LEGAL AID (SCALE OF FEES) REGULATIONS

LEGAL AID (SCALE OF FEES) REGULATIONS

LEGAL AID (SCALE OF FEES) REGULATIONS

ARRANGEMENT OF REGULATIONS

Regulation Page

1. Citation .............................C2
2. Interpretation .......................C2
3. Fee payable for report of opinion under section 9 C 2
4. Fees payable to counsel generally ....C 2
5. Fees and costs payable to solicitor ..C 2
6. Advance of fees to counsel and solicitor C 3
7. Fees and costs in referred cases .....C 3
8. Disallowance or reduction of costs on taxation C 3
9. Solicitor's duty to safeguard interest of fund C 3
10. Application to make objections to taxation C 4
11. Application to judge to review taxation C 4
12. Counsel dissatisfied with taxation ..C 4
13. Objection by other party ............C 4
14. Taxation proceedings deemed to be covered by legal aid certificate C 5
15. Aided person having no interest or adverse interest C 5
16. Time limits .........................C 5
17. Basis of taxation ...................C 5





LEGAL AID (SCALE OF FEES) REGULATIONS
(Cap. 91, section 28)
[23 June 1989]

L.N. 187 of 1989 -

1. Citation

These regulations may be cited as the Legal Aid (Scale of Fees)

Regulations.

2. Interpretation

In these regulations, unless the context otherwise requires

'fixed costs' means fixed costs prescribed by any Ordinance or rules of court as
payable to a solicitor;

'rules of court means the rules of court made under the Supreme Court Ordinance
(Cap. 4) or the District Court Ordinance (Cap. 336);

'taxing master' means the Registrar of the Supreme Court acting as taxing master,
or, in relation to proceedings that have been conducted in the District Court,
the Registrar of the District Court acting as taxing master.

3. Fee payable for report or opinion under section 9

The fee payable by the Director to counsel or solicitor making a report or

giving an opinion under section 9 of the Ordinance shall be such sum as the
Director may decide.

4. Fees payable to counsel generally

The fees payable by the Director to counsel acting for an aided person

shall be such as may be allowed on taxation or, in default of taxation, as may be fixed
by the Director, not exceeding such amount as in the opinion of the Director would
have been allowed if there had been taxation.

5. Fees and costs payable to solicitor

The amount payable by the Director to a solicitor acting for an aided

person shall be-





(a)the full amount allowed on taxation on account of dis-
bursements;
(b)the full amount allowed on taxation on account of profit costs;
and
(c)in cases where fixed costs are applicable and the solicitor has
made an election to take fixed costs, the full amount of such fixed
costs,
or, in default of taxation or where an election to take fixed costs has not been
made, an amount as may be fixed by the Director, not exceeding such amount
as in the opinion of the Director would have been allowed if there had been
taxation or would have applied if there had been an election to take fixed costs.

6. Advance of fees to counsel and solicitor

(1) The Director may before taxation make an advance to counsel or
solicitor of an amount not exceeding 75% of the sum which the Director
estimates will be payable under regulation 4 or 5 and such advance shall be on
account of moneys so payable.
(2) If the amount paid under subregulation (1) exceeds the amount
payable under regulation 4 or 5, the counsel or solicitor, shall repay the excess
to the Director.

7. Fees and costs in referred cases

If a case, in respect of which legal aid has been granted, is referred to any
person by a court, there shall be payable to counsel and solicitor the same fees
and costs as would have been payable if the reference had been a proceeding in
the court by which it was referred, and all proceedings in connection with such
reference shall be taxed by the court which referred them as if they were
proceedings in the court.

8. Disallowance or reduction of costs on taxation

(1) Without prejudice to the rules of court, on the taxation of an aided
person's costs in any proceedings where the aided person's solicitor has without
good reason delayed in filing his bill of costs for taxation the whole of the profit
costs may be disallowed or reduced.
(2) The aided person's solicitor shall forthwith inform counsel of any
disallowance or reduction of counsel's fees on taxation.

9. Solicitor's duty to safeguard interest of fund

On any taxation pursuant to an order for costs made in favour of an aided
person where that person may himself have no interest in the result of the





taxation, it shall be the duty of an aided person's solicitor to safeguard the
interest of funds in the Director's control, and for this purpose to take such
steps as may appear to a solicitor to be necessary to obtain a review of taxation
under regulation 10 or 11.

10. Application to make objections to taxation
Where-
(a)an aided person is dissatisfied with any decision of a taxing
master in regard to the amount which he is entitled to recover by
virtue of an order or agreement for costs made in his favour or
for which he is liable by virtue of an order for costs made against
him; or
(b)the aided person's solicitor is dissatisfied with any decision of the
taxing master on a taxation pursuant to an order for costs made
in favour of the aided person,
the solicitor shall apply to the Director for authority to make objections to the
taxation; and if the Director gives authority, the solicitor may thereupon make
objections in accordance with the rules of court.

11. Application to judge to review taxation
Where the aided person or his solicitor, as the case may be, is dissatisfied
with the decision of a taxing master on any matter to which objection is made
under regulation 10, the solicitor shall apply to the Director for authority to
have the taxation reviewed; and if the Director gives authority, the solicitor
may thereupon apply to a judge either personally or by counsel to review the
taxation in accordance with the rules of court.

12. Counsel dissatisfied with taxation
Where counsel acting for an aided person is dissatisfied with any decision
on a taxation, it shall be the duty of the aided person's solicitor to report the
matter to the Director and if the Director gives authority in that behalf, to
make objection to the taxation or to apply to a judge, as the case may be, to
review the taxation, and regulations 10 and 11 shall apply as if the solicitor were
the person dissatisfied.

13. Objection by other party
If, in proceedings to which an aided person is a party, any other party
makes objections to a taxation or applies to a judge to review the taxation
the aided person's solicitor may be heard on the objection or review
notwithstanding that the aided person himself may have no interest in the
taxation.





14. Taxation proceedings deemed to be
covered by legal aid certificate

Any proceedings under regulations 10 to 13 shall be deemed to be
proceedings to which the aided person's legal aid certificate relates, whether or
not it has been discharged or revoked, and the costs of such proceedings shall
be paid out of funds in the Director's control.

15. Aided person having no interest or adverse interest
Where the aided person has no interest in the taxation or would, but for
this regulation, have an interest adverse to that of his solicitor-
(a)it shall be the duty of the solicitor making objections under
regulation 10 or applying for a review under regulation 11 to
ensure that all matters which are properly to be taken into
account in considering the objections or on the review are placed
before the taxing master or judge as appropriate;
(b)the aided person shall not be required to make any contribution
to the funds in the Director's control on account of the costs of
any proceedings arising under regulations 10 to 13 or in con-
sequence of any order made thereon; and
(c)the charge created by section 18A of the Ordinance shall not
apply as regards any resulting increase in the net liability of the
Director.

16. Time limits

Where any party to a taxation is an aided person the certificate of costs
shall not, save by consent, be signed within 14 days after the taxing master's
decision; and where an aided person's solicitor applies under regulation 10 or 11
for authority to make objections or to have a taxation reviewed, he shall do so
before the expiration of the time allowed by the rules of court for making
objections or for applying for review and shall thereupon give notice to the
taxing master and to the opposite party of his application.

17. Basis of taxation
Costs shall be taxed for the purposes of these regulations according to the
ordinary rules applicable on a taxation as between solicitor and client where the
costs are to be paid out of a common fund in which the client and others are
interested.

https://oelawhk.lib.hku.hk/items/show/2417

1964

v7

91

5