Regulation 7 Determination of solicitors' disbursements

(1)

Subject to the provisions of this regulation, the appropriate authority shall allow such disbursements claimed under regulation 5 as appear to it to have been actually and reasonably incurred; provided that:

(a)

if they are abnormally large by reason of the distance of the court or the assisted person’s residence or both from the solicitor’s place of business, reimbursement of the expenses may be limited to what would otherwise, having regard to all the circumstances, be a reasonable amount; and

(b)

in the case of an appeal to the Court of Appeal, the cost of a transcript, or any part thereof, of the proceedings in the court from which the appeal lies obtained otherwise than through the registrar shall not be allowed except where the appropriate authority considers that it is reasonable in all the circumstances for such disbursement to be allowed.

(2)

Subject to paragraph (3), a solicitor may claim a disbursement in respect of fees of counsel instructed by him in proceedings in a magistrates' court where counsel has not been assigned under section 30 or 31 of the Act.

(3)

The appropriate authority shall determine the amount of any disbursement payable under paragraph (2) by estimating the sum which it would have allowed the solicitor under these Regulations by way of costs had he undertaken the case without counsel and shall allow counsel and the solicitor such reasonable costs as do not together exceed that sum.

(4)

No question as to the propriety of any step or act in relation to which prior authority has been obtained under regulation 14D of the 1868 Regulations^f1 shall be raised on any determination of costs, unless the solicitor knew or ought reasonably to have known that the purpose for which the authority was given had failed or become irrelevant or unnecessary before the costs were incurred.

(5)

Where costs are actually and reasonably incurred in accordance with and subject to the limit imposed by a prior authority given under regulation 14D of the 1968 Regulations, no question shall be raised on any determination of costs as to the amount of the payment to be allowed for the step or act in relation to which the authority was given.

(6)

Where costs are incurred in taking any step or doing any act for which authority may be given under regulation 14D of the 1968 Regulations, without authority to do so having been given or in excess of any fee authorised under regulation 14D of the 1968 Regulations, payment in respect of those costs may nevertheless be allowed on a determination of costs.

Annotations

Footnotes

f1: Regulation 14D was inserted by S.I. 1983/1863