Strategic Review of the delivery of legal aid, advice and information

BRIEFING NOTE No. 1 - February 2004

Contents

• Introduction
• Policy context for the Strategic Review
• Terms of reference of the Strategic Review
• Process
• Progress so far (end January 2004)
• List of organisations contacted

Introduction
The Review was announced by the Minister for Justice at the joint Scottish Legal Aid Board (SLAB) and Law Society of Scotland conference on 24 October 2003.

The terms of reference for the Strategic Review state that the review will consider the delivery of legal aid, advice and information in Scotland, in the context of Scottish ministers' commitment to modernise legal aid.

The scope of the Strategic Review is therefore considerably wider than a review of legal aid and the Scottish Legal Aid Board alone. Although this will be a major part of the task, other means by which legal advice, information and representation are provided in Scotland also come within the scope of the Review.

Policy context for the Strategic Review

The Strategic Review needs to be set and seen in the context of the wider policy to modernise justice in Scotland. The vision set out by the Minister for Justice is that modernisation needs to result in a justice system that is, in all its facets:

• effective and efficient in handling the ever growing volume of business
  
• accessible and user-friendly for those who have to use the system
  
• fair where it most needs to be fair - fair for the vulnerable in our society, fair for ordinary, honest, hardworking people, fair
  
• for communities trying to fight their way out of deprivation
  
• relevant to Scottish society in the 21st century
  

Above all modernisation needs to inspire public confidence and a sense of ownership in the wider system.

The specific objectives of modernising legal aid and the provision of legal advice and information set out by the Minister are:

• better access to legal information, advice and representation - people need to be able to get legal advice when they need it, wherever they may live and whatever their particular needs might be;
  
• assurance that high quality advice is provided, across the board, from everyone involved in the process
  
• the best possible value for the public money invested
  
• fair remuneration for those that deliver the service
  
• a focus on the needs of ordinary people who need to use the legal system.
  

Terms of reference of the Strategic Review

'To carry out a Strategic Review of the delivery of legal aid, advice and information in Scotland, including the role of the Scottish Legal Aid Board, in the context of Scottish Ministers' commitment to modernise legal aid, streamline criminal justice and pursue an active access to justice agenda for the benefit of the citizen, and taking into account the report of the inquiry on legal aid of the Justice 1 Committee.'

The Review will focus on:

• the purposes and objectives of legal aid, advice and information in the context of the modernising justice agenda, and the roles, responsibilities of and relationships between the various stakeholders
  
• the steps that are necessary to implement the Minister for Justice's policy to modernise legal aid and deliver a national framework for legal advice and assistance, and the role of the Scottish Legal Aid Board within that
  
• the respective responsibilities and working arrangements between the Scottish Executive Justice Department and the Scottish Legal Aid Board, focusing on strategic leadership and governance, and financial and other accountability, as well as links to other relevant parts of the Scottish Executive and the wider public sector
  
• the steps necessary for all parties to promote best value in the delivery of legal aid, with a particular focus on current pressures on criminal legal aid
  
• the scope for streamlining legal aid legislation
  
• the development of the Board's operations, and the resourcing and powers of the Board needed to deliver future priorities in the light of Best Value principles
  

Process

The Review will be carried out by a team from Scottish Executive Justice Department and Scottish Legal Aid Board, headed up by Marieke Dwarshuis and Colin Lancaster. The Review will be advised by a Reference Group with representation from those most immediately involved in the Review (SLAB and SE), as well as having practitioner, independent and expert input.

The Review will make recommendations to Scottish Ministers and SLAB. The review period will run from December 2003 to May 2004, and the team is expected to finalise its report in June.

The Review Team have divided the task into four stages:

• Stage 1 PLANNING - assess the scope of the review and plan work
  
• Stage 2 FACTFINDING - assess current arrangements; explore and identify possible improvements
  
• Stage 3 OPTIONS FOR CHANGE - discuss and develop options for improvement and change
  
• Stage 4 WRITE - report and recommendations
  

In Stage 2 and 3 the Review Team will be seeking the contribution from stakeholders. In Stage 2 the Team will speak with stakeholders on their view of the current situation, the key issues and problems, explore the various roles and responsibilities, and seek initial views on what should be improved or changed. The Review Team will then digest this information, and develop broad options for change which will form the basis for a second round of discussions with stakeholders during Stage 3.

Progress so far (end January 2004)

• Stage 1 has been completed, and the first meeting of the Reference group discussed the Review Team's plans for the Review. As part of Stage 1, a very wide range of organisations were written to, informing them of the Review and encouraging involvement. A full list of the organisations contacted is available.
  
• Stage 2 is now underway, and meetings with a wide range of internal and external stakeholders will be held during February.
  
• The next Reference Group meeting takes place at the end of March.
  

The Scottish Executive and SLAB websites will carry information and updates on the Review from mid February onwards.

Published February 2004

This information is also published on the Scottish Executive's website.