The Criminal Defence Service (Funding) Order 2007

Determination of litigators’ fees

2.—(1) The appropriate officer may allow work done in the following classes by fee earners—

(a) preparation, including taking instructions, interviewing witnesses, ascertaining the prosecution case, advising on plea and mode of trial, preparing and perusing documents, dealing with letters and telephone calls which are not routine, instructing an advocate and expert witnesses, conferences, consultations, views at the scene of the alleged offence and work done in connection with advice on appeal;

(b) attending at court where an advocate is instructed, including conferences with the advocate at court;

(c) travelling and waiting; and

(d) writing routine letters and dealing with routine telephone calls.

(2) The appropriate officer must consider the claim, any further particulars, information or documents submitted by the litigator under article 6 and any other relevant information and must allow—

(a) such work as appears to him to have been reasonably done under the representation order (including any representation or advice which is deemed to be work done under that order) by a fee earner, classifying such work according to the classes specified in sub-paragraph (1) as he considers appropriate; and

(b) such time in each class of work allowed by him (other than writing routine letters and dealing with routine telephone calls) as he considers reasonable.

(3) In any proceedings which are specified in paragraph 7(2), the appropriate officer must proceed in accordance with the provisions of paragraph 9.

(4) Subject to sub-paragraphs (2), (3) and (5), the appropriate officer must allow fees under this paragraph in accordance with paragraphs 3 to 6.

(5) The appropriate officer must allow fees in accordance with paragraphs 3 to 6 as appropriate to such of the following grades of fee earner as he considers reasonable—

(a) senior solicitor;

(b) solicitor, legal executive or fee earner of equivalent experience; or

(c) trainee or fee earner of equivalent experience.

(6) In relation to hearings specified in sub-paragraph (7), the appropriate officer must only allow work of the class specified in sub-paragraph (1)(b) in any of the following circumstances—

(a) if the assisted person is charged with a class 1 offence or a class 2 offence;

(b) if the proceedings have been instituted or taken over by the Serious Fraud Office, or are before the Crown Court by reason of a notice of transfer given under section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act 1987(1) (notices of transfer and designated authorities);

(c) if the assisted person was a child or a young person within the meaning of section 107 of the Children and Young Persons Act 1933(2) (interpretation) at the time when the Crown Court acquired jurisdiction in the case (by committal, notice of transfer or otherwise);

(d) if the assisted person was unable to understand the proceedings or give adequate instructions to his advocate because of his inadequate knowledge of English, mental illness or other mental or physical disability;

(e) if the assisted person was likely if convicted to receive a custodial sentence; or

(f) if the case has been certified as requiring attendance for the whole or any part of the hearing in accordance with sub-paragraphs (10) and (11).

(7) The following hearings are specified for the purpose of sub-paragraph (6)—

(a) trials;

(b) hearings of cases listed for pleas of guilty following a plea and case management hearing;

(c) sentencing hearings following committals for sentence; and

(d) the hearing of appeals against conviction or sentence.

(8) The circumstances referred to in sub-paragraph (6)(e) only justify the allowing of attendance on—

(a) a day of a trial on which it was reasonably expected that the assisted person would be sentenced if convicted; and

(b) if different, the day on which the assisted person was in fact sentenced

and where a doubt arises whether attendance should be allowed by reason of that circumstance, the doubt must be resolved in the litigator’s favour.

(9) The circumstances referred to in sub-paragraph (6)(f) only justify the allowing of attendance to the extent specified in the representation order.

(10) A judge of the Crown Court may certify that attendance on an advocate is required for the whole or any part of a hearing and, in deciding whether a case should be so certified, the judge must have regard to the following factors, in addition to any other factors which he considers to be relevant—

(a) on which days (if any) the attendance of a significant number of defence witnesses is likely to be required;

(b) where the hearing is a trial, the amount of documentary evidence likely to be adduced on behalf of the defence;

(c) the likelihood of the assisted person disrupting the proceedings if the advocate were to appear alone;

(d) whether the advocate represents more than one assisted person;

(e) on which days (if any) the advocate is likely to require notes of the proceedings to be taken for the proper conduct of the defence.

(11) An application for a certificate under sub-paragraph (10) may be made, orally or in writing—

(a) at or at any time after the plea and case management hearing; or

(b) where there is no plea and case management hearing, at or at any time after the listing of the first hearing in the case;

(12) This paragraph applies to work in respect of which standard fees are payable under Part 2 only to the extent that that Part specifically so provides.

(1)

1987 c.38 Section 4 was inserted by the Crime and Disorder Act 1998 (c.37), section 119, Schedule 8 paragraph 65.

(2)

1933 c.12.