The Gazette 1961 - 64

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.