Section 18 Legal Practitioners Act

Section 18 of Legal Practitioners Act 1975 is about Taxation. It is under ‘Remuneration of Practitioners‘ of the sections of the Act. It provides as follows:

1. The taxation of a bill of charges shall be in accordance with the provisions of any order in force under section 15 of this Act; and where no such order is in force or any item falling to be taxed is not dealt with by the order, the charges to be allowed on taxation of the item shall not exceed such as are reasonable having regard to the skill, labour and responsibility involved and to all the circumstances of the case.

2. If, at the time and place appointed in pursuance of rules of court for the taxation of a bill, one of the parties appears and any other party does not, the taxing officer shall proceed to tax the, bill unless for special reasons he determines to adjourn or further adjourn the taxation so as to afford an absent party an opportunity to be present; and where he does so determine he may also determine by whom any costs, of the adjournment or further adjournment shall be payable.

3. Where on the taxation of a bill it appears to the taxing officer that there are circumstances of the case which make it appropriate to refer the taxation to the court, he shall so refer it; and the court may either-

a. proceed itself to tax the bill and notify to the taxing officer the amount to be declared and stated in his certificate in pursuance of the next following subsection; or

b. refer the taxation back to the taxing officer with its direction in the matter.

4. On the completion of the taxation of a bill, the taxing officer shall forthwith declare the amount due in respect of the bill and shall file in the records of the court a certificate signed by him stating that amount; and any party to the taxation shall be entitled on demand to have issued to him free of charge an office copy of the certificate.

5. If any party to the taxation is dissatisfied with a determination under subsection (2) of this section or the amount stated in a certificate filed in pursuance of this section (other than a certificate stating the amount notified by the court under subsection (3) of this section), he may, within twenty-one days from the date of the determination or filing, appeal to the court.

6. The certificate of the taxing officer in respect of a bill of charges, or where the certificate is varied on appeal, the certificate as so varied, shall be conclusive as to the amount of the charges payable in respect of the bill; but nothing in this subsection shall be construed as relieving a legal practitioner of any obligation to prove that a client is liable to pay a bill of charges, or as precluding a client from disproving that he is so liable.

7. Subject to the provisions of any order made by virtue of subsection (3) of section 17 of this Act, if the amount stated in a certificate under this section relating to a bill of costs, or in such a certificate as varied on appeal, is less than the amount of the bill before taxation and the difference is equal to one sixth or more of the amount of the bill before taxation, the costs of the taxation shall be payable by the legal practitioner, and in any other case those costs shall be payable by the client.