On the 14 July 2017, the Sun Newspaper blasted (in typical Sun-style) the supply of legal aid for an alleged terrorist whilst, at the same time, criticising the failure to provide legal aid to the victims and family members of the Hyde Park bombing. As is often the case, the headlines of the Sun are directed towards cases where legal aid is provided to persons accused of criminal acts. This is, and remains, a fundamental failure to appreciate British values i.e. the fact that everyone is entitled to a fair trial. It is a sad indictment of our world that when legal aid was being taken away from the victims of serious criminal actions (and/or those who might have been otherwise injured), the same tabloids cheered from the sidelines.
Notoriously, it has only been when those same journalists and/or MPs have been before the criminal courts and acquitted has the realisation of unfairness dawned. In other words, it is only when they have been confronted with the fact that they aren’t going to recover any money has it really struck home to them that the situation is inequitable. It is equally so when tragedies such as Grenfell, the child abuse scandal or deliberate acts such as the Hyde Park and Birmingham pub bombings that the victims of these incidents come to the forefront of people’s minds. What the paper really needs to ask itself is: why should the families be expected to fund their claims in the first place? Why, as a society, are we no longer prepared to stand side-by-side with those victims and survivors and say you are entitled to be funded better than those who are accused of these crimes? Legal aid rates have not changed since the 1990s. As such, the notion of the specialist, legal aid lawyer has continued to gather apace. This is because new lawyers are no longer attracted to this area. More importantly, the means assessment threshold (Income and Capital allowance) has also not changed for many years. As such, at a base layer, many people working for minimum wage - and not even full time - are excluded from the provision of legal aid; or they are often expected to pay considerable sums towards it. If a person owns a property, they are almost certainly excluded from legal aid, as there is a cap of £8,000 on capital. This cap applies whether or not that person can liquidate that property (such as a family home) to pay for a lawyer or not. Of particular interest is that in Scotland and Northern Ireland, the governments can apply an increased rate so more people are eligible for legal aid. By contrast, in England, a very small number of people are eligible for legal aid. This is especially so in London, where the cost of living is far higher. As such, those excluded from legal aid are generally the victims; or those that are working simply because the Lord Chancellor has chosen to not to review the means assessment. We already know that the issues within Grenfell were issues which would have previously been raised by housing lawyers long before the tragedy. The new Lord Chancellor mistakenly thought that legal aid was available, which does suggest that legal aid should - and must - be revisited sooner rather than later. The current Inquires are largely because of the failures of the state to ensure that those affected had a proper opportunity to report concerns and to be taken seriously whether through a state-funded lawyer or not. It is high time that there was a state funded Inquiry into the failure of the state to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with those that they have hurt, both directly and indirectly and further failed by not providing legal aid. Authored by Adam Tear
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It has been announced today that Sir Martin Moore-Bick, the recently retired Lord Justice of Appeal who was the Vice-President of the Court of Appeal until December 2016, has been appointed as the Chair of the Grenfell Inquiry. Sir Martin retired from the Court of Appeal in December 2016, is currently an Arbitrator working with 20 Essex Street.
Howe & Co is an experienced firm of solicitors in representing victims and survivors in Public Inquiries. We will be pressing the newly appointed Chair to ensure that victims and survivors are placed at the heart and centre of the Grenfell Inquiry. Marin Howe (senior partner in Howe & Co) said:
The Times today published an article by its chief reporter Sean O’Neill regarding the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse, in which Howe & Co represent 25 % of the victim and survivor core participants.
The Times report states that the Inquiry has not published a single report since its inception 2 years ago and despite the cost of the Inquiry to date. In fact, Howe & Co have been pressing the IICSA for many months to make interim recommendations for changes and improvements to the Civil Justice System, The Criminal injuries Compensation Scheme and in regard of reparations for survivors. As recently as the 8 June, when Howe & co met with the Inquiry’s legal team, Howe & Co raised the need for early recommendations again. We were advised that the solicitor to the Inquiry would be engaged in meetings in the current weeks in regard of making early recommendations and the Inquiry would be publishing an interim report in early 2018. On the 4 and 5 July Howe & Co will be attending a victim and survivor seminar being held by the Inquiry along with a large group of Howe & Co’s core participant clients. Howe & Co’s clients continue to demand that there is open, transparent and a clear process from the Inquiry and that information is provided at the earliest opportunity to allow our clients some of which are illiterate, to properly interact with the process and feel that they are part of the process. We again urge the Inquiry to ensure that the victims and survivors of child sexual abuse are front and centre of the Inquiry. Howe + Co continue to be the leading solicitors representing former members of HM Armed forces and the Gurkha community continuing to fight the historic injustice caused by the failure of the Government to provide for settlement of individuals that have served in the Army. Howe + Co conducted the ground-breaking legal and political campaigning (alongside the famous actress, Joanna Lumley) for retired British Army Gurkha's, seeking the right to settle in the United Kingdom. Howe + Co continue to be concerned that former members of the armed forces who are not British continue to be treated with contempt by the Government. An example of a recent campaign is here. A former solider has lost his employment and been threatened with removal because of a failure of the government to ensure that proper immigration advice was provided at end of service. Sam Cataki a former solider from Fiji has been left in an impossible position. We urge the Government to ensure that all solders leaving service who are not British are provided with free legal advice, not just when they leave but until they become settled British nationals. UK's biggest union says it's time former RBS boss Fred Goodwin faced court over the bank's collapse26/6/2017 The Daily Record reported that Fred Goodwin the disgraced former chairman of RBoS has had calls for him to be criminal prosecuted by the Unite Union. The full article is here - http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/uk-world-news/uks-biggest-union-says-its-10683860
Government have set out a range of measures to support those effected by the Grenfell Fire23/6/2017 The Government have set out a range of measures to support those effected by the Grenfell fire.
