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States Greffe: Scrutiny
Senator John Le Fondré Chief Minister
By email
18th November 2021 Dear Chief Minister,
Legal Aid Review Panel Progress of Legal Aid Guidelines
In late July this year, following the adoption by the States Assembly of P.63/2021, the Access to Justice (Jersey) Law 2019 (Appointed Day) Act 202-, your officers provided this Panel with an indicative timeline for the remaining actions required in order for the revised Legal Aid Scheme to come into effect on 1st January 2022.
These steps included the consultation period, which concluded at the end of September 2021 and the consideration of any representations made during that consultation by the Legal Aid Guidelines Advisory Committee.
Subsequent to the above, it was anticipated that you would present the Legal Aid Guidelines to the States Assembly by the end of November.
As that date is now approaching, the Panel would like to know the status of the guidelines and whether they will, in fact, be brought before the Assembly in time for the scheme to come into effect on 1st January 2022.
If this deadline is not going to be met please can you clearly set out the reasons for the delay and the discussions which you have had with the Legal Aid Guidelines Committee in order to ascertain the likely impact on the integrity of the proposed scheme, in particular with members of the legal profession who had been anticipating the launch of a much-needed new scheme from January next year.
The Panel has already requested a briefing on several occasions following the conclusion of the consultation and would once again request that it be provided with a date for a briefing to take place with you as soon as possible, which would provide an update on the progress and timing for the implementation of the Legal Aid Scheme.
The Batonnier, the Judicial Greffier, and the Law Society of Jersey have been copied into this letter so that they are made aware and can provide additional information to the Panel should they wish to.
States Greffe: Scrutiny | Morier House | St Helier | Jersey | JE1 1DD Tel: 01534 441080 | email: scrutiny@gov.je | web: statesassembly.gov.je
We would be grateful for your earliest response which should be no later than Thursday 25th November 2021.
Yours sincerely,
Deputy Steve Ahier
Chair, Legal Aid Review Panel
CC Advocate Simon Young, Batonnier
Adam Clarke, Judicial Greffier
The Law Society of Jersey
States Greffe: Scrutiny | Morier House | St Helier | Jersey | JE1 1DD
Tel: 01534 441080 | email: scrutiny@gov.je Website: statesassembly.gov.je/scrutiny