HC Deb 12 April 1911 vol 24 cc482-3
Sir HENRY DALZIEL

asked the Attorney-General whether his attention has been called to a report of the judgment of Mr. Justice Eve in a case of Be Alfred Caton, deceased, Vincent v. Vatcher and others, being an action instituted by the Official Solicitor in connection with the affairs of a lunatic, and which action was dismissed with costs, to be paid by the Official Solicitor; whether such costs are payable by the Official Solicitor personally or out of the public funds; whether the Official Solicitor is paid a salary, and in addition thereto is permitted to make whatever profits he can out of the business entrusted to him; whether, seeing that the affairs of infants, lunatics, and other persons under disabilities are entrusted to him, the Government will consider the desirability of remunerating him by a fixed salary, in lieu of the present mode of remuneration; and whether he will cause a verbatim report of the judgment of Mr. Justice Eve to be laid upon the Table?

The ATTORNEY-GENERAL (Sir Rufus Isaacs)

I am indebted to my hon. Friend for having called my attention to the judgment referred to. In view of the fact that the question of an appeal is under consideration I cannot go into the question of the merits of the action. According to the form of the action the Official Solicitor sues as next friend of the lunatic, and by the rules of the court the next friend is personally liable to pay the costs of the action if unsuccessful. The Official Solicitor receives a fixed remuneration for his services, but where he acts by direction of the court for persons under disability the expenses are usually recovered from the estates of those for whom he acts, and these costs are accounted for by him to the Treasury and are not received by him for his own benefit. I am informed that during the sixteen years' term of office of the present Official Solicitor the question of the cost of an unsuccessful action has only once had to be considered. The proceedings in the present case having been instituted after directions of the judge the question of the ultimate incidence of the costs is a matter which will be dealt with between the Official Solicitor's Department and the Treasury upon due consideration of the circumstances of the case.