Access to Justice (Northern Ireland) Order 2003
| Jurisdiction | UK Non-devolved |
| Citation | SI 2003 Draft |
Draft Order in Council laid before Parliament under paragraph 2(1)(a) of the Schedule to the Northern Ireland Act 2000, for approval by resolution of each House of Parliament
2003No.(N.I.)
NORTHERN IRELAND
Access to Justice (Northern Ireland) Order 2003
ARRANGEMENT OF ORDER
PART I
CITATION, COMMENCEMENT AND INTERPRETATION
1. |
Citation and commencement |
2. |
Interpretation |
PART II
NORTHERN IRELAND LEGAL SERVICES COMMISSION
3. |
Northern Ireland Legal Services Commission |
4. |
Membership of the Commission |
5. |
Power to replace Commission with two bodies |
6. |
Planning |
7. |
Powers of Commission |
8. |
Guidance |
9. |
Northern Ireland law and foreign law |
Civil legal services
10. |
Civil legal services |
11. |
Funding of services |
12. |
Services which may be funded |
13. |
Individuals for whom services may be funded |
14. |
Decisions about provision of funded services |
15. |
Funding code |
16. |
Procedure relating to funding code |
17. |
Terms of provision of funded services |
18. |
Costs orders against assisted parties |
19. |
Costs of successful unassisted parties |
20. |
Regulations about costs in funded cases |
Criminal defence services
21. |
Criminal defence services |
22. |
Criminal defence services: code of conduct |
23. |
Advice and assistance |
24. |
Representation |
25. |
Individuals to whom right to representation may be granted |
26. |
Grant of right to representation by court |
27. |
Grant of right to representation by Commission |
28. |
Appeals |
29. |
Criteria for grant of right to representation |
30. |
Selection of representative |
31. |
Terms of provision of funded services |
Supplementary
32. |
Restriction of disclosure of information |
33. |
Misrepresentation etc. |
34. |
Position of service providers and other parties etc. |
35. |
Solicitors and barristers |
36. |
Register of persons providing services |
PART III
OTHER FUNDING OF LEGAL SERVICES
Conditional fee and litigation funding agreements
37. |
Interpretation of Part III |
38. |
Conditional fee agreements |
39. |
Conditional fee agreements: supplementary |
40. |
Litigation funding agreements |
41. |
Litigation funding agreements: the Commission |
42. |
Litigation funding agreements: costs |
Costs
43. |
Recovery of insurance premiums by way of costs |
44. |
Recovery where body undertakes to meet cost liabilities |
PART IV
SUPPLEMENTARY
45. |
Application to Crown |
46. |
Orders, regulations and directions |
47. |
Remuneration orders |
48. |
Transitional provisions and savings |
49. |
Minor and consequential amendments and repeals |
SCHEDULES
Schedule 1 - |
Northern Ireland Legal Services Commission |
Schedule 2 - |
Civil Legal Services: Excluded Services |
Schedule 3 - |
Transitional Provisions and Savings |
Schedule 4 - |
Minor and Consequential Amendments |
Schedule 5 - |
Repeals |
At the Court at , the day of 2003
Present,
The Queen's Most Excellent Majesty in Council
Whereas a draft of this Order has been approved by resolution of each House of Parliament:
Now therefore, Her Majesty, in exercise of the powers conferred by paragraph 1(1) of the Schedule to the Northern Ireland Act 2000( 1) and of all other powers enabling Her in that behalf, is pleased, by and with the advice of Her Privy Council, to order, and it is hereby ordered, as follows:
PART I
CITATION, COMMENCEMENT AND INTERPRETATION
Citation and commencement
1. - (1) This Order may be cited as the Access to Justice (Northern Ireland) Order 2003.
(2) Except as provided by paragraph (3), this Order shall come into operation on such day or days as the Lord Chancellor may by order appoint.
(3) The following provisions come into operation on the expiration of one month from the date on which this Order is made -
(a) this Part,(b) Article 45,(c) Article 46(4) to (6), and(d) Article 48(1).Interpretation
2. - (1) The Interpretation Act (Northern Ireland) 1954( 2) shall apply to Article 1 and the following provisions of this Order as it applies to an Act of the Northern Ireland Assembly.
