Simon Power

Wellington, Dec 10 NZPA - Justice Minister Simon Power says he is prepared to meet Manukau lawyers who are upset about Dame Margaret Bazley's report on the legal aid system.

"I'll be happy to...but since the report was released I've received no requests for a meeting," he said in Parliament today when Labour's justice spokeswoman, Lianne Dalziel, questioned him about whether he was going to meet the lawyers.

Ms Dalziel wanted to know whether he had any evidence to support "the hearsay reporting by Dame Margaret Bazley in her final report on the Legal Aid Review that `up to 80 percent of lawyers practising in the Manukau District Court could be gaming the system'," and if he didn't have any evidence, would he apologise to them.

Mr Power said he didn't have any evidence "because Dame Margaret was clear in her report that although her findings were partially based on anecdotal evidence, it was the prevalance of these claims right across the courts system that led her to conclude that widespread reform is required".

Mr Power said that since the report was released, a number of people had supplied his office with a range of allegations of improper practise across the courts system.

He said he was telling them to send the information to the Law Society.

Mr Power said he wasn't going to apologise to the lawyers.