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05 July 2007 / Andrew Keogh
Issue: 7280 / Categories: Features
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Crime brief

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LEGAL AID REFORM >>
ADVOCATES QUALITY ASSURANCE >>
ACCEPTANCE OF PLEA >>
LATEST CRIMINAL CASES >>

Carter reforms

The Legal Services Commission (LSC) has published further proposals in relation to legal aid reform, this time covering police station and duty work. The LSC has abandoned its initial proposal to increase police station boundary areas, recognising that without an increase in volume suppliers would find it hard to make a profit. Police station fixed fees will be implemented from October 2007, based on existing duty solicitor boundary areas, and the rates will apply to both duty and own client work. There will be an upper limit for claims, with an hourly rate payable for attendance beyond the breakout ceiling. No additional allowance will be made for travel and waiting—although disbursements will be claimable. Telephone advice will not be claimable as all initial advice will be given by the Criminal Defence Service (CDS) Direct.

There is a further consultation on duty        solicitor slot allocation. Of particular interest is the LSC’s wish to explore whether the firms thatmade business

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NEWS
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NLJ this week: Tightening the screws on JCT terminations
The Supreme Court has delivered a decisive ruling on termination under the JCT Design & Build form. Writing in NLJ this week, Andrew Singer KC and Jonathan Ward, of Kings Chambers, analyse Providence Building Services v Hexagon Housing Association [2026] UKSC 1, which restores the first-instance decision and curbs contractors’ termination rights for repeated late payment
NLJ this week: Old rules, fresh warnings in employment law
Secondments, disciplinary procedures and appeal chaos all feature in a quartet of recent rulings. Writing in NLJ this week, Ian Smith, barrister and emeritus professor of employment law at UEA, examines how established principles are being tested in modern disputes
NLJ this week: The rise of the ‘ChatGPT client’ rattles the profession
The AI revolution is no longer a distant murmur—it’s at the client’s desk. Writing in NLJ this week, Peter Ambrose, CEO of The Partnership and Legalito, warns that the ‘AI chickens’ have ‘come home to roost’, transforming not just legal practice but the lawyer–client relationship itself
NLJ this week: Surrogacy children caught in succession gap
A High Court ruling involving the Longleat estate has exposed the fault line between modern family building and historic trust drafting. Writing in NLJ this week, Charlotte Coyle, director and family law expert at Freeths, examines Cator v Thynn [2026] EWHC 209 (Ch), where trustees sought approval to modernise trusts that retain pre-1970 definitions of ‘child’, ‘grandchild’ and ‘issue’
NLJ this week: Online safety law at a crossroads
Fresh proposals to criminalise ‘nudification’ apps, prioritise cyberflashing and non-consensual intimate images, and even ban under-16s from social media have reignited debate over whether the Online Safety Act 2023 (OSA 2023) is fit for purpose. Writing in NLJ this week, Alexander Brown, head of technology, media and telecommunications, and Alexandra Webster, managing associate, Simmons & Simmons, caution against reactive law-making that could undermine the Act’s ‘risk-based and outcomes-focused’ design
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