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the honorarium allowed on taxation to the learned gentleman, whoever he may be, who appears on behalf of the Crown as Counsel in the cause, and not being drawn by the Attorney- General "virtute officii" may, I submit, be received by him, upon the true construction of the assumption upon which he accepted office referred to in Sir B. Fleming's Despatch No. 91
of 1890.
1 respectfully submit that the conditions under
which the Attorney-General surrendered "fees receivable virtute
officii" cannot properly be construed to include "allowances to
Counsel" appearing for the Crown in causes before the Courts of
Law; and that if the Crown employs the Attorney-General to
appear as Counsel he may without violence to the terms of his
appointment be permitted to receive the usual "Counsel's fees"
allowed on taxation against the opposite party, for the reason
that "Counsel's fees are not "fees of office", that is to say,
are not receivable virtute officii but are professional fees,
that is to say, are receivable by the Attorney-General as
Counsel in his professional, and not in his official, capacity.
For the above reasons I venture to ask His Excellency
the Governor to move the Secretary of State to further consider
the ruling in question: for if the present ruling is to be
adhered to then the unsuccessful party in every case in which
the rights of the Crown or the public interests of the Colony
are involved will, whenever the protection of such rights and interests are entrusted to the Attorney-General, escape payment of costs which ordinarily fall upon the unsuccessful party to a cause; a condition of things for the existence of which there does not, with great respect, seem to be any valid reason.
(Sd.) Henry S. Berkeley.
Attorney-General.
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