Lawyers in Manitoba's private bar are receiving more money for taking on legal-aid cases.
 
Per-hour wages increased 40 per cent on April 1 — to $80 per hour from $57 — for private lawyers who work for Legal Aid Manitoba, a program that provides lawyers for people in financial need.

About half of Legal Aid Manitoba's cases are handled by lawyers on staff, while the other half are handled by private lawyers who are paid a fee for each case.

But many private lawyers had been bowing out of legal-aid cases because they can make more money sticking to the private sector, said Saul Simmonds, a private-practice lawyer who sits on legal aid's advisory committee.

"Laywers have been driven out of legal aid," he said. "Many private bar lawyers — specifically many of the more senior practitioners — have chosen not to do those cases. It is almost impossible to find lawyers who are prepared to take legal aid."

That has left some people without counsel, he said, which has resulted in children left unrepresented in custody cases and even mistrials, Simmonds said.

The wage hike should help attract lawyers back to the 36-year-old program, he said.

"We can start to properly take some of these cases. Many lawyers have been driven out of legal aid and now we're at a stage, thank goodness, where I hope it will start to attract lawyers back into doing legal aid work," he said.

Although the new wages for legal aid are substantially higher now, they are still on the low end compared to the rest of the country, Simmonds noted.

"I think we still have a way to go, but we are grateful for this recognition," he said.

In 2006-07, Legal Aid Manitoba provided assistance on a formal or informal basis to more than 80,000 people. 

The program is funded by the provincial and federal governments, the Manitoba Law Foundation and fees paid by some clients.