No Family Standard Fees

The Lord Chancellor has announced his abandonment of the proposed standard fee scheme for family litigation as being inappropriate at the present time with the advent of contracting and the possibility of contracting on a competitive basis in the future. The Lord Chancellor has however expressed his concern about the high cost of payments made to barristers for family work, which may be excessive compared to the remuneration received by other professionals paid out of public funds. He is therefore minded to introduce a scheme for family graduated fees for advocates and is considering the level at which the graduated fee rates should be set. He has invited evidence and views by 31 January. He does not propose to increase remuneration rates for solicitors in April.