including advocacy knowledge and skills.
Graeme Swain of Swain and Co said, “The heading “Six of the Best” really sums things up as far as Swain and Co is concerned. We offer specialist supervision of quality lawyers operating Nationwide.
From 14 July 2010 firms will only be able to take on new work if they have a specialist prison law contract with at least one specialist supervisor who meets the new standards. We have what we see as “Six of the Best” with great teams working alongside them.
With the new prison law supervisor standards come major changes to legal aid designed to save money. The changes mean fixed fees and much more of the work solicitors do being done by letter and telephone calls. This is because under the new rules legal aid will no longer pay travel time for visits and this restriction will only be lifted in very limited circumstances.
Lucy Gaskin of Swain and Co, Havant (Portsmouth) said, “I would not want prisoners to think that face to face visits will not take place. We realise how valuable these meetings can be, particularly in crucial issues such as parole. We are committed to arranging visits when the need arises.
“We will look at dealing with matters by telephone or video conferencing when possible and we find that in most cases this can work very effectively. Our commitment to our clients will not change but all prison lawyers will need to work within the new regime.”
The new rules limit the ability of solicitors to pay for the cost of experts and barristers. Solicitors will need to obtain the authority of the Legal Services Commission (LSC) for expenses over £500. This means that in almost all cases permission will need to be obtained before reports can be obtained from experts such as psychologists and psychiatrists.
Helen Thompson of Swain and Co’s London office said, “We will make crystal clear why we think this evidence is required and how crucial it is to our clients’ progression or wellbeing. We are hopeful that permission will be given without difficulty but we do anticipate pressure on the hourly rates charged by experts and this may cause problems.”
The new rules limit the ability to pay for advice from barristers. In most cases a fixed fee is payable and there can not be a fee paid on top to a barrister.
Swain and Co will still obtain the advice of barristers either within the fixed fee system or under Legal Aid Certificates. Helen Thompson also said, “ We appreciate the need to obtain urgent advice in cases such as judicial review and compensation claims. We will be able to support legal aid applications with short advices from Counsel where necessary. This is likely to speed things up, particularly as legal aid applications come under increasing scrutiny as a result of financial cutbacks at the LSC.”
Under the new prison law regime, treatment cases are largely taken out of the scope of legal aid. From 14 July, solicitors must obtain permission before taking on cases where a prisoner complains about their treatment in the prison system. Prisoners are where possible expected to use the complaints procedure and if necessary to take matters up to the stage of the Ombudsman.
Kate Riley of Swain and Co’s Liverpool team said, “Our approach will be to discuss cases with our clients and we will not hesitate to apply for authority to pursue treatment cases where complex or serious issues arise. The rules very clearly allow for advice and assistance where clients have literacy problems or mental health problems. When we talk about “treatment cases” we are not talking about medical treatment. We are talking about the way prisoners are treated within the prison system. Particular care will need to be taken when looking at cases involving issues such as bullying, discrimination and so on.”
The LSC has indicated that a review will be undertaken in relation to the number of treatment cases paid for by legal aid and that if substantial savings are not made law firms will be given a set number of cases they can do.
According to Graeme Swain, “The heading “Six of the Best” is relevant to recognition that six of its team meet the tough new prison law supervisor standards. Six of the best will also be thought of by older readers as referring to a caning by the headmaster. Yes, legal aid is taking something of a caning at the moment but thanks to campaigning efforts of dedicated specialist prison lawyers, the new legal aid rules still allow funding for representation at crucial hearings such as parole, recall and disciplinary matters.
Advice and assistance is also still available and covers progression, transfer, recall and preparation for parole and disciplinary hearings. As legal aid lawyers we remain committed to providing quality advice and representation and we think that with care and commitment we can continue to provide a quality service to prisoners. There will be a greater emphasis on issues impacting significantly on prisoners.
Contact:
Swain & Co Swain & Co
3-5 South Street Bulloch House
Portsmouth 10 Rumford Place
Havant PO9 1BR Liverpool L3 9DG
02392 483322 0151 255 2286
Swain & Co Swain & Co
The DC Centre Oakwood Court
Speedwell Street 62A The Avenue
London SE8 4AT Southampton SO17 1SX
020 8692 9100 02380 63111