OpenLegislation

Article 15 Solicitors and counselF1

(1)

Any practisingF2. . . barrister shall be entitled to give advice or assistance or to act for persons receiving legal aid, unlessF3 he is for the time being prohibited from doing so by any determination of the General Council of the Bar of Northern Ireland, or by any determination of any such committee as may be established by that Council to determine charges preferred against barristers

Para. (2) rep. by 2003 NI 10

(2A)

Any practising solicitor shall be entitled to give advice or assistance or to act for persons receiving legal aid unless he is for the time being excluded by an order under Article 51B(1) or (3) of the Solicitors (Northern Ireland) Order 1976 from selection under paragraph (3).

(3)

Where a person is entitled to receive legal aid, advice or assistance he himself shall be entitled to select the solicitor to act for him and, if the case requires counsel, his counsel; but this paragraph shall not prejudice the rights of solicitor or counsel where he has good reason to refuse or give up a case or entrust it to another.

(4)

Notwithstanding paragraph (3), a solicitor who has been selected to act for a person under that paragraph may himself select to act for that person, as the solicitor's agent, any other solicitor who is not for the time being excluded from selection under paragraph (3) by an order under Article 51B(1) or (3) of the Solicitors (Northern Ireland) Order 1976.

Annotations

Textual amendments

F1

Pt. 2 (to the extent that it remains in operation) repealed (1.4.2015) by Access to Justice (Northern Ireland) Order 2003 (S.I. 2003/435), arts. 1(2), 49(5), Sch. 5 (with transitional provisions and savings in art. 48, Sch. 3); S.R. 2015/194, art. 2, Sch. (with transitional provisions and savings in art. 3)

F2

1989 NI 14

F3

2003 NI 10

Notes on the whole Order

Textual amendments

F1

Order repealed (1.11.2003 for the repeals of arts.18(1)-(7), 19, 20.3.2006 the repeal of art. 23, 1.4.2015 for the repeal of Pt. 2 to the extent that it remains in operation, otherwise prosp.) by Access to Justice (Northern Ireland) Order 2003 (S.I. 2003/435), arts. 1(2), 49(5), Sch. 5 (with transitional provisions and savings in art. 48, Sch. 3); S.R. 2003/344, art. 4, Sch. 2; S.R. 2006/27, art. 3; S.R. 2015/194, art. 2, Sch. (with transitional provisions and savings in art. 3)

F2

functions transferred by SI 1982/159