How many solicitors’ practices currently undertake legal aid work under the Scottish legal aid scheme and how many undertook such work in e…

Answered Asked by Tavish Scott LD Lodged 3 Sep 2007

The question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many solicitors’ practices currently undertake legal aid work under the Scottish legal aid scheme and how many undertook such work in each of the last five years, broken down into firms offering (a) only civil legal aid work, (b) only criminal legal aid work and (c) both civil and criminal legal aid work.

The answer

Answered by Kenny MacAskill on 14 Sep 2007 · 11 days after it was lodged, on time

The information onthe number of solicitors’ practices who undertake legal aid work is collected centrallyby the Scottish Legal Aid Board.
The following tableprovides information on the number of firms receiving payment from the ScottishLegal Aid Board in each of the financial years shown.
Firms Receiving Payment in Respect of:
| 2002-03
| 2003-04
| 2004-05
| 2005-06
| 2006-07

Civil legal assistance
| 951
| 918
| 876
| 829
| 778

Criminal legal assistance
| 796
| 794
| 757
| 733
| 723

Civil legal assistance only
| 213
| 196
| 191
| 181
| 165

Criminal legal assistance only
| 58
| 72
| 72
| 85
| 110

Both civil and criminal legal assistance
| 738
| 722
| 685
| 648
| 613

Total (any form of legal assistance)
| 1,009
| 990
| 948
| 914
| 888

In the Official Report

No contribution in the Official Report cites S3W-03939 by reference.