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Legal Services Bill [HL]

I support the noble Lords, Lord Whitty and Lord Kingsland. It does not matter much which of their amendments would apply, but quite a lot of people are not accustomed to dealing with courts; they find the whole process of litigation disturbing and upsetting. If they start by having to go through the whole procedure set out in the Bill—it will be an excellent procedure—and are given an award to which they are clearly entitled, and then the recalcitrant solicitor or barrister does not pay, the idea that the complainant would have to go to court, become a litigant and have to brief a separate solicitor in order to do so would be a step too far for many people. It would be enormously helpful if some sort of procedure would enable such people not to have to go through this; they sometimes may not be of good education and have been let down by the legal profession—and such people undoubtedly exist.