Public law solicitors are at ‘breaking point’ due to increased workloads and financial pressure, according to an authoritative report published this week.

A study of how parents are represented in care proceedings, by academics at Bristol University’s school of law, found that solicitors acting for parents were under ‘tremendous pressure’ due to continual changes and uncertainties in the legal aid regime.

The report was based on observations of more than 100 hearings in four court areas in England and Wales, as well as 16 case studies and interviews with 60 lawyers, judges and magistrates’ clerks.

It found that the Public Law Outline introduced in 2008 had failed to deliver shorter proceedings with fewer hearings, and left lawyers doing the same or more work on individual cases.

However, the move to fixed fees for legal aid work in 2007 had forced lawyers to take on more cases in order to make the work financially viable for their firms.

Workload pressures and financial constraints were placing firms ‘at breaking point’, the report said.

The study found that firms had sought to encourage more efficient ways of working, and were doing their own advocacy to top up the fixed-fee payments, but the most common response to the fee regime was to take on more cases.

A small number of firms were starting to organise their office systems to handle care cases on more of a ‘production-line basis’, and making more use of paralegals.

Researchers said this meant parents received a less personal service, with different lawyers appearing in court for them at each hearing.

The report also found that the judiciary relies heavily on parties’ lawyers, because judges do not feel sufficiently well prepared to make decisions.

Christina Blacklaws, Law Society council member for child care, said the report reflected ‘exactly’ the challenges faced by solicitors in this area of work.