SLAB welcomes Scottish Government consultation on legal aid reform

The Scottish Legal Aid Board (SLAB) welcomes the publication of Scottish Government’s consultation on legal aid reform.

As the public body responsible for administering legal aid in Scotland, SLAB has consistently supported reform that protects the strengths of Scotland’s demand-led, uncapped legal aid system while making it simpler, more responsive and better able to meet people’s needs.

The consultation is an important opportunity to build on Scottish Government’s legal aid reform discussion paper, which set out work on simplifying the case by case service delivery model, reforming legal aid fees, and developing a future legal assistance system designed around user needs and evidence of what works.

Bill Moyes, Chair of SLAB, said: “We welcome this consultation as another important step towards a legal aid system that is fit for the future.

“There is much to value about Scotland’s legal aid system, including its wide scope and demand-led funding. But we have also been clear that the current system is complex, difficult to navigate and not the person-centred, modern public service it should and could be.

“Reform must make legal aid easier to access, more sustainable for providers, easier to deliver and better able to respond to the changing legal and social issues people face. That means designing services around people’s needs, using evidence to understand where help is required, and focusing public funding on outcomes that support access to justice.

“SLAB will engage constructively with the consultation and continue working with Scottish Government, the legal profession, advice providers and other partners to help shape practical, deliverable reforms.”

Mr Moyes added: “This is a vital moment to ensure that legal aid continues to play its essential role in upholding rights, supporting access to justice and helping people resolve problems at the earliest appropriate stage.

“The consultation gives everyone with an interest in legal aid the chance to help design a system that works better for the people of Scotland now and for decades to come.”