On average legal aid lawyers work 106 minutes for every 60 minutes they are paid under the system of fixed fees, according to a new survey of legal aid lawyers in which the vast majority of respondents (94%) claimed to work more hours than what they were paid to work. The findings were revealed this week by the Legal Aid Practitioners Group in what its claimed to be first ever comprehensive snapshot of the legal aid sector.<\/p>\n
Some 1,208 legal aid lawyers plus 255 former legal aid practitioners and 376 students responded to the Legal Aid Census conducted between April and June 2021. A majority of legal aid lawyers reported that when paid on an hourly basis (as opposed to fixed fees) the rates were unsustainable and more than eight out of 10 (85%) said that they worked more hours than \u00a0they were remunerated for. On average, practitioners working under hourly rates reported working 90 minutes for every 60 minutes of remuneration. Almost one on three respondents (31%) described the level of remuneration as \u2018unacceptable or insulting\u2019. That said, most legal aid lawyers expressed satisfaction with their choice of career in legal aid: 22% were \u2018very satisfied\u2019 and 41% \u2018satisfied\u2019 with their choice of career (compared to 18% who were unsatisfied).<\/p>\n
The research captures the calamitous impact of the 2013 legal aid cuts under the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act (LASPO). More than six out of 10 of organisations that had ceased to offer legal aid services (61%) explained that this was because it was not profitable or economically viable to undertake the work. In 2013, there were 1,592 firms with criminal legal aid contracts and 1,881 firms with civil legal aid contracts, but these numbers had dropped to 1,104 \u00a0and 1,445 respectively by last year.<\/p>\n
When asked \u2018what would make the system more effective?\u2019, over three quarters of respondents said \u2018more funding\/ investment to allow for fairer fees\/ wages\u2019 would improve the legal aid system.\u00a0\u2018I have previously worked in law centres and believe that everyone should be able to access justice,\u2019 one lawyer said. \u2018I took on the legal aid contract to help those more vulnerable in our community. I knew that I would not have the same salary as solicitors in purely private firms but I did not expect to lose money. I did not expect my workload to be so high, the administration costs and time to be so high and the reward to be so low. If the situation with legal aid does not change then I will have to think about whether I will apply to renew the contract next time.\u2019<\/p>\n
The LAPG have said that the findings of the census \u2018reinforce the dire need for investment in the legal aid system\u2019, which they say, is \u2018effectively being subsidised by practitioners\u2019. They are calling for urgent investment in the sector to ensure those \u2018charged with representing the most vulnerable in society\u2019 have adequate pay and are well supported in their roles.<\/p>\n
\u2018Legal aid practitioners contrasted their initial high hopes and clear motivation\u00a0to pursue a career in legal aid \u2013 such as tackling injustice, supporting local communities, enabling social change and improving access to justice \u2013 with a bleak and dispiriting reality: the legal aid sector is heavily relied upon but insufficiently equipped, mired in bureaucracy and inefficiencies, and beleaguered by persistent efforts to further reduce available resource. Whilst legal aid practitioners expressed feeling high levels of satisfaction with their work and a continued commitment to the factors that motivated them to pursue a career in legal aid in the first place, the findings call into question the extent to which the good will of the profession can be stretched endlessly.\u2019 Far from being the \u2018fat cat\u2019 lawyers depicted in the press, one in five legal aid lawyers indicated a salary level between \u00a330,000 and \u00a339,999 (19%) and more than half (58%) earned less than \u00a349,999. Almost one in 10 practitioners (8%) earned less than \u00a319,999 which included qualified solicitors (18%) and \u2018several\u2019 heads of department. Of those earning \u00a3240,000 or more, almost nine out of 10 (87%) were barristers and only one respondent holding the role of solicitor. The LAPG note that barristers\u2019 rates of pay are subject to a reduction in earnings by way of rent payable to chambers \u2018I work really hard and only just being able to scrape by in London on trainee minimum salary makes me feel immensely undervalued and demoralised,\u2019 one respondent said. Another noted that \u2018[i]f I calculate the hours I put in, to the salary I receive, I\u2019m paid around the minimum wage\u2019.<\/p>\n Approximately one in three respondents identified \u2018excessive auditing\u2019 and the \u2018constant battles with the Legal Aid Agency for payment\u2019 as a reason for their unhappiness with working in legal aid. \u2018I am diligent, committed and run legal aid at a loss. At audit, all the work is nit-picked over and I am viewed with suspicion,\u2019 one respondent said.<\/p>\n \u2018The LAA is without a doubt the most stressful part of the job,\u2019 said another. \u2018On three occasions over the last year I have found myself in tears solely because of unreasonable decisions \/ actions of the [LAA]. In each case, I challenged the LAA\u00a0and got the funding sorted in the end, but the stress and anxiety to get to that point was enormous as you are forced to work at risk or face not getting paid (at already ridiculously low rates) or exposing your client to adverse costs because funding is not in place. It now feels harder to get legal aid than it does to win the actual case\u2019<\/p>\n
LAPG\u00a0<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/justicegap.s3.eu-west-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/01082419\/LAPG-1.png\")
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