We are, once again coming into the Legal Walks season!
Across the country solicitors, barristers, judges and anyone with a concern for Access to Justice will be seen in cities and towns across the country to raise funds and to highlight the work done by those agencies that provide free legal help to those in need.
Liverpool will be marking its 10th walk. Why do
we do it? It is over 40 years since I started work at the Vauxhall Law Centre
in Liverpool. The centre is still going strong. Back in day we were able to
bring many cases with the benefit of legal aid. This included the notable case
of Liverpool City Council v Irwin which
helped to establish the liability of landlords for common areas in rented
premises such as lifts and stairways. In the late 1970s this was known as the
Piggeries case!
Cases like this would be more challenging today following the cuts in legal aid from 2013.
But the need has not gone away.
Vauxhall, and other centres across the country still work
alongside the most vulnerable members of society – with or without legal aid. This
is demonstrated by the recent comment on Twitter about a client who was grateful
for the centre’s help with a PIP form.
The work is now dependent on fundraising. This is why lawyers will be hitting the streets in September and October. This was why Liverpool Law Society in 2012 decided to launch an annual walk, in anticipation of the cuts which were imminent. This followed the work already done in Manchester, London and many other cities. Lawyers are indeed walking for justice –
I have sounded a bit like a broken record for many years, but there is no point in having a system of justice, if ordinary people cannot get access to that system for lack of funds.
To mark the 10th Liverpool Walk, I am doing a
Justice Tour this year. I am walking in Liverpool on 21st September,
Carlisle on 27th September and London on 18th October. You
can donate to the tour on this link –
https://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/JusticeTour2021
But there are many others also raising funds. You can
support any of the walkers – the money all goes to meet the same need!
http://www.nwlst.org.uk/liverpool-legal-walk.html
http://www.nwlst.org.uk/carlisle-legal-walk.html
https://londonlegalsupporttrust.org.uk/our-events/london-legal-walk-2021/
In fact most of us can find a walk within walking distance,
so to speak!
https://atjf.org.uk/legal-walks
You can also get your walking shoes out and join in. The
walks are open to anyone who cares justice.
Hope to see you on my tour!!
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