Lawyers will need to keep their ears to the ground with Corbyn in charge

He may not be everyone’s cup of non-fat chai tea latte, but left-winger Jeremy Corbyn is now leader of the Labour party. Since his resounding victory, however, little analysis has been given to what he has to offer the legal profession.

From the back benches, Corbyn has been a staunch opponent of cuts to legal aid, demanding former Lord Chancellor Chris Grayling take note that his constituents could not obtain free advice ‘and so have no access to justice’. The long-time lefty firebrand also offered his unequivocal support for this summer’s boycott of legal aid cases by solicitors and barristers, unlike some of his colleagues.

‘I am very worried that legal aid could totally disappear under this government. If this happens we will have a justice system that will only be accessible to those who can afford it. Every legal professional in this country should stand together and get behind the boycott so that the government are forced to rethink these illogical cuts,’ he told the Haldane Society of Socialist Lawyers.

If such prominent support from the leader of the opposition was not enough to raise the spirits of overworked and underpaid criminal practitioners, then news of the shadow cabinet reshuffle just might.

Sadiq Khan’s replacement as shadow justice secretary, Lord Falconer, has already pledged to fight for a reversal of legal aid cuts, and to oppose the Conservative’s plans to scrap the Human Rights Act, before Corbyn’s rise to power.

Though an outspoken supporter of Andy Burnham in Labour’s leadership race, Falconer’s recent article in the New Statesman, in which he lamented the ‘death of the British justice system’, might be seen as the political equivalent of a footballer’s ‘come get me plea’, should his horse not win. If it was, then it certainly worked a charm as the Gibson Dunn partner retained his role in the new administration.

Burnham’s appointment as shadow home secretary is also significant. The MP for Leigh was the first candidate to announce his intention to scrap employment tribunal fees and commission an urgent review of civil legal aid. Of course, it should not be forgotten that both Falconer and Burnham were part of Labour governments that did little to support lawyers at the coal face of the justice system.

New shadow attorney general, Catherine McKinnell MP – one of three former solicitors in the shadow cabinet, the others being the shadow secretary of state for environment, food and rural affairs, Kerry McCarthy, and the shadow secretary of state for defence, Maria Eagle – is worth noting too, following her opposition to the Legal Aid Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012 (LASPO).

As shadow minister for children and families, McKinnell urged the government to accept a House of Lords amendment so children under 18 would have access to justice. She also raised concern that victims of domestic abuse would lose the protection of the courts.

We could continue, but on the basis of the above, legal aid practitioners should at least feel more upbeat than they may have of late. But what can lawyers in other practice areas hope for from the opposition and a possible future government under Corbyn?

Those specialising in trade union law will have been encouraged by Labour’s stance against the Trade Union Bill, even though MPs backed the controversial proposals by 33 votes at second reading this week.

Writing in the Observer, the Labour leader criticised the Bill as it would ‘make it harder for workers to get a fair deal at work, to fight for fair pay and for a better work-life balance. ‘Trade unions are a force for good – a force for a more equal society, he added. ‘United, Labour will vote against this anti-democratic attack on trade union members.’

Personal injury solicitors may also have cause to celebrate. Corbyn has previously voted against increased regulation of no-win no-fee arrangements, and against capping success fees at 100 per cent of the lawyer's basic fee, as well as against additionally setting a further cap of 25 per cent of damages awarded in personal injury cases.

The possibility of a national maximum wage to cap the salaries of high earners, and the introduction of a 50 per cent top rate of tax, suggests that private client practitioners will have to devise some inventive solutions to the woes of their high-net-worth clients, should Labour win the next election.

Law firms with clients in the financial services sector may find themselves busy in 2020 after Corbyn told Britain's banks to ‘watch out’ for a windfall tax, the proceeds of which would be invested in hospitals, schools, the railways, the welfare system, the tech industry, and green energy jobs.

In short, regardless of your political persuasion, lawyers are going to be busy with Corbyn in charge. Those of a cynical nature would say that more work means more billable hours. Those more interested in the rule of law, however, may simply find Labour’s new management an invigorating factor in the ongoing battle for access to justice.

John van der Luit-Drummond is deputy editor for Solicitors Journal