Automatic Legal Aid, Special Urgency and Interim Claims in Summary Criminal Cases

Key changes include:

• Automatic legal aid being available where an accused person is in custody or has been released on an undertaking, whether they choose to be represented by the duty solicitor or instruct another solicitor of their choice
• New Special Urgency provisions where urgent work is required before a legal aid application has been determined
• New fixed-payment arrangements for Automatic Legal Aid (ALA) and Special Urgency cases
• Rules governing when interim claims may be submitted in summary criminal legal aid cases.

This update provides advance notice of the new claiming arrangements.

The ALA application and account type covers work undertaken at the early stages of proceedings where:

• the accused is in custody; or
• the accused has been released on an undertaking.

ALA covers all work:

• until the conclusion of the first diet at which (s)he tenders a plea of guilty or not guilty;
• where (s)he has tendered a plea of guilty at that diet, until the case is finally disposed of.

Interim claims

Interim claims are not permitted under ALA.

You may only submit an account:

• when the work undertaken under ALA has been completed; and
• where either the proceedings have concluded or your involvement in the case has ended.

Where summary criminal legal aid is subsequently granted and you continue to act, a separate ALA claim should not be submitted. All work will instead be included within the summary criminal legal aid claim.

Long-deferred cases

Where there is:

• a deferred sentence outstanding for six months or more; or
• a warrant outstanding for six months or more,

you should submit your final account.

If additional chargeable work is subsequently required, a supplementary claim may be submitted once that work has concluded.

Fees

A new Schedule 3 table of fees will be introduced under the Criminal Legal Aid (Fixed Payments) (Scotland) Regulations 1999 for Automatic Legal Aid cases.

Change of solicitor

Where there is a change of solicitor during the ALA stage, the fixed payment will be apportioned according to:

• the nature of the plea or pleas tendered; and
• the number of solicitors who acted for the accused.

An ALA account can only be submitted once the final acting solicitor has submitted their claim. Solicitors who are not the final acting solicitor will be notified when they may submit their account.

New Special Urgency provisions will apply for cited cases for work undertaken under regulation 15(A1) of the Criminal Legal Aid (Scotland) Regulations 1996 where urgent work is required before criminal legal aid has been determined, but the application is then either refused or not granted or where that is the only work that you do in the case.

Interim claims

Interim claims are not permitted for special urgent work undertaken under regulation 15(A1) of the Criminal Legal Aid (Scotland) Regulations 1996.

An account may only be submitted once the Special Urgency work has been completed.

Fees

A new Schedule 4 table of fees will be introduced under the Criminal Legal Aid (Fixed Payments) (Scotland) Regulations 1999 for Special Urgency cases.

Interim claims after 90 days

For summary criminal legal aid cases, interim claims will only be permitted where 90 days have elapsed from the date legal aid was granted, which:

• aligns summary criminal legal aid with other legal aid types which operate a 90-day minimum period before interim claims can be submitted.
• ensures interim claims are submitted at a stage of meaningful case progression.
• provides a single, consistent interim-claiming rule across legal aid types.
• allows the online system to correctly calculate any deductions required where an ALA application exists; and
• reduces the need for refunds and adjustments where there has been a transfer of solicitor shortly after the case begins.

Reducing early interim claims should also lessen administrative work for both solicitors and SLAB.

By making an interim claim you will be accepting a requirement to lodge a final account upon completion of the case, conclusion of your involvement, or otherwise as we reasonably require.

If you require clarification or support with submitting a claim, please contact summaryfixed.accounts@slab.org.uk.