Boss of legal aid giant to face SDT on false document charges |  News

Boss of legal aid giant to face SDT on false document charges | News

LEGAL
The former director of one of the country's biggest legal aid firms will appear before the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal later this month. A decision to prosecute John Blavo, who headed the national firm Blavo & Co Solicitors Ltd, was published by the Solicitors Regulation Authority today. Blavo is alleged to have provided or facilitated the provision of falsified documents to the Legal Aid Agency relating to client files, medical reports and tribunal decisions. It is further alleged that in 2015 he was involved in producing false documents. The SRA also alleges that Blavo encouraged or gave instructions for the falsification of documents on two client files between 2013 and 2015. The allegations are subject to a hearing before the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal and are as yet unproven. Blavo's hearing is…
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London lawyers refuse legal aid jobs in dispute over fees | Legal aid

LAW
Solicitors in London are turning down new instructions for defendants accused of assaults on emergency workers and harassment offenses in an escalating dispute over legal aid fees.Criminal defense lawyers in the capital are already refusing burglary cases because they say legal aid fees are too low.Hesham Puri, head of the London Criminal Courts Solicitors' Association (LCCSA), said: “The impact will be people being unrepresented and huge delays for victims and witnesses. Of course, we don't want that, but the work is just so badly paid. The entire system is broken from years of underfunding and lawyers have had enough.“If we don't fight for the future of our ailing profession now, in five years' time police stations and magistrates courts will no longer have proper access to justice. Victims, witnesses and…
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