CBA Record

independent charity that raises funds for free legal services in London. MacDonald is active in the work of the LLST and said “We see first-hand the impact the auster- ity measures have had on access to justice for ordinary people who struggle to find legal advice and support they can afford.” MacDonald concentrates his practice in criminal law, and estimated that some 37,000 defendants are now self-repre- sented because of the cuts introduced by the Legal Aid Sentencing and Punishment Offenders Act. In a published message to the Bar Council members, MacDonald said, “We cannot waive a magic wand and wish aus- terity away, but why does justice remain unprotected from further cuts? This fact will be disappointing to thousands of men and women across the country who now have no effective access to justice. Instead they grapple, often in vain, with complex legal problems the outcomes of which will fundamentally change their lives. Politi- cians are not taking justice seriously. Justice is not a benefit or a tax break, it underpins our way of life and protects everything for which we work so hard. Yet this point has not been articulated by party politics today.” More recently, Chairman Mac- Donald issued the following statement: “The two main parties have published their manifestos but there is still no sign of a commitment to restoring access to justice for the hundreds of thousands of individuals and families left excluded by legal aid cuts.” It was no surprise that the U.K’s access to justice issues dominated the meeting and left little time to address all of our agenda items. In the United States, we continue to see some disturbing trends and parallels with the access to justice crisis in the U.K. Public access (regardless of one’s financial means) to an independent justice system is not a privilege, but a fundamental right for all citizens in a democratic society. We must be vigilant in protecting this right while continuing to improve public access to our judicial system.

The Chicago Bar Association www.chicagobar.org OFFICERS President Patricia Brown Holmes Schiff Hardin LLP First Vice President Daniel M. Kotin Tomasik Kotin Kasserman, LLC Second Vice President Hon. Thomas R. Mulroy Circuit Court of Cook County Secretary Jesse H. Ruiz Drinker Biddle & Reath LLP Treasurer Steven M. Elrod Holland & Knight LLP Executive Director Terrence M. Murphy Assistant Executive Director Elizabeth A. McMeen BOARD OF MANAGERS Karina Ayala-Bermejo Ashly I. Boesche Thomas F. Boleky Chasity A. Boyce Hon. Maureen E. Connors Daniel A. Cotter Mary K. Curry

WATCH THE INTERVIEW

For more information about the work of the Bar

Council of England and Wales see my You Tube

interview with Alistair MacDonald on the CBA’s

YouTube Channel.

risters chamber or through another Bar Standards Board approved legal environ- ment and has to be completed within five years. It is akin to an apprenticeship pro- gram and is very competitive. Recent law school graduates who are selected to work in Chambers receive a stipend of approxi- mately $7,000 pounds. Pupils are assigned to a supervisor and may not practice for the first six months. During this period they attend court with their supervisor, do research and complete assigned written work. During the second six months pupils can conduct cases in court and begin to develop a practice. U.K’s Legal Aid Crisis The most serious problem facing the Bar Council and The Law Society of England and Wale involves action by the govern- ment last April, which massively reduced funding for legal aid in the U.K. Alistair MacDonald told us that there is virtually no legal aid remaining for civil and family justice in England. Moreover, he said that recent increases in the court filing fees will create a major access to justice issue for small businesses seeking to pursue simple collection matters or contract grievances in the courts. The new filing fees, accord- ing to MacDonald, are approximately, 10,000 pounds–which is prohibitive–and is already driving small business owners away from the court system. MacDonald said that the Bar Pro Bono Unit (BPBU) involves 3,600 volunteer members with approximately one-third being barristers. The BPBU is funded almost entirely by the profession, and pro- vided services to more than 1,000 people in 2014. Also assisting is the London Legal Support Trust (LLST), which is an

James R. FortCamp Matthew T. Jenkins Natacha D. McClain Eileen M. O’Connor Matthew A. Passen Meredith E. Ritchie David J. Scriven-Young Hon. Amy J. St. Eve John T. Theis Nigel F. Telman Frank G. Tuzzolino Allison L. Wood

8 SEPTEMBER 2015