Post by jman on Aug 5, 2011 10:25:40 GMT 1
Article on DIY litigation and the legal aid cuts-Guardian
"Legal aid cuts will bring more DIY cases into courts – which will grind to a haltCuts on this scale demand co-ordinated response in law education, guidance and resources, or the system won't work
Jon Robins guardian.co.uk, Friday 5 August 2011 09.22 BST
Early intervention guidance give by the CAB at the Royal Courts of Justice is crucial for helping would-be litigants. Photograph: Graham Turner for the Guardian
A couple of years ago I spent a memorable day at the Royal Courts of Justice's Citizens' Advice Bureau. I met Kamal, a 42-year old former civil servant, who told me of his "traumatic" experience in the courts and how he "lost six or seven years of my life trying to seek justice. When you're in this country you're led to believe that there is this thing 'justice'. That it's not a banana republic, but when you stuck in the system you soon realise that's not true".
His was a convoluted story beginning with what he claimed was a sustained period of bullying during his time as an administrator in the civil service starting in 2001. Kamal won his unfair dismissal case in 2004 but lost claims for racial discrimination and personal injury. He was awarded £13,000 but walked away with less than £1,000. The tribunal ruled that there was a high probability he would have been dismissed lawfully if the employer had adopted a fair procedure.
I met Kamal on one of his regular visits to the CAB. He told me he was on antidepressants and blamed the pressure of the litigation on a recently collapsed marriage: "the stress means you can't give your family the time they deserve". He was seeking advice over a separate personal action as a result of a back injury that he believed was caused by being forced repeatedly to pick up heavy files as part of the campaign of harassment. He had also put in a claim for psychological damages. The action had just been dismissed in the central London county court. Kamal faced a costs order of £25,000 nonetheless; he was applying for permission to appeal (£250). He had no representation in court, except the unfair discrimination case (from the then Commission for Racial Equality) and the court's CAB service.
The legal aid cuts will mean that increasingly litigants-in-person like Kamal will end up in our courts. The fate of unrepresented litigants has never been properly recognised by legal policymakers. "Key point" number one in a new literature review on the subject by the Ministry of Justice conceded that there were "still a number of gaps in our understanding of this issue". ................"
Rest at link below :
www.guardian.co.uk/law/2011/aug/05/legal-aid-cuts-advice-law-courts
"Legal aid cuts will bring more DIY cases into courts – which will grind to a haltCuts on this scale demand co-ordinated response in law education, guidance and resources, or the system won't work
Jon Robins guardian.co.uk, Friday 5 August 2011 09.22 BST
Early intervention guidance give by the CAB at the Royal Courts of Justice is crucial for helping would-be litigants. Photograph: Graham Turner for the Guardian
A couple of years ago I spent a memorable day at the Royal Courts of Justice's Citizens' Advice Bureau. I met Kamal, a 42-year old former civil servant, who told me of his "traumatic" experience in the courts and how he "lost six or seven years of my life trying to seek justice. When you're in this country you're led to believe that there is this thing 'justice'. That it's not a banana republic, but when you stuck in the system you soon realise that's not true".
His was a convoluted story beginning with what he claimed was a sustained period of bullying during his time as an administrator in the civil service starting in 2001. Kamal won his unfair dismissal case in 2004 but lost claims for racial discrimination and personal injury. He was awarded £13,000 but walked away with less than £1,000. The tribunal ruled that there was a high probability he would have been dismissed lawfully if the employer had adopted a fair procedure.
I met Kamal on one of his regular visits to the CAB. He told me he was on antidepressants and blamed the pressure of the litigation on a recently collapsed marriage: "the stress means you can't give your family the time they deserve". He was seeking advice over a separate personal action as a result of a back injury that he believed was caused by being forced repeatedly to pick up heavy files as part of the campaign of harassment. He had also put in a claim for psychological damages. The action had just been dismissed in the central London county court. Kamal faced a costs order of £25,000 nonetheless; he was applying for permission to appeal (£250). He had no representation in court, except the unfair discrimination case (from the then Commission for Racial Equality) and the court's CAB service.
The legal aid cuts will mean that increasingly litigants-in-person like Kamal will end up in our courts. The fate of unrepresented litigants has never been properly recognised by legal policymakers. "Key point" number one in a new literature review on the subject by the Ministry of Justice conceded that there were "still a number of gaps in our understanding of this issue". ................"
Rest at link below :
www.guardian.co.uk/law/2011/aug/05/legal-aid-cuts-advice-law-courts