Jock Anderson's Sunday Commentary

Lawyers have been doing a lot of public whining about legal aid rates lately.

As recently as Sunday November 12, National Radio carried a lengthy item bemoaning legal aid “pay rates.”

Various lawyers and others argued for what was effectively a wage claim.

Folk who are familiar with CaseLoad’s previous investigations into legal aid and the rorts lawyers have employed to screw the taxpayer funded system will figure out he is no supporter of increasing the rates.

In another life CaseLoad’s alter ego Jock Anderson led a charge that successfully forced the naming of every lawyer paid from the legal aid purse - and how much they got.

It was no surprise that a number of well-known outraged lawyers squealed like pigs and fought tooth and nail - unsuccessfully - to prevent their six-figure legal aid incomes being made public.

So CaseLoad wasn’t surprised by the “we want more” line taken on Sunday’s radio programme.

It seems defence lawyers want their rates of around $130 an hour to be increased to the same as Crown prosecutors, said to be paid more than $200 an hour.

There is clearly an inequity in the system with which CaseLoad has some sympathy.

So here’s the solution.

Crown prosecutors can take a cut in pay to the same rate as defence lawyers. At the same time the resources of the State can be made available equally to defence lawyers.

All lawyers will be reminded that taking on legal aid is not a means of getting rich.

It is, and always has been, a duty which suitably experienced lawyers are obliged to undertake to put something back into the community by helping those who can’t afford their exorbitant private fees.

It’s a kind of community service – not a means of extorting a fulltime living.

Good lawyers don’t complain about the rates, they simply do the job.

Other workers get pay cuts - why not lawyers?

Feedback on this outrageous suggestion to jockanderson@ihug.co.nz