BOY - Critic

In law, what plea so tainted and corrupt
But being season’d with a gracious voice
Obscures the show of evil?
– The Merchant of Venice III.II
At any time of the week, Courtroom One in the Manukau District
Court is a busy place; in the half-hour or so before lunch, it gets pretty
hectic. Lawyers rattle in and out of the double glass doors as their cases
require carrying mugs of coffee and piles of files. Clients - along with
their cousins, friends, daughters and mothers – sit in the public gallery
glancing every so often at the Rainbow’s End Rollercoaster outside.
Defendants are called up from their seats or from the cells if remanded
in custody, walking with a particular inimitable rhythm to each of their
strides. Some attempt to say something, others just stand their silently
waiting to be asked. At about ten to one, a man is led through the
doors. His head rests back on his shoulders. He looks bored or, at least,
a bit tired. The police prosecutor alleges sexual assault. The man is
remanded in custody until Friday because his assigned duty solicitor is
unable to lodge an opposed bail application for lack of information and
legal aid approval. This, the presiding Judge Josephine Bouchier points
out, impinges on the legal rights awarded to him in the New Zealand Bill
of Rights. The Legal Services Agency needs to assign him a lawyer now,
but this is unlikely. “Unless a tsunami arrives to rid us of these ridiculous
new rules, we’re stuck”, she laments to those in the court.
What lies beneath?
At the heart of Judge Bouchier’s frustration lies a system in transition.
Tasked with providing legal assistance to those who cannot
afford it, the Legal Services Agency was established in 2000 but the
system’s history in New Zealand goes back to the 1912. Since July 2010,
the operational strategy of the Legal Services Agency has undergone
major structural change. So far, the changes have affected criminal
law as it comprises the majority of Legal Aid grants and applications. In
2009/10, for instance, criminal Legal Aid grants (assigned to providers)
accounted for 61,164 of the 87,885 cases funded. Other funded areas
include family, mental health, civil, refugee and Maori land cases.
In recent years, the entire organisation has been buoyed by controversy
and administrative issues. In 2005, the Labour Minister of Justice,
Phil Goff undertook to look at the LSA and its role in the New Zealand
legal landscape. What resulted was the Legal Services Amendment Act
2006. The major feature of this, which stemmed from the first review of
eligibility criteria for legal aid in almost 25 years, was that it expanded
the proportion of the population eligible for the service by around
40%, from 700,000 to 1.3 million people. With this increased accommodation
came the inevitable cost increases to the point where total Legal
Aid spending has increased by 108% from $97.06 million in 1999/00
to $202.1 million in 2010. Be this as it may, the administrative budget
has expanded by 314% in the same period, while the average cost per
criminal case has “only” increased by 101% from $669 to $1343.
Critic 01 25
Key Features
of the
Legal Services Bill
– Loss of choice of legal representation in Category
One and Two offences
– A new quality assurance framework wherein Legal
Aid lawyers will have to demonstrate competency
to a selection committee.
– Expanding the PDS to Wellington, Christchurch
and Hamilton. The service to provide a high quality
criminal legal service through the use of salaried
staff rather than contracted lawyers.
– Improvement in duty lawyer scheme – introduction
of responsibility for opposed bail applications to
streamline the process
– Replacing the Legal Aid Review Panel with a Legal
Aid Tribunal to increase transparency in decision
making.
– Functions of LSA brought unto the auspices of the
Ministry of Justice, an independent statutory officer
will grant Legal Aid.
Features Legal Aid