Dedworth
27th August 2012, 17:19
Lawyers are told: Take a bus to court as Government moves to slash £350m from legal aid bill
The Legal Services Commission, which operates the legal aid scheme, is cutting the mileage rate for cars from 45p a mile to 25p
Lawyers claim they were not notified of the changes
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2193681/Legal-Services-Commission-Lawyers-told-bus-court-Government-moves-slash-legal-aid-bill.html#ixzz24lQEEAJi
Nice one :xxgrinning--00xx3: - listen to the whinging from these overpaid self righteous parasites
Charlotte Riley, crown court department manager at Staffordshire law firm Beswicks where 95 per cent of work is legally aided, said: 'We had no notification of these changes.
'The first we knew about it was when claim forms started coming back, saying the LSC would only pay 25 pence per mile.
'Most of the lawyers are out at court every day, so all these claims add up.'
She said: 'The mileage rate has been 45 pence a mile for around 15 years - but now, we are being told we have to justify why we haven’t used public transport.
'Carrying all our confidential files to the bus station and then getting on a bus is not practical.
'I haven’t got anything against public transport but we would end up getting on a bus with clients who would want to discuss cases and, in some cases, it could cost more than paying petrol.
'It also wouldn’t go down very well if we were late for court because of delays on buses. And most of the prisons we visit are in the middle of nowhere.'
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2193681/Legal-Services-Commission-Lawyers-told-bus-court-Government-moves-slash-legal-aid-bill.html#ixzz24lQa7Ggo
The Legal Services Commission, which operates the legal aid scheme, is cutting the mileage rate for cars from 45p a mile to 25p
Lawyers claim they were not notified of the changes
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2193681/Legal-Services-Commission-Lawyers-told-bus-court-Government-moves-slash-legal-aid-bill.html#ixzz24lQEEAJi
Nice one :xxgrinning--00xx3: - listen to the whinging from these overpaid self righteous parasites
Charlotte Riley, crown court department manager at Staffordshire law firm Beswicks where 95 per cent of work is legally aided, said: 'We had no notification of these changes.
'The first we knew about it was when claim forms started coming back, saying the LSC would only pay 25 pence per mile.
'Most of the lawyers are out at court every day, so all these claims add up.'
She said: 'The mileage rate has been 45 pence a mile for around 15 years - but now, we are being told we have to justify why we haven’t used public transport.
'Carrying all our confidential files to the bus station and then getting on a bus is not practical.
'I haven’t got anything against public transport but we would end up getting on a bus with clients who would want to discuss cases and, in some cases, it could cost more than paying petrol.
'It also wouldn’t go down very well if we were late for court because of delays on buses. And most of the prisons we visit are in the middle of nowhere.'
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2193681/Legal-Services-Commission-Lawyers-told-bus-court-Government-moves-slash-legal-aid-bill.html#ixzz24lQa7Ggo