S.C.E.
NOTICES OF AMENDMENTS
given up to and including
Tuesday 11th May 1999
New Amendments handed in are marked thus *
STANDING COMMITTEE E
ACCESS TO JUSTICE BILL [LORDS]
NOTE
The Amendments have been arranged in accordance with the Order to be proposed by Mr Geoffrey Hoon.
Mr Geoffrey Hoon
That the remainder of the Bill be considered in the following order: Clauses 33 to 36; Schedule 5; Clauses 37 and 38; Schedule 6; Clauses 39 to 54; Clause 56; Clauses 59 and 60; Schedule 9; Clause 61; Clauses 66 to 69; Schedule 10; Clauses 70 to 82; Clause 85; Clauses 87 and 88; new Clauses; new Schedules; Clause 55; Clause 57; Schedule 7; Clause 58; Schedule 8; Clauses 62 to 65; Clause 83; Schedule 11; Clause 84; Schedule 12; Clause 86.
NEW CLAUSES
Litigation funding agreements
Mr Geoffrey Hoon
NC38
*To move the following Clause:—
'. In the Courts and Legal Services Act 1990, after section 58A (inserted by section 29 above) insert—
| "Litigation funding agreements. | 58B.—(1) A litigation funding agreement which satisfies all of the conditions applicable to it by virtue of this section shall not be unenforceable by reason only of its being a litigation funding agreement.
(2) For the purposes of this section a litigation funding agreement is an agreement under which—
(a) a person ("the funder") agrees to fund (in whole or in part) the provision of advocacy or litigation services (by someone other than the funder) to another person ("the litigant"), and
(b) the litigant agrees to pay a sum to the funder in specified circumstances.
(3) The following conditions are applicable to a litigation funding agreement—
(a) the funder must be a person, or person of a description, prescribed by the Lord Chancellor,
(b) the agreement must be in writing,
(c) the agreement must not relate to proceedings which by virtue of section 58A(1) and (2) cannot be the subject of an enforceable conditional fee agreement or to proceedings of any such description as may be prescribed by the Lord Chancellor,
(d) the agreement must comply with such requirements (if any) as may be so prescribed,
(e) the sum to be paid by the litigant must consist of any costs payable to him in respect of the proceedings to which the agreement relates together with an amount calculated by reference to the funder's anticipated expenditure in funding the provision of the services, and
(f) that amount must not exceed such percentage of that anticipated expenditure as may be prescribed by the Lord Chancellor in relation to proceedings of the description to which the agreement relates.
(4) Regulations under subsection (3)(a) may require a person to be approved by the Lord Chancellor or by a prescribed person.
(5) The requirements which the Lord Chancellor may prescribe under subsection (3)(d)—
(a) include requirements for the funder to have provided prescribed information to the litigant before the agreement is made; and
(b) may be different for different descriptions of litigation funding agreements.
(6) In this section (and in the definitions of "advocacy services" and "litigation services" as they apply for its purposes) "proceedings" includes any sort of proceedings for resolving disputes (and not just proceedings in a court), whether commenced or contemplated.
(7) Before making regulations under this section, the Lord Chancellor shall consult—
(a) the designated judges;
(b) the General Council of the Bar;
(d) such other bodies as he considers appropriate.
(8) A costs order made in any proceedings may, subject in the case of court proceedings to rules of court, include provision requiring the payment of any amount payable under a litigation funding agreement.
(9) Rules of court may make provision with respect to the taxing of any costs which include fees payable under a litigation funding agreement.".'. |
Power of High Court to vary committal in default
Mr Geoffrey Hoon
NC39
*To move the following Clause:—
'. In the Supreme Court Act 1981, after section 43 insert—
| "Power of High Court to vary committal in default. | 43ZA.—(1) Where the High Court quashes the committal of a person to prison or detention by a magistrates' court or the Crown Court for—
the High Court may deal with the person for the default or want of sufficient distress in any way in which the magistrates' court or Crown Court would have power to deal with him if it were dealing with him at the time when the committal is quashed.
(2) If the High Court commits him to prison or detention, the period of imprisonment or detention shall, unless the High Court otherwise directs, be treated as having begun when the person was committed by the magistrates' court or the Crown Court (except that any time during which he was released on bail shall not be counted as part of the period).".'. |
Law Society's powers in relation to conduct of solicitors etc.
Mr Geoffrey Hoon
NC40
*To move the following Clause:—
'. Schedule (Powers of Law Society) (which extends the powers of the Law Society in relation to the conduct of solicitors and their employees and consultants) has effect.'.
