Fiction or Fact I

Fiction: Legal Aid Lawyers get paid £300 per hour

So a member of public claimed during a recent BBC 5 Live debate on the proposed cuts

Facts:

Solicitor hourly rates for Criminal work start at £46.90

The standard hourly rate for attending the Police station in the middle of the night is £69.05

Both of these are less than the charging rate of a motor mechanic on Teesside which is about £70.

The very highest Criminal Legal Aid rate, which is not common, is £80

These are largely notional as Criminal Legal Aid Lawyers are, now, almost entirely paid by standard fees.

On Teesside the Police Station fixed fee is £149. Barring exceptional cases this is all you will be paid, including all travel and waiting time, regardless of how long the matter takes and if you have to make more than one visit.

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One comment on “Fiction or Fact I

  • Fiction – £300 per hour

    Fact- Legal Aid rates for civil matters (non family)were set in April 1996 at £66.00 per hour. These rates have never increased since this date and were subsequently reduced to £59.40 per hour on the 2nd Oct 2011.

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