Category: Legal Aid
Birds Solicitors Limited Diversity Data 2015
We are obliged by the SRA to publish our Diversity data. Unfortunately we are unable to publish the results in a formatted table at present or as an attachment. However, we hope that this will be rectified shortly. We can make the information available in…
The current problems with legal aid for criminal cases
This firm is committed to providing its clients with a top quality service whether they are privately instructing us or we are acting under the legal aid scheme. Access to proper legal advice and representation, access to justice should not depend on your income. It…
Letter to the Bar
Dear Member of the Bar Dual Contracts We endorse the open letter drafted by the committees of the London Criminal Courts Solicitors Association and the Criminal Law Solicitors Association to members of the Bar which seeks to explain the effect that the implementation of dual…
Confiscation Order imposed under wrong regime overturned
Today the Court of Appeal quashed a confiscation order made erroneously against our client under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 and replaced it with a much smaller order under the Criminal Justice Act 1988. We did not act at the Crown Court trial where…
Birds Solicitors’ Response to Legal Aid Consultation
Response to the Transforming Legal Aid: Crime Duty Contracts Consultation by Birds Solicitors Limited About the Firm Birds Solicitors is a firm of criminal defence specialists. The firm was established on 2nd October 2000 and deals with crime at all levels from the most mundane…
Further trafficking victory
On the 30th October 2014, the Crown discontinued the proceedings at Stratford Youth Court against TN, who was a child victim of human trafficking. Philippa Southwell of this firm represented TN and made successful representations that the prosecution contravened CPS guidance on human trafficking, was…
Criminal Legal Aid underspend of £33 million – why the cuts?
Time to re-think the legal aid cuts Mr Grayling? In the consultation on legal aid cuts, Mr Grayling stated that he wanted to save £220 million from the criminal legal aid budget (including prison law) by 2018/19 and was starting from a base of the…
Lies, damned lies and statistics
On 13th January 2014, the Ministry of Justice was sent a report produced by Oxford Economics, an independent consultancy which had been jointly commissioned by the Law Society, the London Criminal Courts Solicitors Association, The Criminal Law Solicitors Association, the Legal Aid Practitioners’ Group and…
Legal Aid Consultation – the case for reform?
This is an extract from our response to the Legal Aid Consultation and deals with the alleged Case for Reform It is true that the criminal justice system in England and Wales enjoys an excellent world-wide reputation. What is also true is that the defence…