Tag Archive for 'Legal Aid'

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Social Welfare contracts – not over yet

By NL on 17/10/2010. 2 Comments

While Family and Family and Housing roll on under the old contracts, SWL new contracts are due to start on 15 November.

However, there is another judicial review claim by an unsuccessful firm, Davies Gore Lomax of Leeds. The hearing is listed for 27 October.

The claim is apparently on the grounds that:

The point for having 10 upper tribunal appeal cases was irrational (the same argument advanced by CLP in their settled proceedings)

The points for having an approved intermediary for debt at the time of the bid were unfair when “the LSC said in its consultation response last summer that we did not need to have one … Read the full post

Posted in Housing law - All and Various (non-housing). Tags: , , .

Law Soc JR: Some details

By NL on 30/09/2010. 0 Comments

I have some details of the Law Society v Legal Services Commission judicial review judgment. Can’t reveal my source but they were close to the action. [edited 01/10/2010 - some corrections]

The JR was won on the issue of the significance given to panel memberships and the notification of that significance only. The wider argument on the equality duty and a failure to undertake a sufficient impact assessment wasn’t decided upon.

The LSC had raised delay as an issue, arguing that the publication of the criteria was the relevant point. The Court found that the proper date was the release of the results, but if that were wrong, they would … Read the full post

Posted in Various (non-housing). Tags: , .

Law Society v LSC newsflash

By NL on 30/09/2010. 1 Comment

Result out this afternoon. The Law Society won their JR of the Family tender process. No details yet – more as and when. But things are going to be very interesting.

Who bets on current contracts extended till April 2011 while Ken readies his axe?… Read the full post

Posted in Various (non-housing). Tags: , .

On the CLP judicial review…

By NL on 08/09/2010. 1 Comment

People may recall that the Community Law Partnership’s judicial review of the LSC was listed for an adjourned hearing on 8 September. We have had the following statement from CLP which is given as is. We’ve been asked to note that CLP will not be making any further comment. After reading the statement and between the lines, I’m not sure any further comment is needed…

COMMUNITY LAW PARTNERSHIP AWARDED SOCIAL WELFARE CONTRACT

On 21st July the Legal Services Commission (LSC) informed us that we had failed to obtain a Social Welfare Law (SWL) contract to start on 14th October 2010. Since SWL is all we do this would have meant … Read the full post

Posted in Housing law - All and Various (non-housing). Tags: , , .

LSC: goalposts aren’t moved, just very bendy

By NL on 01/09/2010. 7 Comments

Sorry. After a moment when it looked like we might get back to housing law, the LSC has interrupted again. And it is almost as if the LSC reads NL!

Following our post here on the LSC’s statement in version 2 of its FAQ for the verification exercise on ‘not being able to do the number of matter starts bid for’ and which amounted to “Oops, have you overbid? Come here, you silly, give us a hug and we’ll make it alright by dropping your requirements”, the LSC has been fiddling with its FAQs again.

The answer to Question 3.2 in version 6(!) of the FAQ, released today (1 … Read the full post

Posted in Various (non-housing). Tags: , , .

The CLP challenge considered.

By NL on 26/08/2010. 10 Comments

[Edit 27/08/10 An early version of this post said that the JR had been given permission. This was wrong. The hearing was actually adjourned to 8 September without permission having formally been given. Apologies for my error. I've edited the post to correct this.]

[Edit 2. I have been contacted by CLP to ask me to say that CLP will not be commenting while the case is ongoing, as it would not be proper for them to do so. They also ask that people do not contact CLP directly about the case in the meantime.]

So, what actually happened in the hearing of Community Legal Partnership’s application for judicial review? … Read the full post

Posted in Housing law - All and Various (non-housing). Tags: , .

“Irrational” Welfare tender newsflash

By NL on 26/08/2010. 1 Comment

Hot on the heels of the last post comes this news of a Judicial Review permission hearing on an application by friends of the blog, Community Law Partnership, against the LSC.

Choice quotes from Collins J

“I am bound to say this is a dreadful decision and on the face of it the approach [taken by the LSC] is totally irrational”

“How can it be rational to penalise a firm that takes fewer cases to the upper tribunal, when any decent firm will do its best to make sure it doesn’t have to appeal?”

“Those tendering are entitled to take the view that access to justice criteria will be taken … Read the full post

Posted in Housing law - All and Various (non-housing). Tags: , .
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