Legal Practitioners Act Amendment Act 1948 (WA)

1948.] Legal Practitioners. [No. 37.

LEGAL PRACTITIONERS.

12° and 13° GEO. VI., No. XXXVII.

No. 37 of 1948.

AN ACT to amend the Legal Practitioners Act,

1893-1946.

[Assented to 21st December, 1948.]

BE it enacted by the King's Most Excellent Majesty,by and with the advice and consent of the Legis- lative Council and Legislative Assembly of Western Australia, in this present Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:—

Short title

1.    (1) This Act may be cited as the Legal Practi- aaa citation.

tioners Jet Amendment Act, 1948, and shall be read as 1946%. a.°

one with the Legal Practitioners Act, 1893 (as reprinted with amendments up to and including Act No. 48 of 1926 in the appendix to the Sessional Volume of the Statutes for the year 1927, and as further amended by Acts No. 45 of 1944, No. 18 of 1945 and No. 18 of 1946), hereinafter referred to as the principal Act.

(2) The principal Act as amended by this Act may be cited as the Legal Practitioners Act, 1893-1948.

2.    Section six of the principal Act is amended by Ontment

inserting after paragraph (d) of subsection (1) a new

paragraph as follows:— New para.

(da) For prescribing what portion of his articles graph (da).

May be served by an articled cleric with a

No. 37.] Legal Practitioners. [1948.

practitioner other than the practitioner to whom he is articled, and the conditions of such service.

Amendment

of s. 10. 3. Section ten of the principal Act is amended as

follows :-

(a)

By inserting at the commencement of the last

line thereof the words "except in the case of

the Crown Solicitor for the time being"; and

(b)

by adding thereto provisos as follow:

Provided that a person who shall have served his articles with the Crow.m. Solicitor for the time being shall not be admitted as a practitioner unless and until he shall have obtained a degree of Bachelor of Laws in any University recognised by the Board for this purpose, and

Provided further that no such person shall be entitled to practise on Ins own behalf as a practitioner unless and until he shall have satisfied the Board that he has had twelve months' experience in the office of a practitioner in private practice.

New sections

13b, 18c and 4. New sections are inserted in the principal Act,

1.3d.	after section thirteen a as follows :—
Service under

articles to	13b.	No service under articles shall be valid
accord with

Act and rules.

unless such service is performed in accordance with

this Act and the rules made thereunder.

If valid ser-

vice not	13c.	If an articled clerk shall for a period of one
performed,

practitioner	month cease to perform valid service under his
to report to
board.	articles, the practitioner to whom such clerk is articled shall forthwith make a written report to the Board thereon.

Cancellation 13d.

Upon the application of an articled clerk, or of the practitioner to whom a clerk is articled, the Board may cancel the articles of such clerk upon such terms as the Board may see fit. Provided that there shall be a right of appeal to the Full Court of Western Australia by any person aggrieved by a decision of the Board under this section.

of articles.

1948.] Legal Practitioners. [No. 37.

5. (1) Section fourteen of the principal Act is	Amendment
of s. 14.

repealed and the following section is inserted in lieu	Repeal and
new section.
thereof:

14. No person shall hereafter be admitted a 1„,v,',Iyairr""s

practitioner unless he is a natural born or natural- admitted.

ised British subject of the full age of twenty-one

years, and

(a) is a solicitor admitted and entitled to practise in the High Court of Justice in England or Northern Ireland, or in the Supreme Court of an Australian State to which practitioners of the Supreme Court of Western Australia are entitled to be admitted; or

(b) is a solicitor admitted and entitled to practise in the Superior Courts of Law in a Dominion Colony or Dependency of His Majesty. where in the opinion of the Board-

(i) the system of jurisprudence is founded on or assimilated to the common law and principles of equity as administered in Eng- land, and where

(ii)    the like service as is mentioned in either of the next two following paragraphs under articles of clerkship to a solicitor and an examination to test the qualifica- tion of candidates are required prior to such admission; or

(c) has actually and bona fide served for a term of five years under articles of clerkship to a practitioner as required by this Act; or

(d) having taken a degree in law at any univer-

sity recognised by the Board for this

purpose has actually and bona fide served

for a term of two years under articles of clerkship to a practitioner as required by this Act.

No. 37.] Legal Practitioners. [1948.

Provided that no person shall be quali- fied for admission under this paragraph until lie has satisfied the Board that he obtained Ins degree only after passing examinations in substantially those sub- jects and at as high a standard as would be required for the degree of bachelor of laws at the University of Western Australia.

Saving. (2) The repeal of the said section fourteen of

the principal Act shall not, for a period of two years from the date of the commencement of this Act, prejudice or affect the rights or qualification for admission under such section of any person who, at such date, is domiciled and resident in the State and is then a barrister admitted and entitled to practise in the High Court of Justice of England or Ireland of less than two years' standing.

Amendment

of s. 20.	6. Section twenty of the principal Act is repealed
Repeal and

new section.	and the following section is inserted in lieu thereof :-
complaints

against 20. Any person feeling aggrieved by reason of

practitioner.	(a)	any alleged illegal or unprofessional con- duct of any practitioner, whether com- mitted or suffered before or after the coming into operation of this section, or
(b)	any neglect or undue delay in the conduct of the business of such person by any practitioner

may, by himself or agent, make complaint thereof

in writing to the Board.

Amendment

of s. 21 of 7. Section twenty-one of the principal Act is amended

principal Act.

by inserting the words "neglect or undue delay" after

the word "conduct" wherever it occurs in the section.

Amendment

of s. 24.	8. Section twenty-four of the principal Act is repealed
Repeal and

new section.	and the following section is inserted in lieu thereof :—
Board to

report to	24. (1) If upon such inquiry the Board shall be
Court or to

deal sum-	of opinion that the practitioner is guilty of any
marily with
matter.	illegal or unprofessional conduct, or that the prac- tioner is guilty of any neglect or undue delay in

1948.] Legal Practitioners. [No. 37.

the conduct of the business of the complainant, the

Board may

(a)	make and transmit a report thereon to the Full Court, with a copy of the evidence taken on the enquiry; or
(b)	inflict a fine not exceeding one hundred

pounds; or

(c) suspend the practitioner from practising

for a period not exceeding two years; or

(d)	reprimand the practitioner ; and
(e)	in any case may make such order as to payment of costs by him as the Board may think fit. The Board may order that any costs be taxed by the Master of the Supreme Court, for which costs the Master shall give his allocatur.

Any order made by the Board under the fore-

going provisions may be enforced in the same manner

as an order of the Court made under the Act.

(2)

(3) A practitioner suspended from practice by order of the Board shall not be entitled to practise within the meaning of this Act until the period of suspension has elapsed, or until readmitted as a practitioner by the Full Court.

The practitioner may appeal to the Full Court

in the prescribed manner against any order made by

the Board under this section.

(4)

9. Section forty-eight of the principal Act is amended by adding thereto words as follows:

Where such person directly or indirectly receives, expects, or is promised pay or remuneration for or in respect of other work or services relating to, connected with or arising out of the same trans- action or subject-matter as that to which the said first-mentioned work or services shall relate, the provisions of this section shall not apply.