Shropshire Star

Justice system 'crumbling', claims Shrewsbury lawyer

Empty courtrooms, delayed cases, a shortage of solicitors and ramshackle phone systems – Stephen Scully paints a bleak picture of the justice system in 2019.

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Stephen Scully

"We are having cases being delayed until next year, defendants deciding they can't wait for a duty solicitor and representing themselves, we are increasing the risks of miscarriages of justice," says Mr Scully, a criminal lawyer who works as a duty solicitor in the West Midlands.

Last week, Midland Circuit Judge Anthony Lowe spoke of a justice system 'breaking at every point' as he was forced to postpone a trial at Shrewsbury Crown Court until February next year due to a shortage of judges.

“It’s not fair on defendants," he said, as he adjourned what should have been a simple assault trial.

"Defendants are innocent until proven guilty. In every trial there are witnesses, they also have their lives put on hold.

“It’s not a situation that our criminal justice system can be proud of."

Judge Lowe's comments came the day after the new duty solicitor's call-centre was reported to have gone into 'meltdown'. Solicitors accessing the new, outsourced Defence Solicitor Contact Centre reported hold times of 30 minutes, staff who could not operate the bookings systems, and lawyers being called out in error after suspects had been released.

David Greene, vice-president of the Law Society of England and Wales, said the call centre: "appears to have undergone a complete system meltdown" on Thursday last week. The system was plunged into chaos after it switched providers, from Capita to HGS UK at the end of week-long transition period.

Mr Scully, who is based in Shrewsbury, echoes Judge Lowe's comments about the state of the justice system.

"At the moment there are quite a lot of delays to the system," he says.

"The police cuts have been well-publicised, but as a result that's putting a knock-on effect throughout the system.

"When you get to court at the moment, the number of court sittings has been reduced.

"This means that people who are both defendants and witnesses, and their families, are waiting for trials for up to six months.

"This also means there is a backlog as if you get a more serious case come in, it will be given priority because of custody time limits."

Mr Scully, a solicitor for 18 years, adds that such delays do not help the prosecution, either.

"I think it's the same for both sides," he says.

"If a case comes to court several months after the event, it is bound to be more difficult for witnesses to recall exactly what happened."

Mr Scully says years of cuts to funding in the legal system have also resulted in a shortage of criminal law solicitors.

"In some areas there are no criminal solicitors under the age of 35, and in others there are none under 50, and if there are no solicitors coming through, that is going to create problems in years to come."

Law Society president Simon Davis has written to Chief Secretary to the Treasury Rishi Sunak, ahead of Wednesday's fast-track spending review announced by the Government last week.

Mr Davis says the Government has announced extra spending on policing, prisons and the Crown Prosecution Service, and must now find urgent funds for the rest of the justice system.

"The letter highlights that the criminal justice system as a whole," says Mr Davis.

His letter calls for an immediate increase in legal aid fees to reflect inflation, and a review of the long-term viability of the criminal legal aid system.

He also says the threshold for legal-aid means testing should be restored to its real-terms 2010 level.

“If you want justice you have to invest – decades of cuts to this fundamental part of our country’s infrastructure mean the whole system is crumbling,” he says.

“Every organisation has its list of asks of the new Tory leader – but few things damage the country’s health more than the undermining of our justice system.”

He says years of real-terms pay cuts have led to a shortage of solicitors and independent experts. A lack of funding has also resulted in court closures, barriers to accessing legal aid, and crucial evidence not being disclosed in court until the last minute.

"These are all features of the chronic underinvestment in justice," he says.

“The future integrity of our justice system depends on the whole system working effectively – a poorly functioning criminal justice system will undoubtedly impact on the UK’s international reputation."

Mr Scully says while Shrewsbury's Crown Court has benefited from recent investment, other court buildings have not fared so well.

"There have been court closures, and some of the courts are in a state of disrepair."

He says his real worry, though, is that people will be denied justice because they cannot get a solicitor.

"You will get people having to represent themselves, and they might plead guilty when there is insufficient evidence," he says.

"We might see miscarriages of justice."

One of Boris Johnson's first announcements as Prime Minister was that he would be funding another 20,000 police officers, but Mr Scully believes even that could have a down side.

"If there are more police officers, there are going to be more people being arrested," he says.

"That means there are going to be more people needing expert representation.

"If there's nobody to do that, then there will be more problems."