News In Focus
9 February 2010
Society to host Access to Justice summit
Leading figures in access to justice policy in Scotland are expected to attend a summit on the subject being held by the Law Society of Scotland later this month.
The aim of the summit, which takes place on Monday 15 February, is to help focus the Society’s future policy work in this field. It also anticipates the Society’s duty to “promote access to justice”, in s 1 of the Legal Services (Scotland) Bill, currently in the Scottish Parliament.
The programme, for a “Chatham House” type event, includes seminar-style sessions on topics including civil courts reform and legal services provision. Members of the Society’s Council and Access to Justice and Civil Justice Committees, will be joined by representatives from organisations such as Shelter, Money Advice Scotland and Scottish Consumer Focus.
Paul Brown, chief executive of the Legal Services Agency, and Professor Donald Nicolson of the University of Strathclyde, will be among the session chairs.
Ian Smart, the Society's President, said: “This meeting will bring together practitioners, key policy-makers and third-sector leaders, to identify outcomes they would like to see. We want to listen to what people would like the Society to be doing in order to promote access to justice effectively and efficiently.”
The Society will report on the outcomes of the event and there will be coverage in the March edition of the Journal.