The Counsel General and Minister for Delivery, , has outlined her priorities in
her first speech since taking on the role – in which she pledged
to be ‘a champion for Wales'.
Speaking to the Legal Wales Conference in Pembrokeshire, the
Counsel General spoke of the importance of access to justice and
the accessibility of law, which she called ‘the glue that holds
society together'.
The Legal Wales Conference provides a platform for dialogue on
constitutional and legal developments and the future of the
profession.
In her keynote address, she called on professions to be part of
the conversation about the future of the justice system and
expressed how she would like to see the use of new technologies
welcomed across the sector.
The Counsel General said:
“We need to find efficiencies in how we do justice. We need it to
be quicker - without losing its core strength of fairness.
“Practices need to embrace technology and keep pace with changes
in how the world does business.
“One thing I am particularly keen to see is practices and
individuals not seeing each other as competitors but working
collaboratively in the interests of justice.”
The Counsel General also outlined her intention to continue
working with other governments and agencies to explore the power
of AI to help people engage with and understand the law so they
can find the right answers to real life situations.
As part of her goal to improve accessibility of the law, the
Counsel General has also committed to introducing a Bill to the
Senedd next year to consolidate planning law.
It is part of longer-term improvements that will bring real life
practical benefits and allow people a better understanding of how
it affects them.
The Counsel General added:
“The law is the glue that holds a society together. It is an
expression of our common agreement to support each other – the
very foundations of a stable democratic society. It is how we try
to keep things fair, ordered, predictable.
“And yes, it can and should protect our most vulnerable. But it
should apply universally to all, from poorest to richest.”
