Court agrees with David Cameron's brother that his legal aid cuts prevent a trial proceeding

[muriel_volestrangler]

Fraud trial halted due to lawyers' boycott over legal aid cuts

A senior crown court judge has formally halted a complex fraud trial because expert defence barristers are refusing to represent the defendants in protest at 30% cuts in legal aid fees.

The unprecedented decision by Judge Anthony Leonard QC to stay the proceedings against five men in an alleged land bank fraud has thrown into doubt at least eight other financial prosecutions including Libor rate-fixing cases.

The prime minister's brother, Alexander Cameron QC, represented the defendants on a pro-bono basis, arguing that they could not receive a fair trial and that the case should be stopped rather than merely being adjourned.
...
Leonard's ruling will put pressure on the justice secretary, Chris Grayling, who has pushed through deep legal aid cuts in the face of fierce opposition from the legal profession. The Financial Conduct Authority, which brought the prosecution, is considering appealing against the decision.

http://www.theguardian.com/law/2014/may/01/fraud-trial-halted-lawyers-legal-aid-cuts

That'll be a fun family gathering the next time ...

[dipsydoodle]

1. If that was a complex fraud trial involving an alleged land bank fraud

Last edited Fri May 2, 2014, 05:03 AM - Edit history (1)

then I'm not sure what the defendants were doing on legal aid anyway given it was hardly likely to have been a two bob scam.

General details of the background to such scams here http://www.fca.org.uk/consumers/scams/investment-scams/land-banking

Fighting the blight of UK land scams since 2004 http://www.propertyscam.org.uk/

It would seem to me that in this instance a situation has been contrived in order to draw attention to changes in the legal aid budget.

[muriel_volestrangler]

2. Depends if they held on to the money, I suspect

Channel 4 News thought there was a minimum of 1,000 hours preparation needed, let alone the time in court - at barristers' rates, you need to be seriously rich to pay that yourself. People involved in dubious financial deals often lose a lot of money as well as obtain it.