MOVES TO cut the budget for legal aid could endanger the public’s access to justice, Stormont’s Department of Justice has been told.
The Northern Ireland Law Society warned justice minister David Ford there could be no justice equality where access depended on the wealth of the individual.
In a major speech in Belfast last night, Law Society chairman Norville Connolly warned: “Legal aid provides an important safety net for those who cannot afford justice. Justice is not a commodity which any government can ration.”
Addressing the Law Society Council dinner, which was also attended by Mr Ford, Mr Connolly said: “There can be no equal justice where the type of trial you get depends on the amount of money you have.”
Warning against what he called “a two-tier justice system” with one for the haves and another for the have-nots, he added: “Nor can we have a system where there isn’t equality of arms.
“For example where the prosecution is better equipped than the defence, or where a potential private citizen plaintiff without means is dwarfed by the wealth of the opponent.”
The Department of Justice is examining ways of driving down its costs in light of the looming public expenditure cuts, and because its budget was already under pressure from the growing legal aid bill in Northern Ireland which is currently about £90 million (€105 million).
But Mr Connolly warned: “Improvements to access to justice will not be achieved if the primary driving force is the short-term expediency of reduced costs to the legal aid budget.
“In fact, such a narrow policy may lead to increased costs elsewhere in the system.”
“The Law Society reminds government that denial of access to justice creates a vacuum into which others will undoubtedly step,” Mr Connolly said