Detailed Provisions Payment of fees for legal work Section 92: Duty on the Scottish Ministers to pay fee for legal work in making an application
267.This section places a duty on the Scottish Ministers to pay, to a solicitor, a prescribed sum (i.e. a fixed fee) for legal work reasonably carried out in the making of an application for redress. Payment will be made whether or not the application was successful and whether or not the application was subsequently withdrawn (although in both these circumstances, separate payment amounts may be specified by virtue of section 94(4) as read with section 107(1)(a)).
268.Subsection (2) provides that where it is believed by the Scottish Ministers that work might not have been reasonably carried out, the matter will be referred for Redress Scotland to make a decision on payment. Otherwise, the request will be processed and the fixed fee paid by the Scottish Ministers without any referral to Redress Scotland being required.
269.What constitutes legal work carried out in making an application for redress (or in connection with a proposed application under section 93) is informed by both subsection (4) and by any provision that is made under section 94(3)(b). As such, it includes advice and assistance relating to: eligibility; the type of redress payment to apply for; the application process; whether to accept an offer of redress and sign a waiver; advice on whether to request a review; and the review process. However, the question of whether work is undertaken reasonably will relate not just to the type of work undertaken but also to the circumstances in which it was undertaken. For example, work involved in making an application in respect of a patently ineligible person (such as one whose abuse was not historical and which occurred in 2019) would likely not be covered.
270.Under subsections (3) and (4), legal advice given in relation to pursuing litigation as an alternative to redress will not be funded unless and to the extent that it forms part of legal work reasonably undertaken in connection with the making of an application to the scheme. For these purposes, legal work carried out in connection with making an application for redress includes advice and assistance relating to: eligibility; the type of redress payment to apply for; the application process; whether to accept an offer of redress and sign a waiver; advice on whether to request a review; and the review process.