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On Legislative Council members' concern whether there was any forward manpower planning to cope with the difficult staffing situation in the Legal Department's Commercial Crimes Unit during the early 1990S, Mr Mathews said a local recruitment exercise was held in March 1991 after nine lawyers had left the unit.
He said that exercise had been planned some months in advance and was another attempt to try to break out of the pattern of overseas recruitment which had been a feature of the Legal Department for many years.
This local recruitment exercise however was not very successful, he noted.
Mr Mathews said of 12 vacancies in the department (including eight in Prosecutions Division) only seven were filled.
"So we were forced to undertake an overseas recruitment exercise. Recruitment overseas, by its very nature, takes very much longer, and it was not until August 1991 that we could interview overseas candidates. Those selected did not actually start to take up their duties with us until February 1992," he said.
As regards Council members' concern about the Legal Department's inaction against the Government's "zero growth" policy in 1990, Mr Mathews said he warned at the time that since the Legal Department was basically demand led there might come a situation where the demand for legal services would outstrip the department's capacity.
"In the event we received no increase until 1993/94," Mr Mathews said.
On concerns about the time needed to approve and effect payment of counsel's fees, Mr Mathews said the Legal Department did not give favourable treatment to the processing of Mr Graham Grant's fee notes for payment.
"All counsel's fee notes are as a matter of practice certified and approved (i.e. countersigned) for payment within a few working days upon submission.
"Actual payment by the Director of Accounting Services, however, is effected after a few weeks when all standard accounting procedures have been completed.
"That is the practice for all cases and there were no exceptions in Mr Grant's case," Mr Mathews said.
End/Tuesday, May 9, 1995