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/grenfell-tower-fire-june-2017-support-for-people-affected Those effected have been reminded that they can access legal advice and support under the free Legal Aid scheme in relation to any Inquest. There will also potentially be support provided in respect of the Public Inquiry that is expected into this tragedy. Howe & Co are widely acknowledged as experts in the area of sensitive public Inquiries and Inquests. We stand ready to assist victims and survivors to achieve justice and accountability Howe & Co are committed to providing pro bono (free) initial advice to any persons affected by the Grenfell tragedy On Tuesday 4th and Wednesday 5 July an Inquiry Seminar will be held on Victims and survivors’ experiences: impacts of child sexual abuse, support needs and support services.
The Seminar will hear from a number of individuals, to gather information and views for consideration by the Inquiry on the impact of child sexual abuse on victims, survivors and their families; their support needs; and current support provision. The Seminar will be held in the International Dispute Resolution Centre (IDRC), London and will be live streamed, subject to a five minute delay, on the Inquiry Website. The location will normally be here but this may change on the day. The full agenda is attached and a participant list will be published once confirmed nearer the seminar. David Enright has again appeared in the Gazette as lawyer of the week, this is the fourth time for partners of Howe + Co, and second time for David. The firm are proud of the recognition again of the ground breaking work and the truly selfless commitment to putting our client's first, and fighting for them. The article reflected the hard work of not just David but the whole of Howe + Co in pushing forward and ensuring that the most vulnerable in society are given a voice before the Inquiry. https://www.lawgazette.co.uk/people/appeared-at-catholic-church-abuse-inquiry/5061587.article Our thoughts go out to the families and friends of those that have been caught up in this disaster. As with other serious recent events we have put our staff at disposal of those effect and will offer pro bono advice and or legal aid were this is available.
We remain concerned by the reports that have been published into the causes of this tragic event, and stand ready to assist those that need assistance with any Inquiry and or Inquests that are held. We have a specialist team dealing with Inquiry work and capable of dealing with large civil claims. Contact us here Adult Dependant Children of Ex-Gurkhas – Ground breaking British Court of Appeal Decision Jitendra Rai v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2017] EWCA Civ 320 The Court of Appeal in London, on Friday, 28 April 2017, handed down a ground breaking new judgment on a case brought by the son of a retired British Army Gurkha, Jitendra Rai. The British Court stressed that Gurkhas who have served in the British Army and their families are in a very special position and must be treated with the utmost respect in consideration of their claims. The Court found , “...that there is no requirement of “exceptionality”” for the children of Gurhkas. This removes a huge hurdle to Gurkhas who wish to have their children with them in the UK. The Court highlighted the historical injustice to the pre-1997 retired Gurkhas who were not allowed to settle in the UK until after Howe + Co’s victorious court case in 2008. Their children would have been allowed to live in England, if the parents had been allowed to settle in Britain before 2008. Recognising this historical injustice, the Court of Appeal stated that adult dependant children of Gurkhas only now need to show normal love and affection of a parent and a little more else in order to be granted Entry Clearance visas for the UK. There is no requirement for exceptionality, which is the wrong test that the British visa officers have been applying to Gurkha adult-children cases. The Court gave new important guidance where the Gurkha has come to the UK and already separated from his dependant child who remains in Nepal. The British Home Office had previously relied on such separation to reject applications. The Court of Appeal said the Home Office had to look at the question why there had been family separation. If this was for practical reasons (because the Gurkha wanted to take up settlement and obtain UK medical treatment for example) then such reasons should not be counted against Gurkha’s dependant child. Martin Howe, Senior Partner at Howe +Co, said: “This is a ground breaking judgment from the Court of Appeal which expands upon the previous successes that Howe + Co has had in taking leading cases on the legal rights of Gurkhas, their wives, their children and their adult children to settle in the UK. This new case has opened the door wider to adult dependants of Gurkha veterans. Howe & Co are very proud of the hard work we have done to win settlement rights for Gurkhas and their families in the UK. We are honoured to represent thousands of Gurkhas and their families in their initial applications and in appeal cases against the British government in the British courts. We will continue to fight for Gurkhas and their families and stop the Home Office from unfairly blocking their applications. We are ready to help any Gurkha or adult dependant child who wants specialist and detailed legal advice from Britain’s leading Gurkha law firm.” Contacts: Martin Howe, David Howe, Patrick Howe and Prakash Rana on 020 8840 4688 Email: Click Here |
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