LAG Legal Aid Conference report
18/06/2009
This year marks the 60th anniversary of the founding of the legal aid system in 1949. 'Legal aid at 60: Bridging the justice gap' was a national conference presented by LAG to commemorate this landmark which discussed the government's plans for reshaping legal aid. Garden Court North Chambers sponsored the conference.
Expert speakers included the legal aid minister Lord Bach, Steve Hynes (director of LAG), Sir Geoffrey Bindman and Roger Smith (director of JUSTICE). Other key speakers included Dominic Grieve QC MP, shadow secretary of state for justice, who put his thoughts on best value tendering to the conference. Des Hudson, chief executive of the Law Society, also debated the planned roll-out of best value tendering (BVT).
> July 2009 - Report back on "Bridging the justice gap" conference (Legal Action)
> Copies of conference speeches can be downloaded from the LAG website
Quick links
> 19/6/09 GCN barristers urge Straw to ditch plans for BVT
> 8/6/09 GCN sponsors LAG conference on Legal Aid
Media coverage
> 19/6/09 - Legal Aid at 60 - review of conference (Legal Week)
> 18/6/09 - Tories will halt roll out of best value tendering, says Grieve (Law Society Gazette)
> 16/6/09 - Voluntary sector calls for urgent action on Legal Aid (Solicitors Journal)
