Today, the Law Society National Board for Wales, has launched its Reimagining Justice in Wales 2030 consultation with the aim of directly informing a clear vision for the justice system and legal sector in Wales.
This Consultation seeks to identify the unique challenges and opportunities facing the legal sector in Wales by 2030 whilst at the same time offering practical and pragmatic solutions.
The consultation – ‘From Caernarfon to Caerdydd: Reimagining Justice in Wales 2030 – A Suite of Consultation & Discussion papers’ – aims to set out a range of ideas, options and evidence for potential changes that, when taken together, offer a vision for the future of justice in Wales.
Members of the Law Society are urged to collaborate anonymously and contribute to the consultation, to glean missing data and a clear overview of the unique challenges facing the legal sector in Wales, and the justice system in Wales, over the next decade.
Mark Davies, Chair of the Law Society National Board for Wales, said:
“We believe that this is a comprehensive and insightful piece work that sets out a range of ideas, options and evidence for potential changes that, when taken together, offer a vision for the future of justice in Wales.
“The overarching aim is to try and detail, in equal measure, the unique challenges facing the legal sector in Wales over the next decade and the opportunities for growth amidst the wider political context in which the devolution of some parts of the justice system to Welsh Government is an increasingly likely outcome.
“With the possibility of the devolution of justice to Wales, and with the continuing development of Welsh legislation, your support will ensure a member led view into the opportunities and threats as we move towards 2030.”
Law Society members are encouraged to respond to the consultation, and are advised they can respond to sections, or the entire consultation piece as suits, with the reassurance that all responses will be viewed anonymously. The resulting responses and evidence will be used to help the Law Society focus its work in Wales to continue to deliver benefits, relevant support and campaigns to overcome the challenges facing the legal sector and justice in Wales – while allowing the Law Society to ‘fill the gaps’ on missing data that could help secure projects such as funding for the sector, and wider government support.
Improvement focus areas
There are six papers within the consultation, chosen to focus on ‘what optimal sector wide support and meaningful improvement may look like.’ Each paper has a short series of questions (3-5) to respond to. The papers are:
- Reimagining Access to Justice
- Reimagining Courts in Wales
- Reimagining Justice in Wales Through Transformative Technology
- Making Devolution Work
- Reimagining the Model Law Firm of 2030
- Reimagining The Potential of Improved Data to Improve the Working of the Legal Sector in Wales by 2030
Law Society members can respond to any or all of the papers depending on their experience, passion for issues or commercial need.
Examples of best practice in other jurisdictions
Where suitable, specific attention is paid to systems of reform and development that have been successfully implemented in similar jurisdictions internationally. This includes sector reform in the areas of access to justice, structure of the courts and legal processes, digital and technological innovation, and potential devolution of justice functions, that seek to critically examine as well as attempting to initiate a wider public policy debate around the various anticipated hurdles and opportunities for improvement facing the sector by 2030.
The most promising solutions, detailed in these documents, to the long-standing problems currently facing the justice system in Wales are not new or especially provocative. Whilst this suite of papers attempts to offer new perspectives on how to reimagine the legal aid structure along the Nordic Models and utilise systems of legal triage from British Columbia or the use of legal tech from Estonia, the most fundamental changes required to the legal system in Wales are in many ways already known and systemic in nature.
The scale of the current problems facing the justice system in Wales, coupled with a drive for reform that has lagged behind other sectors, mean that in many cases, fairly straightforward system solutions have significant potential to lead to a significant transformation across Wales.
Why respond?
Davies explained:
“As members of The Law Society, we highly value your expertise and insights. As a respected legal professional, your perspective is crucial to the success of this consultation. Your thoughtful input will not only enrich the document but also shape the direction of our initiatives moving forward.”
“These papers, whilst detailed, should be viewed as part of a wider discussion initiation, that are open to challenge and discussion and should certainly not be considered as the final word on any of the areas covered.”
Accessing the document
Links to the consultation have been sent to all Law Society members in Wales. If you have not yet received your copy, please email reimaginingconsultation@lawsociety.org.uk.
Deadline for Feedback
The consultation deadline is the 12th February 2024. This timeframe ensures the Law Society and its National Board can thoroughly review and incorporate your insights into the final version of the document.
The final report
More information will be shared on Legal News Wales about the launch of the final report, aimed for the end of Q1 2024.
