Written question asked by Lord Avebury (Liberal Democrat), in the House of Lords. It was answered by Baroness Ashton of Upholland (Labour) on Thursday, 2 March 2006.

Immigration

Question: What assistance the Legal Services Commission will give to accredited solicitors to take on the immigration case work of clients of the firm Noden & Co.

Answer: The Legal Services Commission (LSC) is fully aware of the situation and will process any funding requests from new suppliers on an urgent basis. The LSC’s provisions allow any new supplier to undertake initial instructions to safeguard the client’s position by undertaking urgent work and reviewing the previous supplier’s file on receipt. Usually, no financial extension from the LSC would be required unless such work will exceed the normal initial limit applicable to that case.The LSC will consider increasing any existing accredited suppliers new matter start allocation on a firm by firm basis should a significant number of cases be referred to quality assured accredited suppliers. The LSC has provided the Law Society’s intervening agents with a list of quality assured solicitors and advisers for inclusion in its correspondence to clients.Clients can also find a local legal adviser through the Community Legal Service (CLS) Direct telephone helpline.

Secondary information