A crucial meeting between criminal bar chiefs and the newly appointed lord chancellor has been postponed until after the period of national mourning for Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II has ended.
The Criminal Bar Association, whose members are striking over legal aid funding, was due to meet Brandon Lewis CBE MP on Thursday. The meeting will now take place next Tuesday, the day after the state funeral for the late Queen.
The Ministry of Justice confirmed there will be no engagements until after the mourning period has ended.
The day of Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral was designated a national bank holiday. HM Courts & Tribunals Service announced that urgent hearings, including overnight custody cases, will continue. Where possible, such hearings will be listed either side of the funeral.
Cases where defendants have been remanded in custody to appear in court on the day of the funeral will be adjourned to the next available date. Courts not holding urgent hearings will be closed to the public ‘as a mark of respect’, including the Royal Courts of Justice.
In conveyancing, HM Land Registry said all notice periods and official search priority periods which began before, but expire after 19 September, will automatically extend by one day. Cancellation dates that are also affected will be extended.
Notices and search certificates issued before 19 September that include an expiry date will not reflect the automatic extension. For example, a notice issued on 12 September that states that it expires on 3 October will actually not expire until 4 October. Conveyancers were advised to amend their records to avoid any confusion.
Land Registry’s customer contact centre and technical support teams will be unavailable on Monday, with normal service resuming at 8am on Tuesday. Its business e-services and land and property information search will remain available.
This article is now closed for comment.
10 Readers' comments