BWW2020: Beyond “What Works”: Legal proceedings, legal aid and the unrepresented University of York York, UK, May 7, 2020 |
Submission link | https://easychair.org/conferences/?conf=bww2020 |
Abstract registration deadline | April 14, 2020 |
Submission deadline | April 14, 2020 |
York Law School Administrative Justice Research Cluster
One Day Symposium:
Beyond “What Works”: Legal proceedings, legal aid and the unrepresented.
May 7th, 2020, at the University of York.
About the Event:
Since the removal of legal aid to the majority of civil claimants under the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act (LASPO) in 2013, there has been a significant rise in the number of Litigants in Person (LiPs) participating in legal proceedings.
In addition, changes to the provision of criminal legal aid practitioners, the erosion of criminal defence lawyer conditions and numerous other factors have contributed to a reported substantial increase in unrepresented defendants in the courts.
All of this means that there are more people representing themselves, or attempting to do so, in legal proceedings than ever before. But whilst there has been some important work done into the important, pragmatic question of “What Works”, what has been left behind is accounts of the remaining, thorny problems and challenges that aren’t easily solved. In addition, more theoretical and conceptual accounts can be easily side-lined in the push to find solutions.
This symposium therefore seeks to gather together researchers to discuss what isn’t working, and what isn’t easy, with the central claim that before solutions can be offered, we need a better understanding of the full extent of the problems.
We welcome all papers addressing any area touched on by this symposium, and hope to bring together a range of papers across both criminal and civil justice, including interdisciplinary work, critical approaches and socio-legal scholarship.
Submission Guidelines
It is expected each paper will last approximately 15-20 minutes in length. We are also open to a range of alternative presentation formats, such as shorter "roundtable" topic discussions, or creative presentations. Please submit an abstract of approximately 200 words via the EasyChair portal at: https://easychair.org/conferences/?conf=bww2020
If you would like to attend the symposium but not present a paper, please email kate.leader@york.ac.uk to register.
List of Topics
Suggested Areas for Papers:
- Litigants in Person
- Administrative Justice and unrepresented parties
- Unrepresented Defendants
- Law and Emotions
- Law and Health
- Changes to Legal Aid
- Criminal Defence Practitioners
- Court Modernisation Programme including technology in legal proceedings
This list is not exhaustive, and we welcome other papers on topics not listed above but relevant to the theme.
Venue
The conference will be held at the University of York on 7 May 2020. Further details about the venue will be updated closer to the time.
Expenses
Registration and attendance at the conference is free.
There are funds available for travel and/or accommodation if necessary for speakers.
Contact
All questions about submissions should be emailed to kate.leader@york.ac.uk