Lawyers are not happy with a particular requirement if the scheme rolls out nationwide
An express entry system to UK courts for legal professionals has not yet entered its pilot phase, but it has already attracted criticism.
Some members of the bar are angry that should the pilot be successful and the scheme be implemented nationwide, they would have to pay a fee for a new identification system, the Law Society Gazette said.
The pilot is due to begin on Wednesday at Brighton Magistrates' Court, Maidstone Combined Court, Southwark Crown Court, Tameside Magistrates' Court and Wood Green Crown Court. Legal professionals can bypass court security procedures under the scheme, with barristers using a Bar Council app and Law Society members using an approved photo ID.
The publication said that members of the Criminal Law Solicitors' Association and London Criminal Courts Solicitors' Association will also be allowed to access other courts with their professional IDs.
No fees will be required during the pilot, but the Bar Council may need to charge a fee if there will be a national rollout, a Bar Council spokesperson said.
The spokesperson said that council “will need to charge a fee to cover the costs involved in developing the app that enables thousands of barristers to have the appropriate ID system for fast-track court entry.”
“The priority is to make sure barristers can access the courts through a system that works effectively,” the spokesperson told the Law Society Gazette.
The Ministry of Justice has also confirmed that Ipswich and Cambridge Crown courts; magistrates' courts in Hereford, Kidderminster, Worcester, Redditch, Hull, Beverley and Bridlington; and the combined courts in Exeter and North Somerset will not be taking part in the pilot.
