Senior MP calls for ban on paid McKenzie Friends after High Court judgment

The chair of Parliament’s justice select committee has called for fee-charging McKenzie Friends to be banned after the High Court ruled that an unqualified “legal adviser” was negligent in his handling of a clinical negligence case.

Conservative MP Bob Neill said the case reinforced the need to “ban this unscrupulous practice,” which takes advantage of the right to be accompanied into the court room by a ‘McKenzie Friend’ – usually a friend or relative – who provides support and prompts when someone cannot afford a lawyer. Cuts to legal aid have left millions of people unable to afford legal representation, which has led to a rise in those offering themselves as unqualified McKenzie Friends outside courts and charging a fee for their services.

As the Law Gazette reports, the High Court judgment concerned a case in which a 70 year old claimant was left without evidence following the advice of his McKenzie Friend, resulting in five-figure costs for the claimant over a basic clinical negligence claim. George Rusz of Troy Lucas & Co told his client that his advice came from qualified lawyers, so the High Court ruled that his negligence in handling the claim should be held to the same standards as a qualified lawyer.

Emma Jones, partner at Leigh Day, which represented the claimant, said: “This ruling establishes that if individuals hold themselves out as competent legal advisers they will be held to the standards of a competent legal adviser, and if they do not reach those standards they can be liable.”