Criminal fees appeals: The hearing of an appeal

All hearings may be attended by the counsel or representatives of the solicitors concerned in the matter or a duly authorised agent on their behalf, who may include another solicitor, another counsel or a costs lawyer. Such oral hearings are informal but are conducted in open court. They are seldom of lengthy duration but where an appellant considers that an unusually lengthy hearing is necessary this should be indicated in a covering letter with the Notice of Appeal. It is not unusual for a solicitor or counsel instructed by the Legal Aid Agency to attend the hearing on behalf of the Lord Chancellor to oppose an appeal