Lockdown Lawyers is an anthology of how the COVID-19 crisis has hit legal aid lawyers, edited by Emma Trevett, paralegal at Irwin Mitchell, and Jon Whitfield QC, Doughty Street. It includes more than 50 contributions from solicitors, barristers, advisors and some of their family members.
The poems cover crime, mental health, remote working, the near collapse of the justice system and the lockdown. Published by Legal Action Group, it can be order on the LAG website, www.lag.org.uk.
Trevett said: ‘Lockdown Lawyers has seen legal aid lawyers from all over the country come together to create something positive and remarkable during these unprecedented times.
‘Legal aid lawyers work tirelessly to help vulnerable clients. We have survived numerous cuts over the decades. The challenges we face alongside our clients during the pandemic are evident throughout this collection.’
Whitfield said: ‘How has the publicly funded legal system survived this pandemic at all, given it has endured decades of cuts matched only by huge increases in expense and workload?
‘As I pondered on this and read the contributions, I realised the answer is simple. It is the lawyers that work themselves to a standstill to keep a broken system going. It is typical of legal aid lawyers that despite the endless worry of practice, multiplied by the pandemic they still find time to support each other, smile, be creative and say “we are still here!”’
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