The title of the Herald’s recent ‘Beyond Breaking Point: Scotland’s Legal Aid Crisis’ series reflects the reality of legally-aided lawyering in Scotland. The concerns expressed in those articles over the bureaucracy of the legal aid system, the inadequate pay rates and legal aid deserts will be familiar to those working in the sector. One problematic…
We responded to the Scottish Government’s consultation on a Human Rights Bill for Scotland. We expressed support for the core promise of the Human Rights Bill to incorporate key economic, social, cultural and environmental rights, which could have a transformative impact on the realisation of rights for our communities. However, we expressed disappointment at the…
We responded to the Proposed Freedom of Information Reform (Scotland) Bill, by Katy Clark MSP. This consultation invited views on proposals to update and reform freedom of information legislation in Scotland. We expressed support for greater use of freedom of information (FOI) as a tool to increase transparency, but raised concerns about how some of…
We responded to the Scottish Civil Justice Council consultation on Mode of Attendance at Court Hearings. We shared our experience of legal practice during the Covid-19 pandemic and the impact of remote hearing arrangements for our service users, highlighting specific cases in which the remote hearing rules had disproportionately disadvantaged people without access to technology…
We responded to the Scottish Government’s consultation on Legal Aid Reform. We explained why the current judicare system of legal aid does not work effectively for areas served by law centres and urgently called for more targeted approach with additional flexibility to respond to emerging needs. We also argued for legal aid to be recognised…
