Developing our role in the delivery of legal aid policy and reform

Legal aid and wider justice system policy is the responsibility of the Scottish Government, and where legislative change is required, the Scottish Parliament. Where policy or legislative changes are made, we must then identify, develop and deliver any modifications to our procedures needed to implement that change.

We also have an important role in advising on the impacts of both the current system and potential changes on the people that receive, or could receive, our funding and on wider Scottish Government outcomes.

Advise on different legal aid models

Our response to the Scottish Government’s legal aid review consultation in summer 2019 set out a range of different legal aid models that the Scottish Government could adopt to meet the aims set out in the review.

We will continue to advise and assist the Scottish Government with the continued development of their response to the review.

The level of resource this will require is currently unclear – it will depend on the degree of change that is pursued and whether primary legislative change will be necessary for some of the further reaching reforms included in the consultation.

Not all developments in the operation of legal aid or the outcomes it delivers need flow from legislative or Scottish Government policy change.

Review our policies and processes

Our own decisions about how we apply the rules and the processes we put in place can also have a significant impact and have potential to change how the operation of the system contributes to the Scottish Government’s policy objectives for legal aid.

In the coming period we will continue the ongoing process of reviewing our policies and processes: improvements in our governance and decision making will continue to more explicitly align our policy decisions about how we manage the system with the Scottish Government’s objectives.

Developing this awareness of our impact, our responsiveness and our capabilities for strategic change in this way will demonstrate our potential to play a key strategic role as the legal aid system develops in line with Ministers’ decisions.