Planning and Development Act 2024
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Provision for certain legal costs in relation to environmental matters | ||
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302. The Legal Services Regulation Act 2015 is amended— | ||
(a) in subsection (2) of section 150— | ||
(i) in paragraph (a), by the substitution of “concerned,” for “concerned, or”, | ||
(ii) in paragraph (b), by the substitution of “calculated, or” for “calculated.”, and | ||
(iii) by the insertion of the following paragraph after paragraph (b): | ||
“(c) where the instructions relate to proceedings to which Chapter 2 of Part 9 of the Planning and Development Act 2024 applies, indicate whether or not the legal practitioner is willing to charge fees to the client, in respect of any item of legal work carried out in relation to the matter, only in accordance with the monetary amount standing prescribed under section 294 of the Planning and Development Act 2024 in respect of the item.”, | ||
(b) in subsection (2) of section 154, by the substitution of “Subject to section 154A, where” for “Where”, | ||
(c) by the insertion of the following sections after section 154: | ||
“154A. (1) Subject to subsection (2), where a person who is the subject of an order to pay costs in respect of relevant proceedings receives a bill of costs prepared in accordance with subsection (1) of section 154, that person shall not apply to the Chief Legal Costs Adjudicator for adjudication on any matter or item other than the following: | ||
(a) that a matter or item claimed in the bill of costs is not in accordance with a monetary amount standing prescribed, under section 294 of the Planning and Development Act 2024, in relation to that matter or item; | ||
(b) that the matter or item represents work that was actually done. | ||
(2) Subsection (1) shall not apply to a matter or item in relevant proceedings where the matter or item is wholly unrelated to— | ||
(a) Part 9 judicial review proceedings (within the meaning of Part 9 of the Planning and Development Act 2024), or | ||
(b) proceedings, other than those referred to in paragraph (a), in which an applicant challenges an act or omission by any person that contravenes a provision of the Planning and Development Act 2024 relating to the environment. | ||
(3) In this section ‘relevant proceedings’ has the meaning it has in section 157. | ||
154B. (1) This section applies where a person makes an application for a payment from the environmental legal costs financial assistance mechanism in accordance with Chapter 2 of Part 9 of the Planning and Development Act 2024 and any regulations made thereunder. | ||
(2) Subject to subsection (3), where this section applies, a relevant person may, as if the relevant person were a party to the proceedings in question, apply to the Chief Legal Costs Adjudicator for adjudication upon the bill of costs, or any matter or item in that bill of costs, submitted with the person’s application for the payment. | ||
(3) An application under subsection (2) shall not be made for adjudication on any matter or item other than the following: | ||
(a) that a matter or item claimed in the bill of costs is not in accordance with a monetary amount standing prescribed, under section 294 of the Planning and Development Act 2024, in relation to that matter or item; | ||
(b) that the matter or item represents work that was actually done. | ||
(4) An application under subsection (2) may be made at any time before a payment is made to a person from the environmental legal costs financial assistance mechanism. | ||
(5) In this section— | ||
‘environmental legal costs financial assistance mechanism’ has the meaning it has in Part 9 of the Planning and Development Act 2024; | ||
‘relevant person’ means— | ||
(a) the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications, and | ||
(b) the person authorised by regulations under section 299 of the Planning and Development Act 2024 to administer the environmental legal costs financial assistance mechanism for the time being on behalf of the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications.”, | ||
(d) in section 155— | ||
(i) in subsection (3), by the substitution of “Subject to subsection (7), in determining” for “In determining”, | ||
(ii) in subsection (4), by the substitution of “shall, subject to subsection (7),” for “shall,”, and | ||
(iii) by the insertion of the following subsection after subsection (6): | ||
“(7) In determining an application for the adjudication of legal costs in relation to an order to pay costs in respect of relevant proceedings (within the meaning of section 157), the Legal Costs Adjudicator shall consider the following: | ||
(a) whether a matter or item claimed in the bill of costs is in accordance with a monetary amount standing prescribed, under section 294 of the Planning and Development Act 2024, in relation to that matter or item; | ||
(b) that the matter or item represents work that was actually done.”, | ||
(e) in section 157— | ||
(i) in subsection (3), by the substitution of the following paragraphs for paragraphs (a) and (b): | ||
“(a) charging in respect of the item is fair and reasonable in the circumstances, | ||
(b) the amount charged in the bill of costs in respect of that item is fair and reasonable in the circumstances, and | ||
(c) where the item relates to relevant proceedings, that the amount charged is in accordance with a monetary amount prescribed, under section 294 of the Planning and Development Act 2024, in respect of such item.”, | ||
(ii) in subsection (4), by the substitution of “Subject to subsection (4A), a Legal Costs Adjudicator shall” for “A Legal Costs Adjudicator shall”, | ||
(iii) by the insertion of the following subsection after subsection (4): | ||
“(4A) A Legal Costs Adjudicator shall not determine a different amount to be charged in respect of an item under subsection (4) where— | ||
(a) the item in question relates to relevant proceedings, | ||
(b) a monetary amount stands prescribed, under section 294 of the Planning and Development Act 2024, in respect of the item, and | ||
(c) the amount charged in respect of the item is in accordance with that monetary amount.”, | ||
and | ||
(iv) by the insertion of the following subsection after subsection (10): | ||
“(11) In this section ‘relevant proceedings’ means proceedings— | ||
(a) to which Chapter 2 of Part 9 of the Planning and Development Act 2024 applies, and | ||
(b) in relation to which a court has not made an order under subsection (3) or (4) of section 293 of that Act.”, | ||
and | ||
(f) in subsection (5) of section 169, by the substitution of “2000, Part 2 of the Environment (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2011 or Chapter 2 of Part 9 of the Planning and Development Act 2024” for “2000 or Part 2 of the Environment (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2011 ”. |