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We are looking for qualified legal professionals to join a review panel considering appeals against certain LAA decisions including those relating to claims for costs.
Successful applicants for the Legal Aid Review Panel will be drawn from solicitors, barristers, Fellows of the Chartered Institute of Legal Executives and Costs Lawyers.
Members serve as Independent Funding Adjudicators (IFAs) and Independent Costs Assessors (ICAs).
You will use your knowledge and expertise to decide appeals against refusal of funding and assessment of costs.
We are also seeking to recruit to our specialist sub panel which considers appeals in high cost and, sometimes, high profile cases.
Panel members carry out most of their work in their office or at home as single adjudicators or assessors.
Work volumes can vary considerably according to the category of law. But we always check availability before allocating according to the areas of expertise members have declared.
You will be paid at the rate of £52 per hour and reasonable expenses will be reimbursed. Panel members are paid through the Judicial Payroll.
If selected to serve, you will be deemed an “office holder” as defined in the relevant revenue law.
This means the LAA will be required to pay basic rate income tax and National Insurance contributions on all payments to panel members.
Panel members are not employees of the LAA. So, you will not be offered a contract of employment.
Members will serve for up to 5 years from early 2021.
There is more information together with an application form on our Review Panel application page on GOV.UK.
This explains the background to the panel, the areas of work which it deals with and the qualifications and skills required to serve on the panel.
Press release
Sentence to be announced later in the month
A London man has pleaded guilty to providing unregulated immigration advice, contrary to Section 91 of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999.
Balvinder Singh Madan,40, of Hillside Road, Southall admitted the offence at Westminster Magistrates Court on Wednesday 7 October
Mr Madan gave immigration advice and services (even though he did not possess the relevant authorisation, training or qualifications, as required by Section 84 of the 1999 Act) between 1 October 2017 and 24 April 2018 at offices in North West London.
Immigration Commissioner John Tuckett said of the conviction, “This offence is serious. Immigrants often find themselves in a vulnerable position; Mr Madan demonstrated what can happen when unqualified individuals hold themselves out as immigration advisers.”
He is due to be sentenced on 28 October.
Published 13 October 2020
Vital medical supplies and other critical goods will continue to be smoothly delivered into the UK whatever the outcome of negotiations with the EU, thanks to multi-million-pound government contracts announced today (13 October 2020).
The government has signed agreements with 4 ferry operators to provide capacity equivalent to over 3,000 HGVs per week, mitigating the risk of disruption as the UK and EU adjust to new border processes at the end of the transition period.
The contracts with Brittany Ferries, DFDS, P&O and Stena, collectively worth £77.6 million, will focus on 9 routes serving 8 ports in areas less likely to experience disruption. These include Felixstowe, Harwich, Hull, Newhaven, Poole, Portsmouth, Teesport and Tilbury.
Transport Secretary Grant Shapps said:
As the transition period comes to an end, we’re putting the necessary measures in place to safeguard the smooth and successful flow of freight.
Securing these contracts ensures that irrespective of the outcome of the negotiations, lifesaving medical supplies and other critical goods can continue to enter the UK from the moment we leave the EU.
The contracts will be in place for up to 6 months after the end of the transition period.
Contracts were awarded through the successful use of the government’s Freight Capacity Framework, which sees a shortlist of experienced freight operators bid for contracts.
The framework, introduced in 2019, has guaranteed a much faster and more efficient procurement process over its 4-year life. Should the contracts not be required, termination costs would reflect a fraction of the full contract amount.
Routes out of Dover and Folkestone across the Short Strait remain a vital corridor for trade between the UK and mainland Europe. These routes have played a key role this year in maintaining the flow of critical goods into the country throughout the COVID-19 crisis. The government continues to work with key local stakeholders and industry to prepare for the end of the transition period.
Press release
Package of consultations launched seeking views on opportunities for the fishing industry
New proposals seek to ensure more catch is landed in the UK.
The government is seeking views on new measures to boost our fishing industry, including how to fairly distribute the new opportunities from leaving the Common Fisheries Policy, and increase the economic benefits from fishing activity for our coastal communities.
The government has today launched a package of consultations which seek views on:
Fisheries Minister Victoria Prentis said:
As we take back control of our fisheries, we are creating new powers to set fairer fishing opportunities for industry and coastal communities through our flagship Fisheries Bill.
We want your help to design a more profitable fishing industry. This includes ensuring that more fish are landed in UK ports, providing a boost to the whole supply chain, from auction houses to fish processors.
The strengthened ‘economic link’ proposals put forward for consultation would see English licenced fishing vessels land 70% of their catch in the UK – up from 50%. The plans would allow vessel owners to use a combination of the two criteria – landings and quota donation – to meet the economic link requirement, recognising the importance of flexibility to support ongoing business practices.
As the UK continues to negotiate with the EU and other coastal States, the UK government is seeking views on how new opportunities secured through these negotiations should be distributed, both across the UK and within England, in order to deliver maximum benefits to our fleets and coastal communities.
The three consultations are open from today for four weeks, until 10 November 2020.
Published 13 October 2020