Lawyers Winning Legal Aid for Split Indictments

Winning Legal Aid for Split Indictments is A Game Changer for Lawyers

Split indictments is a situation where a single legal case often started as one Petition is divided by the court or the prosecution into two or more separate indictments. This means the accused faces multiple, distinct sets of charges, each to be tried separately.

Hence recently it was a game changer recently for David Kinloch & Co Solicitors to convince the Scottish Legal Aid Board when explaining this would mean two trials.

It is possible for someone to appear on Petition which we as lawyers therefore get one Legal Aid grant.

However, the Petition can be split into two separate Indictments so there is no prejudice to the accused. The difficulty is, with only one legal aid certificate, the lawyer is entitled to one preparation fee, one communication fee, one post conviction fee, and this amounts to several hundred pounds per case.

Our Mr Kinloch had an ongoing battle with the Scottish Legal Aid Board over a number of months and managed to convince them that two Indictments means two separate trials, 2 separate sentences, 2 separate Judges, and there should be another legal aid grant for the second matter. We have won this, and it has changed the landscape for the profession.

Here’s a simple example surrounding Split Indictments

A person is charged with several offences under one Petition. Later, the prosecution decides or is required to split these into two indictments.

A case example could be, one indictment for theft charges and another for assault charges.

The result is two separate trials.

That could lead to possibly coming before different judges and at different times, and potentially leading to separate sentences.

Why this Split Indictments Petition Case Mattered and the Scottish Legal Aid Board were Challenged

Why this mattered to Mr Kinloch is that Legal Aid was originally granted for one case, but when the case is split, the defence lawyer ends up doing much more work. It means preparing for two trials, attending two courts, handling separate communications. Without an extra Legal Aid certificate for the second indictment, the lawyer would only be paid once, despite doing the work of two cases.