Legal Services Bill [HL]

moved Amendment No. 616A: 616A: Clause 185, page 100, line 15, at end insert— ““( ) Where an award of costs is made to a party under this section, the prescribed charity shall have regard to the wishes of the legal representative of that party with respect to the distribution of the award.”” The noble Lord said: My Lords, your Lordships may recall that we debated this matter in Committee. It concerns two issues; first, the Government have established a system—both imaginatively and correctly, in my view—whereby cost awards may be made, in future, to the successful litigant who has pro bono representation. The second issue is: what happens to the money that flows from the cost awards? The Government have established a system under the Bill whereby it will be managed by a prescribed charity. The terms of reference of that charity, and the manner in which it is to be established, have yet to be decided—but it will, of course, be a creature of charities legislation. In Committee, our concern was for those individuals who might have views about how the cost award ought to be distributed which conflicted with the charitable scope of the prescribed charity. At the end of the debate, the noble and learned Lord, Lord Goldsmith, kindly suggested that I might take the time to look into the intended terms of reference of that charity, to satisfy myself that its objectives conformed with those of which, during the debate, I had said I approved. I have done so, and I am entirely satisfied about them. However, there might be circumstances in which a pro bono representative has strong views about the destination of the moneys, even within the terms laid down in the charitable objectives of the prescribed charity. Amendment No. 616A is intended to require the prescribed charity to have regard to the wishes of the legal representative of the party with respect to the distribution of the award made to that party. I have been much influenced by the discussions that I have had with various lawyers, in particularMr Robin Knowles, who have spent a great deal of time, entirely at the service of the general public, to ensure that the idea behind the clause gets off the ground. I applaud the work that he has done. Indeed, I would like to say to the noble and learned Lord, Lord Goldsmith, how much I admire everything that he has done for the pro bono movement. Since the early seeds were sown, it has gone from strength to strength. The fact that he is prepared to put his shoulder so firmly behind it is one of the main reasons for its success. So in tabling the amendment, I do not want the noble and learned Lord to think that I am in any way trying to undermine his objectives. I am simply trying to ensure that those who do the pro bono work can, if they wish, have some say in the ultimate destination of the money. I beg to move.