Somethin’s gotta give 10 September 2013 By Catherine Baksi As Frank Sinatra might have sung: ‘When an irresistible force such as Chris Grayling, meets an old immovable object like the legal profession, you can bet just as sure as you live, somethin’s gotta give, somethin’s gotta give, somethin’s gotta give.’ In the paradox of what happens when an unstoppable force, such as a justice secretary, who has to make budget cuts meets an immovable object, like criminal lawyers who will not stomach further swingeing cuts, which one will give? Grayling’s announcement last week, that he has ‘listened’ to the profession and changed his mind on the introduction of price-competitive tendering, following his previous change of heart over removing client choice, shows the lord chancellor has given way a little. However, despite the deal hammered out between the Law Society and the ministry that has seen off PCT and the immediate loss of 75% of firms, the profession still has to face huge fee cuts. Earlier in the year, solicitors attending a protest meeting in Friends House, organised by the Criminal Law Solicitors Association, voted not to accept any further fee cuts, and the bar has maintained the same line. The new chairman of the Criminal Bar Association, who met Grayling last week, reported back to his members that Grayling told him he was ‘immovable’ on the issue of fee cuts. Grayling also said he understood that Nigel Lithman QC was similarly unmovable. Physicists will tell you that, in the paradox, the unstoppable force and the immovable object cannot exist at the same time. But the paradox also assumes that both entities are indestructible. The criminal bar must hope that condition applies. Catherine Baksi is a Gazette reporter
Posted on: Wed, 11 Sep 2013 11:43:12 +0000
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