62 / 328
Bill. We have further informed him that the Society
is prepared to formulate and submit a scheme of
legal aid in civil cases framed upon the scheme in
operation in England and suitably amended to meet
the requirements of such a scheme in this country.
Time would not permit me now to comment in
any detail upon such a scheme save to say that I am
of the opinion personally that whether we like it or
not legal aid will in time come into operation in
this country. Experience in England has gone to
show that the profession there is in favour of the
legal aid scheme in civil cases which scheme is
operated entirely through the Law Society.
It is interesting to note in connection with legal
aid in civil cases the report of the Steele Committee
dated the ist of June, 1960 in Northern Ireland. The
committee after taking evidence reported in favour
of a legal aid scheme in civil matters on the lines of
the English scheme.
The majority report was
signed by both members of the Northern Ireland
Law Society but the two members of the Bar on the
.committee signed a minority report disapproving of
legal aid. The committee came out very strongly in
favour of the control and administration of the
scheme by the legal profession and stated that they
were strongly opposed to any participation by the
state or any non-professional interest. They stated
that all the evidence from both lay and legal sources
strongly stressed that it was undesirable that any
scheme of legal aid or advice should be administered
directly by persons employed by the state or by
any local or public authority. The committee agreed
with that view and said that the fact that the state
and
local authorities are
themselves
frequently
parties to litigation in civil proceedings is an un
answerable argument against either of them being
in control of the administration of a legal aid scheme.
They considered it importantthat the traditional and
long established relationship, privileges, and respon
sibility between Client, Solicitor, and Counsel should
be preserved and that any scheme, its organisation,
administration and control must be in the hands of
the legal profession which should itself provide the
necessaiy legal services and be remunerated on the
normal professional basis.
Charles Evans Hughes, late Lord Chief Justice of
the United States said
" Whatever else lawyers may accomplish in
public affairs it is their privilege and obligation
to assure a competent administration of Justice to
the needy, so that no man shall suffer in the en
forcement of his legal rights for want of a skilled
protector, able, fearless and incorruptible."
The fact that in this country we have so far had
no public demand for free legal aid is in my view no
small indication that the members of our profession
have played their full part in providing a competent
administration of justice for all and sundry as
visualized by Lord Chief Justice Hughes.
It is of interest to note that in Scotland the Guthrie
report on legal aid in criminal proceedings proposes
a comprehensive scheme of legal aid in criminal
matters, far more comprehensive than the schemes
in force in England and Northern Ireland.
In
effect it provides that subject to satisfying the Court
of insufficient means an accused on any criminal
charge will normally receive legal aid.
The administrative work of the scheme will be
performed by the Law Society. A Treasury grant is
voted each year and paid over to the Law Society to
provide for the deficiency on the legal aid account.
The Law Society will receive the bills of costs and
pay solicitors counsel and witnesses.
There are two grounds for the course recom
mended in the report of the Guthrie committee :
1. The State is a party to all criminal proceedings.
It supplies the money for the defence of
accused persons by means of a Treasury
grant but it is more in accordance with
Justice that the administration of the scheme
should be in the hands of the legal pro
fessional body who stand apart from such
criminal proceedings between the State and
the subject.
2. It was considered that the scheme could be
administered more cheaply by the Society.
Finally on this subject may I say that it is not only
highy desirable but essential to
the successful
operation of any scheme here that the members of
our profession and this Society in particular should
be fully consulted by and brought into the confidence
of the Minister for Justice.
I can only assure you
that the Council have this matter very much in mind
and will keep in the closest possible touch with
developments.
Organization and Method
Your Council has continued during the past year
its efforts to have modernised and simplified the
business methods and procedures between our own
offices and those of the various Government De
partments with which we have to deal. May I say
right away that in every case we have met and are
meeting a most co-operative and friendly approach
from the various officials with whom we have had
to deal and although the intervention of the General
Election did delay our work in this field con
siderable progress has been made.