TNAG-1362-FCO40-1808-Hong-Kong-Hansard-reports-and-minutes-of-the-meetings-of-the-1985 — Page 135

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The opportunity has been taken in Rule 3 to extend the availability of legal aid to proceedings in the High Court or District Court to those offenders who may be referred back to the Court for sentence as a result of

breach of a Community Service Order and to clarify doubts as to the availability of legal aid for those who are to be sentenced by a District Court judge for contempt and for summary punishment for perjury. The rationale behind such extensions is to ensure that those who are to be

punished by the Courts are not, through lack of means, deprived of legal representation to plead mitigation.

A further amendment provided by Rule 3 ensures

that the limits of disposable capital and income that govern eligibility for legal aid in criminal cases are automatically maintained at the same level as those that apply under the Legal Aid Ordinance in respect of civil

cases.

The amendment contained in Rule 6 removes the

statutory limit on fees payable to Solicitors for preparatory work and daily attendances in cases which the Court has certified are of exceptional length or complexity and empowers the Director to pay such fees as are proper in the circumstances of the case. This is the existing practice under the Rules for the fees payable to Counsel once such a certificate has been given by the

Court.

/The need

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