§ Mr. Dobbieasked the Attorney-General whether he is aware that the successful appellant in a recent case decided in the House of Lords was described as a pauper; and whether, in view of the stigma attaching to this word, he will consult with the Lord Chancellor with a view to taking steps to put an end to the practice of describing litigants in certain circumstances as paupers and substituting some such phrase as appellant by special leave?
§ The Attorney-GeneralThe hon. Gentleman does not state to what case he refers and in what context the description appeared. There are provisions for an appeal to the House of Lordsin forma pauperis, and this phrase is used in the Statute 56 and 57 Viet., ch. 22. In these circumstances the word may well have been used not as attaching any 3322W stigma to the appellant but in reference to the procedure under which he was making his appeal which confers certain privileges on the appellant with regard to costs. The suggestion that "by special leave" should be substituted for the term might cause confusion by reason of the fact that under the Administration of justice (Appeals) Act, 1934, leave is in some cases granted by the Court of Appeal and in others by the House of Lords.