The period for a 10% discount for renewing membership for 2012 has been extended to 29 February 2012. New members or those who are returning to HLPA and were not members in 2011 receive a further 10% discount, 20% overall, if joining before 29 February 2012.
The members password for the website will be changing at the end of February and the new password will be emailed to 2012 members shortly beforehand.
In what is going to be a challenging year, HLPA is working hard to provide members with information, support and training, and also to make HLPA’s voice heard in policy [... read more]
It is time for HLPA memberships to be renewed for 2012.
We have a full programme of meetings for the year with expert speakers, details of which will be put up shortly. The next meeting is on 18 January 2012, examining the new provisions of the Localism Act.
HLPA will also be running a series of seminars for training in specifics of practice.
In addition, for those who could not make it to the 2011 conference, the speakers papers from the workshop session will soon be available on the members area of this site for a few months. The members’ password for [... read more]
Many HLPA members signed the open letter on the misrepresentation of squatting circulated last week. HLPA as an organisation also signed, by the Executive Committee. Many non-HLPA members also signed.
In total there were 158 individual signatures and that of HLPA as an organisation, which shows a considerable strength of feeling on the issue.
The letter was sent to all major newspapers and news organisations on 26 September 2011.
The Guardian published both an edited version of the letter and an article on the issues raised in the paper edition of 26 September. The letter in full, with signature list, was published on [... read more]
We’ve added a couple of new sections to the site, with useful downloads for housing advisors.
Available to all are the new Frequently Asked Questions, addressing some of the common but trickier questions faced by advisors; including eligibility for unemployed EEA citizens, Section 21 notice periods, exclusion from allocation schemes, and more. THe FAQs page is under resources on the menu above, or here.
For members, there are some precedent letters and documents for download and use; including homelessness judicial review pre-action letters, unlawful eviction particulars of claim, and others. Members will need to be logged in. The precedents page is [... read more]
The Community Legal Service (Funding) (Amendment No. 2) Order 2011 has been made, implementing the 10% fee cuts from 3 October 2011. A copy of the Order with the revised fee schedules can be downloaded here [pdf].
The Order affects new Legal Helps and certificates from 3 October 2011. Existing matters remain on the old fee rates.
The draft Order contained a proposal to limit surveyor/EHO expert fees to £225 for a report. This would have made it impossible to run disrepair claims or counterclaims on legal aid. After vigorous lobbying, not least by HLPA, this has been removed. Instead surveyor/EHO [... read more]
The Equalities and Human Rights Commission has just issued guidance on human rights for social housing providers. The guidance can be found here [link to PDF].
HLPA played a part in the drafting of this guidance.
The Commons Select Committee on Justice has released its Third Report, dealing with the proposed legal aid reforms.
The report can be read here.
The Committee has a number of significant concerns, including over the reductions in scope, and raises alternative cost savings and the need for adequate research into cost drivers.
The Government’s response to the consultation on reforms to civil litigation and costs (the Jackson reforms) has now been released.
The full response can be downloaded here [pdf] and the associated impact assessment is here [pdf]
The press release is here.
In short, the Government intends to go ahead with its original proposals. From the perspective of HLPA members, some things are not at all clear.
While a 10% uplift in general damages is envisaged, in part to replace the success fees payable by the Defendant, this is referred to at some points as being solely [... read more]
It has been announced that the Public Sector Equality Duty provisions of the Equality Act 2010 are to come into force on 6 April 2011.
The Government Equalities Office page has the following available for download:
- *Draft regulations on the specific duties;
- *Draft order amending Schedule 19, listing the public bodies to which the duty applies;
- *A ‘Quick Start’ guide for Public Sector Organisations;
- *Equalities and Human Rights Commission Guidance.
There will be a discussion of HLPA’s response to the proposed legal aid reforms at the meeting of 19 January 2011. Members are asked to bring a copy of the questionnaire to the consultation with them to the meeting. The consultation questionnaire can be downloaded here [doc]
