Criminal solicitors have pledged contributions for a fighting fund to challenge the government’s introduction of best value tendering (BVT) for legal aid work, the Gazette has learned. A consultation on the scheme ended last week, after attracting more than 1,000 responses expected to be overwhelmingly critical.

BVT will require firms to bid against each other to win contracts for blocks of police station work. The Legal Services Commission plans to pilot the process in Greater Manchester, and Somerset and Avon, later this year, with a phased national implementation beginning in June 2010.

Michael Mackey (pictured), president of Manchester Law Society and partner at Manchester firm Burton Copeland, said there is ‘total unity’ in opposition to the current proposed scheme. Many practitioners predict it will decimate criminal legal aid firms, restrict client choice and lower standards, he said. ‘We’ve identified a number of areas in the consultation that would be open to legal challenge, and a number of firms have committed to contribute to a fighting fund.’

The LSC says BVT is designed to encourage efficiency, quality and good practice, and will enable more people to be helped with the resources available and ensure a sustainable future for legal aid.

Political opposition to the scheme appears to be strengthening. In an interview with the Gazette, shadow legal aid minister Henry Bellingham urged the government to halt the pilot until after the general election, or commit to a full evaluation of its impact as well as the tendering process. ‘I’m not going to say we wouldn’t go ahead with it if we were elected, but the LSC ought to be aware of our thinking.’

The Law Society, the Bar Council and groups representing criminal lawyers, legal aid practitioners and black and minority ethnic groups all submitted responses to the consultation opposing the scheme.

Richard Miller, Law Society legal aid manager, said: ‘We echo the Conservatives’ calls to put the entire scheme, including the pilots, on hold, and would go a step further and call for the LSC to abandon the plans altogether. The end user – those requiring access to justice – will lose out in the long run under BVT.’

The Independent Defence Lawyers Group told the consultation that there is no economic case for BVT given that spending on police station and magistrates’ courts work fell by £42.7m from 2006/07 to 2007/08, while the Crown Prosecution Service’s costs rose by £40.5m over the same period.

An LSC spokesperson said it would respond to the consultation in the near future, while the Ministry of Justice confirmed that the pilots would go ahead as planned. ‘We want to ensure the benefits of a BVT system are obtained from as many areas as possible as quickly as possible. We are keen to hear views on the timeline proposed.’

A petition on the Downing Street website calling for the scheme to be scrapped has gathered almost 5,500 signatures.