• About us
   
• About legal aid
   
• Community Legal Service (CLS)
   
• Criminal Defence Service (CDS)
   

Our Commissioners

On this page:

• The role of Commissioners
• Who they are
• Commission meetings

The role of Commissioners

A board of independent Commissioners oversees our work. Their role is similar to the directors of a public company.

The Commission’s objectives are to:

• make sure the LSC fulfils it statutory duties under the Access to Justice Act 1999

• make sure the LSC fulfils the aims and objectives set by the Secretary of State

• establish and maintain the LSC’s overall strategic direction

• ensure high standards of corporate governance

• promote the LSC’s efficient and effective use of financial, human and other resources.

The Commission's terms of reference are available under Related Documents. More information about the openness and accountability framework within which the Commissioners operate, including their code of conduct and the LSC Framework Document, is available here.

Who they are

The Commission is made up of a Chair and up to 11 members. The non-executive members are appointed by the Lord Chancellor following an open, competitive selection process. They work part-time.

Between them, our Commissioners have experience and knowledge in:

• providing services under the Community Legal Service (CLS) and Criminal Defence Service (CDS)
• the work of the courts
• consumer affairs
• social conditions
• management.

The current Chair is Sir Michael Bichard. We have 10 non-executive members. Biographies of our Commissioners can be found under Related Documents.

Commission meetings

The Commission meets 10 times each year, once a month apart from August and December. All Commissioners usually attend, along with the LSC’s Executive Team and other senior executives.

The Commission meetings allow the attendees to discuss the strategy and policy decisions of the LSC. Commissioners make sure that we are:

• fulfilling our statutory duties in the operation of the CLS and CDS
• achieving our corporate objectives.

Summaries of Commission meeting minutes are under Documents.

The LSC also holds open meetings to allow people to find out more about our work and ask questions about our priorities, projects and objectives.

A note of our last public meeting in September 2007 can be found under Documents.

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Last updated: 30 June 2008