Subsidising Litigation - Discussion Paper
A recent Law Commission Paper, 'Subsidising Litigation' looks at ways of making it easier for people to bring civil cases to court. In NZ today, the Commission says, the rich can afford to engage in civil litigation. Legal aid may be available to the very poor. But between these two extremes there is a very broad band of people who cannot enforce their legal rights because to do so would be too expensive.
Dispute Tribunals were meant to help with this problem, but the Commission says they suit only the articulate and the assertive and their powers only cover amounts up to $7,500, or $12,000 if both parties agree.
One possible solution is to allow lawyers to charge for their cases in a different way. Currently, there is no legal barrier to stop lawyers agreeing, as an act of charity, to take on a case on the basis of only charging a normal fee if the case succeeds. The paper asks if the law should be changed to permit NZ lawyers to handle cases where they will be paid only if the case succeeds; but, if the case does succeed they are entitled to a higher than normal fee - to make up for their risk of not being paid at all.
| Submissions close 28 February 2001. Comments should be sent to M Josling, Researcher, Law Commission, PO Box 2590, DX 23534, Wellington. Hard copies of the paper ($15 incl GST) can be obtained from C Gurney, the Law Commission, tel (04) 473 3453, email cgurney@lawcom.govt.nz , or downloaded free of charge from the Commission website at www.lawcom.govt.nz |
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