Closure of courthouses
Mr John Burnett
Mr Lembit Öpik
NC1
To move the following Clause:—
'.—(1) Where on the date of coming into force of this Act a courthouse is provided by a paying authority, under section 56 of the Justices of the Peace Act 1997, the Magistrates' Courts Committee shall presume that there is a continuing need for accommodation within the district of each paying authority.
(2) Where the Lord Chancellor is considering an appeal by a paying authority against a decision by a Magistrates' Courts Committee to close a courthouse, he shall presume that there is a continuing need for the accommodation.
(3) A paying authority concerned for the purposes of section 56(3) of the Justices of the Peace Act 1997 shall be any local authority whose residents are or may be affected by any decision to close a courthouse.'.
Abolition of indemnity principle
Mr Andrew Dismore
Mr David Kidney
Mr Keith Darvill
Mr Michael Foster (Hastings and Rye)
NC2
To move the following Clause:—
'A party to a proceeding shall not be prevented from recovering from another party an amount in respect of costs by any rule of law which limits the costs recoverable by a party to proceedings to the amount which he is liable to pay his legal representative.'.
Abolition of Queen's Counsel
Mr Andrew Dismore
Dr Alan Whitehead
Mr Keith Darvill
Mr Martin Linton
Mr Paul Stinchcombe
NC3
To move the following Clause:—
'The office of Queen's Counsel is abolished.'.
Use of Counsel
Mr Andrew Dismore
Mr Keith Darvill
Mr Martin Linton
Mr Michael Foster
(Hastings and Rye)
Mr Mark Todd
NC4
To move the following Clause:—
'Rules of Court shall provide that a party to proceedings may instruct
to appear at trial or in interlocutory proceedings only with prior leave of the court which leave shall be granted only if in the opinion of the court the instruction of such Counsel is (a) within the overriding objective of the civil justice rules and (b) does not constitute substantial unfairness to any other party.'.
Appointment of Queen's Counsel
Mr Andrew Dismore
Mr Keith Darvill
Mr Martin Linton
Mr Michael Foster
(Hastings and Rye)
Mr Paul Stinchcombe
Mr Mark Todd
NC5
To move the following Clause:—
'(1) The Lord Chancellor shall publish not less than two months before Maundy Thursday each year a list of those applying to be appointed Queen's Counsel.
(2) Prior to recommending any person for appointment as Queen's Counsel the Lord Chancellor shall consider
(a) any representations made by the public in response to the list referred to in subsection (1) above; and
(b) the extent to which the applicant has
(i) undertaken pro bono work in the previous three years, and
(ii) indicated a willingness to undertake pro bono work if appointed Queen's Counsel.
(3) Any new appointment as Queen's Counsel shall be for a fixed term of not more than five years renewable upon application in such manner and subject to such conditions and fees as the Lord Chancellor shall specify by order.'.
Assessment of costs
Mr Andrew Dismore
Mr Keith Darvill
Mr Martin Linton
Mr Michael Foster
(Hastings and Rye)
Mr Mark Todd
NC6
To move the following Clause:—
'When assessing standard costs payable by another party to an action, the court shall assess any amount payable in respect of counsels' fees by reference to the experience and seniority of counsel concerned and shall disregard the fact (if it is the case) that counsel concerned holds the office of Queen's Counsel.'.
Judicial Appointments Commission
Mr Andrew Dismore
Mr David Kidney
Mr Keith Darvill
Mr Paul Stinchcombe
Dr Alan Whitehead
Mr Martin Linton
NC7
To move the following Clause:—
'(1) The Lord Chancellor shall appoint persons to form a body to be known as the Judicial Appointments Commission.
(2) In appointing persons to the Commission the Lord Chancellor shall have regard to the desirability of securing that the Commission includes persons who (between them) have experience in or knowledge of—
(b) the legal professions;
(c) legal education and training;
(d) the maintenance of professional standards in the legal profession and in other professions;
(3) The Commission shall have the duties of
(a) setting criteria for appointment to the different ranks of the judiciary;
(b) inviting applications from candidates for full-time and part-time judicial vacancies;
(c) investigating and evaluating candidates for judicial office;
(d) recommending suitable candidates for appointment to a panel from which the Lord Chancellor shall fill judicial vacancies;
(e) making arrangements to evaluate the performance of members of the judiciary and making recommendations to the Lord Chancellor consequent upon such evaluations.'.
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