Legal Practitioners (Petty Sessions) (Contentious Business) Determination 2005 (WA)

874 GOVERNMENT GAZETTE, WA 1 March 2005

LEGAL PRACTICE ACT 2003

LEGAL PRACTITIONERS (PETTY SESSIONS)

(CONTENTIOUS BUSINESS) REPORT 2005

Made by the Legal Costs Committee under section 214 of the Act.

PART 1—PRELIMINARY

Citation
1. (1) This report may be cited as the Legal Practitioners (Petty Sessions) (Contentious Business)
Report 2005.
(2) The determination set out in the Schedule to this report is referred to in this report as the Legal

Practitioners (Petty Sessions) (Contentious Business) Determination 2005.

PART 2—NOTICE AND INQUIRIES

Notice under section 213 of the Act
2. The Legal Costs Committee has complied with the notice provisions of section 213 of the Act.
Inquiries and submissions under section 58Y of the Act
3. Before making the Legal Practitioners (Petty Sessions) (Contentious Business) Determination 2005

the Legal Costs Committee—

(a) reviewed all submissions received as a result of the notice given under section 213 of the Act;

(b) consulted with the Court;

(c) consulted with the Law Society of Western Australia (Inc.);

(d)	reviewed the Legal Practitioners (Petty Sessions) (Contentious Business) Determination 20021; and
(e)	had regard to relevant provisions of the Magistrates Court Act 2004 which is proclaimed to commence 1 May 20052.

1 [Published in Gazette 24 Sept 2002 pp. 4749-57].

2 [see s. 2 and Gazette 31 Dec 2004 p. 7127].

PART 3—REPORT OF COMMITTEE’S CONCLUSIONS

Hourly rates
4. (1) The Legal Costs Committee noted that the jurisdiction of the Court of Petty Sessions covers a
wide range of civil and criminal matters from the consideration of dividing fence disputes between
land owners to offences against the provisions of Acts of Parliament, by-laws and regulations made
pursuant to them.
(2) As a consequence of this position stated in sub-clause (1), the Legal Costs Committee considers it
remains appropriate for a general scale of fees based on hourly rates to be applied to the time
reasonably taken to perform the services provided by a practitioner in, or for the purposes of
contentious business in the Court of Petty Sessions.
(3) It is the recommendation of the Legal Costs Committee, after reviewing the information gained as
a result of the inquiries and submissions described in clause 3 and having regard to the impending
commencement of the Magistrates Court Act 2004, amendment to the rates used in the Legal
Practitioners (Petty Sessions) (Contentious Business) Determination 2002 is not warranted.
(4) It is further the recommendation of the Legal Costs Committee that the hourly rates charged by
practitioners under the Legal Practitioners (Local Court) (Contentious Business) Determination 2002
should be adopted as the basis for costs for the supply of legal services covered under the Legal

Practitioners (Petty Sessions) (Contentious Business) Determination 2005.

(5) The hourly rates referred to in subclause (4) are set out in the Table to clause 4 of the Legal
Practitioners (Petty Sessions) (Contentious Business) Determination 2005.

(6) The recommendations of the Legal Costs Committee are not intended to override the entitlements of a practitioner to make a written agreement as to costs with a client under the Legal Practice Act 2003.

TED SHARP, Chairman.
MICHAEL McPHEE, Deputy Chairman.
JANINE FREEMAN, Member.
ANGELA GAFFNEY, Member.
CLARE THOMPSON, Member.

MARCUS COCKER, Member.

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1 March 2005 GOVERNMENT GAZETTE, WA 875

Schedule

LEGAL PRACTICE ACT 2003

LEGAL PRACTITIONERS (PETTY SESSIONS)

(CONTENTIOUS BUSINESS) DETERMINATION 2005

Made by the Legal Costs Committee under section 210 of the Act.
Citation
1. This determination may be cited as the Legal Practitioners (Petty Sessions) (Contentious Business)

Determination 2005.

Commencement
2. This determination comes into operation on 1 March 2005.
Application
3. (1) This determination applies to the remuneration of practitioners in respect of contentious
business carried out by practitioners in or for the purposes of proceedings in the Court of Petty
Sessions.
(2) This determination does not apply to the remuneration of practitioners based on costs incurred in
respect of business carried out before the commencement of this determination.

Hourly rates time reasonably taken to perform services in or for the purposes of contentious business carried out by practitioners in or for the purposes of proceedings before a Court of Petty Sessions.

4. The hourly rates set out in the Table to this clause are the maximum hourly rates which the Legal

Table

Fee Earner Maximum allowable

hourly rates

Practitioner (admitted for 5 years or more)

(SP) - hourly rate $250

Junior Practitioner (admitted for less than 5 years)

(JP) - hourly rate $175

Clerk/Paralegal

(CPL) - hourly rate $75

Made by the Legal Costs Committee on 15 February 2005.

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