In brief: Criminal lawyers blast LAB over broken promise

Criminal law solicitors taking part in the Legal Aid Board (LAB) pilot to test the block contracting of criminal Green Form advice have accused the board of breaking a key promise to give bi-monthly progress reports. The LAB made the promise to participating firms before the pilot started. But the LAB has not yet issued any progress reports and the pilots are now four months old. Criminal Law Solicitors Association vice-chair Franklin Sinclair said the board had been "pretty slack".