Clause 72 - Process for making Criminal Procedure Rules
Courts Bill [Lords]
10:45 am
Mr Nick Hawkins (Surrey Heath, Conservative)
Again, I am indebted to the Institute of Legal Executives for briefing me and informing me that such important matters should be included.
The criminal procedure rules will govern the practice and procedure to be followed in the criminal courts. The Bill as drafted simply provides for the criminal procedure rules committee to
''consult such persons as they consider appropriate''.
In April 1998, the Institute of Legal Executives was added as an authorised body in its own right to the categories that already included the Bar Council and the Law Society. It was thus enabled to grant rights of audience to suitably qualified legal executives under section 27 of the Courts and Legal Services Act 1990. Currently, the institute is able to grant only civil and matrimonial rights of audience, but it has submitted an application to extend that to criminal proceedings. I hope that the Minister and his colleagues in the new Department will consider that application favourably.
The Institute of Legal Executives is also a body authorised to conduct litigation under section 28 of the 1990 Act, as amended by section 40 of the Access to Justice Act 1999, and it is sensible, in the light of those matters, that there should be provision for consultation with all the representatives of all the different parts of the legal profession, including the institute. That would ensure that all the people consulted had knowledge and experience of the rules and criminal processes. Our amendment No. 139 would achieve that.
Our amendment No. 142 would make exactly the same change for family procedure rules, which we think would be helpful, and amendment No. 145,
which is to clause 85, would achieve the same aim in relation to civil procedure rules.
I hope that the Minister understands our concerns, which we share with the Institute of Legal Executives, and that even if he cannot accept the amendments today, he will continue to keep the matter under review and perhaps introduce similar Government amendments at a later stage.