(2) In this Order -
"advice" means any oral or written advice -
(a) on the application of the law to any particular circumstances that have arisen in relation to the individual seeking the advice; and(b) as to any steps which that person might appropriately take, having regard to the application of the law to those circumstances;"assistance" means any assistance (other than advocacy) to any individual in taking any of the steps which an individual might take, including steps with respect to proceedings, having regard to the application of the law to any particular circumstances that have arisen in relation to him, whether the assistance is given by taking such steps on his behalf or by assisting him in taking them on his own behalf;
"child" has the meaning given by Article 2(2) of the Criminal Justice (Children) (Northern Ireland) Order 1998( 3);
"civil legal services" has the meaning given by Article 10;
"the Commission" means the Northern Ireland Legal Services Commission;
"court-ordered youth conference" has the meaning given by Article 33A(5) of the Criminal Justice (Children) (Northern Ireland) Order 1998;
"criminal defence services" has the meaning given by Article 21(1);
"diversionary youth conference" has the meaning given by Article 10A(2) of the Criminal Justice (Children) (Northern Ireland) Order 1998;
"the Law Society" means the Law Society of Northern Ireland;
"magistrates' court" has the meaning assigned to that expression by Article 2(2)(b) of the Magistrates' Courts (Northern Ireland) Order 1981( 4);
"prescribed" means prescribed by regulations;
"regulations" means regulations made by the Lord Chancellor;
"relevant proceedings" has the meaning given by Article 25;
"representation" means representation for the purposes of proceedings and includes -
(a) all such assistance as is usually given by a solicitor or counsel in the steps preliminary or incidental to any proceedings;(b) in the case of civil proceedings, all such assistance as is usually so given in arriving at or giving effect to a compromise to avoid or bring to an end any proceedings;"solicitor" means a solicitor of the Supreme Court;
"statutory provision" has the meaning assigned to it by section 1(f) of the Interpretation Act (Northern Ireland) 1954( 5);
"tribunal" includes an inquiry or proceedings before an arbitrator or umpire, however appointed, whether such inquiry or proceedings take place under a reference by consent or otherwise.
(3) References to counsel and solicitors shall be construed in accordance with Article 10 of the European Communities (Services of Lawyers) Order 1978( 6) and regulation 14 of the European Communities (Lawyer's Practice) Regulations 2000( 7).
PART II
NORTHERN IRELAND LEGAL SERVICES COMMISSION
Northern Ireland Legal Services Commission
3. - (1) There shall be a body known as the Northern Ireland Legal Services Commission (in this Order referred to as "the Commission").
(2) The Commission shall have such functions as are conferred or imposed on it by the provisions of this Order or any other statutory provision.
(3) The Commission shall exercise its functions for the purpose of -
(a) securing (within the resources made available, and priorities set, in accordance with this Part) that individuals have access to civil legal services that effectively meet their needs, and promoting the availability to individuals of such services, and(b) securing that individuals involved in criminal investigations or relevant proceedings have access to such criminal defence services as the interests of justice require.(4) Schedule 1 (which makes further provision about the Commission) has effect.
Membership of the Commission
4. - (1) The Commission shall consist of -
(a) a member who is to chair it, and(b) not fewer than six, nor more than ten, other members,but the Lord Chancellor may by order substitute for either or both of the numbers for the time being specified in sub-paragraph (b) such other number or numbers as he thinks appropriate.
(2) Both the member who is to chair the Commission, and the other members, shall be appointed by the Lord Chancellor.
(3) In appointing persons to be members of the Commission the Lord Chancellor shall have regard to the desirability of securing that the Commission includes members who (between them) have experience in or knowledge of -
(a) the provision of services which the Commission can fund as civil legal services or criminal defence services,(b) the work of the courts,(c) consumer affairs,(d) social conditions, and(e) management.(4) The Lord Chancellor may by order amend paragraph (3) by adding, omitting or substituting areas of experience or knowledge.
(5) In making appointments under this Article, the Lord Chancellor shall as far as practicable secure that the members of the Commission, as a group, are representative of the community in Northern Ireland.
Power to replace Commission with two bodies
5. - (1) The Lord Chancellor may by order establish in place of the Commission two bodies -
(a) one to have functions relating to civil legal services, and(b) the other to have functions relating to criminal defence services.(2) An order under paragraph (1) shall include amendments of -
(a) any provisions of, or amended by, this Order which refer to the Commission, and(b) any other statutory provisions which so refer,to replace references to the Commission with references to either or both of the bodies established by the order.
Planning
6. - (1) The Commission shall inform itself about -
(a) the need for, and the provision of, civil legal services and criminal defence services, and(b) the quality of the services provided.(2) The Commission shall plan what can be done towards meeting that need by the performance by the Commission of its functions.
(3) The Commission may co-operate with such authorities and other bodies and persons as it considers appropriate in facilitating the planning of what can be done by them to meet that need by the use of any resources available to them.
(4) The Commission shall notify the Lord Chancellor of what it has done under this...
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