Legal Aid in New Zealand: A Discussion of the 2009 Review and Its Effects

Abstract

This paper examines the New Zealand legal aid system with particular regard to the review conducted in 2009. In November 2009 on request by the Ministry of Justice, Dame Margaret Bazley issued a report analysing the legal aid system and recommending significant changes to the legal aid system. The Government has begun implementing the recommendations made by the Bazley report through the Legal Services Bill 2010. This paper looks at Dame Margaret’s report, the recommendations made in it and the government’s implementation of the recommendations in the Legal Services Bill 2010. Furthermore, the three areas of the legal aid system, namely administration, deliver and quality, are critiqued and compared to other jurisdictions.