Legal aid dispute hits local court

Legal aid dispute hits local court

26 August 2015

DOWNPATRICK Courthouse is feeling the effects of industrial action being taken by criminal barristers.

A number of cases due to be heard this week when Downpatrick Crown Court resumed after its summer recess had to be adjourned as a consequence.

A Killyleagh man due to arraigned on 12 charges, including child rape and sexual assault, was unable to be heard on Friday, with his case now listed for mid October. He remains in custody.

Hugh Murphy (27), of St Michael’s Park in Ardglass, was also due to face charges of possessing cocaine with intent to supply and possessing cannabis. His case was similarly adjourned.

In all, around 10 local cases were affected at the courthouse on Thursday and Friday.

Legal representatives cited industrial action as reasons for the cases being unable to proceed. This is understood to relate to the proposed cuts in legal aid by Justice Minister David Ford.

Solicitors are not directly involved in the action but may be unable to provide clients with the barristers they require for new cases.

At the end of May solicitors and barristers in Northern Ireland were granted permission to take legal action to try to overturn planned cuts to the legal aid budget.

A judge granted the Law Society and Bar Council leave to seek a judicial review of Justice Minister David Ford’s new rules. The hearing is scheduled to take place in September.

In May barristers who are part of the Criminal Bar Association also withdrew from all new criminal cases requiring legal aid, in protest against the reduced payments.

It described the cuts as “substantial and unjustified” and said they would “inevitably dilute the quality of representation available”.

Mr Ford, who is facing cuts to his departmental budget along with other Northern Ireland Executive ministers, has indicated he will be “robustly defending the legal challenge”.

In a statement yesterday a spokeswoman for lawyers body The Bar of Northern Ireland said: “It remains the case that members of the Criminal Bar association are not accepting instructions under the 2015 amended Crown Court rules. Cases that were issued before the new rules came in to effect are continuing to be heard.”