Brennan Center Legal Services Updates

Cyrus Dugger

Brennan Center Legal Services Updates

1. Restructuring of Legal Aid System in United Kingdom Proposed in 2006 Continues to Spark Controversy Between Legal Aid Lawyers and Government Officials
In October 2006, the United Kingdom’s Department for Constitutional Affairs (DCA) and Legal Services Commission (LSC) issued a report, Legal Aid Reform: The Way Ahead, outlining a strategy for the UK to restructure its provision of legal aid for low-income people in civil and criminal cases. The report’s central argument is that the UK should move from its current judicare system in which private attorneys are paid by the hour for their services, to a market-based system in which provider organizations would receive a fixed sum. The government believes that this change will remove inefficient lawyers from the legal aid system, thereby reducing the cost of providing legal assistance to low-income people. The Law Society – the professional association for solicitors – opposes the proposed changes, arguing that they could lead to as many as 800 legal aid firms going out of business, which could drastically reduce access to justice for low-income people. Additionally, Citizens Advice, which provides free legal advice throughout the UK, argues that the proposed reforms do not account for the complexities and time-consuming nature of the cases that legal aid offices often deal with. The proposed plan could lead to legal aid offices taking only the most straight-forward cases, leaving individuals with the most difficult cases without legal representation. To show their opposition to the proposed reforms, hundreds of legal aid lawyers went on strike for two days in the middle of February 2007.

In response to the harsh criticism from the legal aid community, the government announced on March 2, 2007 that all complex family and civil cases will continue to be paid for at an hourly rate, while other cases will begin being paid for under the fixed rate structure. Critics continue to argue, however, that even the updated proposal ultimately does not change the fact that the reforms will likely make legal aid practice uneconomical, forcing legal aid offices to close and leaving many people without adequate access to the courts.

To read the government’s report proposing the reforms, see: http://www.legalservices.gov.uk/civil/docs_for_consultation/openConsultations002.asp. To read an overview of the UK’s legal aid system, see the following paper by Community Legal Services lawyer, Jonathan Stein: http://sticerd.lse.ac.uk/dps/case/cp/CASEpaper48.pdf. For historical background on reforms to the UK legal aid system, see: Richard Abel, English Lawyers Between Market and State, Chapters 7-8 (2003). See also: Improved Legal Aid for Victims of Domestic Violence, Media News Wire, Mar. 2, 2007; Citizens Advice Adds its Voice to Criticism of Govt Legal Aid Reforms, The Lawyer, Jan. 22, 2007; Guy Hinchley, Legal Aid Budget Changes Could See ‘800 Firms God Out of Business’, Birmingham Post, Feb. 23, 2007; Ben Mitchell, Solicitors Strike Over Legal Aid Reforms, LegalWeek.com, Feb. 16, 2007; UK Government: Legal Aid Changes to Benefit Most Vulnerable, M2 Presswire, Jan. 11, 2007; also based on original reporting by Brennan Center staff.

2. The New York Times Calls for Funding Legal Services Programs to Help Individuals Facing Home Mortgage Foreclosures; Jacksonville Area Legal Aid Sees Huge Number of Cases
Across the nation, home mortgage foreclosures are on the rise. This week, the New York Times editorial page argues that something must be done to respond to the fact that more mortgages entered foreclosure in the last quarter of 2006 than in any fourth quarter in the last 37 years (since data was first tracked). The Times cites a report by the Center for American Progress (CAP), titled, From Boom to Bust: Helping Families Prepare for the Rise in Subprime Mortgage Foreclosures. CAP’s suggestions for reform include: i) develop federal grants to expand mortgage assistance and prevent foreclosure, ii) target federal funds to communities with high risk of mass foreclosure, iii) provide low-interest loans to households at risk of foreclosure, and iv) ensure access to civil legal assistance to enable individuals to defend against foreclosure.

In Jacksonville, Florida, advocates witness firsthand the huge increase in foreclosures. In recent months, Jacksonville Area Legal Aid has seen such a dramatic increase in foreclosure cases that it is currently unable to accept more clients, and has turned to the Jacksonville Housing Commission to request an additional annual grant of $250,000. Research has shown that one foreclosure occurs for every 48 households in Jacksonville, while the national average is one for every 92 households. In a national ranking of metropolitan areas with the highest foreclosure rates, Jacksonville ranked 20th. Lynn Drysdale, an attorney with Legal Aid, says, “Foreclosure is a very legal, complicated process, and without legal representation they’re in severe danger of losing their house.” To read From Boom to Bust, see: http://www.americanprogress.org/issues/2007/03/pdf/foreclosure_paper.pdf. David Bauerlein, Foreclosure Cases Swamp Legal Aid; Jacksonville Is Asked to Help People Keep Homes, Florida Times-Union, Mar. 11, 2007; Ryan Duffy, Foreclosures Overwhelm Legal Aid Office, First Coast News (Florida), Feb. 23, 2007; Editorial, Homeowners at Risk, The New York Times, Mar. 15, 2007.

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