of his admission therein, or an official certificate thereof, and that the same still continues in force, to be admitted as a solicitor in any inferior Court of Equity in England and Wales, and in the Court of Bankruptcy, upon signing the roll of such other Court, but not otherwise, and shall thereupon be entitled to practise as a solicitor therein, in like manner as if he had been sworn in and admitted a solicitor of such Court; provided also, That no additional fee, besides those payable by virtue of this Act, shall be demanded or paid.

If the young attorney wish to obtain commissions to take affidavits, the expense will be about 17. 158. in each Court; and if he wish to be made a Master Extraordinary in Chancery, the expense will be

81. 13s.

CHAPTER XX.

COSTS.

General Observations-Distinctions between Taxation, as between Attorney and Client, and as between Party and Party -This Distinction explained by Examples-No Costs before Action allowed between Party and Party-Exception-Explanation of the Term Fee-and Letters, &c.-The different Scales of Costs-Directions to Taxing Officers on that Subject-Caution to Attorneys as to taking Journeys-Journeys to attend Trial of Cause-at the Assizes-in Town CausesCharging for Attendances-Instructions to Agent for Taxation of Bill-Recovery of Attorney's Costs.

It is not intended to enter into the law of costs as between litigating parties, but only to make such observations as may be thought useful to the country attorney, and enable him to understand rightly the principles on which the masters proceed in taxing an attorney's bill. Every attorney ought to have a just and fair remuneration for his skill and services : and whenever his bill is taxed, it will be found that this is not denied him; he may not, in all cases, understand the reason why particular charges are disallowed, but they are not in general disallowed without any, and it is hoped that the following observations will enable him to see this matter in its true light, as far as respects those charges made by country attorneys, which are so often disallowed on taxation. The following observations apply only to bills of costs for proceedings in actions at law, and on reference to the bills of costs given at the end of this volume, there will be no difficulty in understanding them.

It should be understood that it is a general rule, (though, perhaps, not very strictly adhered to in all cases,) that.where a bill is taxed, as between party and party, all the charges allowed, are allowed at

the same rate as where the taxation is between attorney and client, and that the distinction between the two modes of taxation does not consist in the rate of allowance for any thing done, but in the allowance, in the one case, of charges for business performed, which would be entirely disallowed in the other case. For instance, where an attorney prepares his brief for trial at the assizes, he may probably have to attend three or four witnesses at different times, to examine them and take down their evidence; these attendances, if charged in the bill, will be disallowed, it being considered that the attorney is compensated for such attendances by the allowance made on the usual item, "Instructions for Brief," and by the allowance for drawing the brief itself. It is sometimes conceived that attendances such as those just alluded to, though disallowed on a taxation between party and party, will be allowed between attorney and client, but this is a mistake; the reason for the disallowance in the one case is equally cogent in the other, and such charges will therefore be disallowed in taxations as between attorney and client. Again, suppose that after issue is joined, and it is consequently seen what questions are raised by the pleadings, it be thought prudent to take counsel's opinion upon the case and on the client's prospect of success; and that the attorney accordingly, for his own or his client's satisfaction, draws a case, and takes the opinion of counsel upon it, this opinion, if charged for in the bill, between party and party, will be disallowed, for if the party be doubtful whether he has a good case or not, it would be unreasonable to make his opponent pay for the solution of such doubts, for he ought to have been satisfied on that head before he brought the action; but there is no reason why he should not pay his own attorney for it, and accordingly this opinion will be allowed for in a bill between attorney and client. It must be observed that the above remarks do not apply to an opinion on the evidence

merely. It will therefore be seen that the difference of the allowances on taxation between party and party, and between attorney and client, always depends upon some principle quite distinct from the rate of charge; and if the principle be looked into, it will be found to be more reasonable than is generally supposed.

"

The instance which has been just given of the attorney's attendance upon witnesses, is not the only one where the charge, when specifically made, is disallowed, because it is considered as being compensated for in some other way. Other instances of this are the attorney's attendances on the client on the subject of bringing or defending the action, for instructions for declaration, plea, &c,, and the charge for such instructions when reduced into writing, though perhaps they may run to some length. In general these attendances and written instructions are not specifically allowed for, because they are allowed for in the regular charges for instructions to sue, to defend, for declaration, for plea, &c.; and though the allowance in these items would sometimes be insufficient to compensate the attorney for the trouble he has on the particular occasion, there are many other charges allowed for matters which have given much less, or even no trouble, and he must take the good and the bad together; and on the general result of his bill, it will in most cases be found that he has, on the whole, a fair compensation for his time and trouble in the business; and even if it should in some cases happen otherwise, though I believe this seldom or never occurs, he will probably find, that though one cause has required from him more than the average quantity of attention, it will be made up to him by another requiring less.

On taxing a bill between party and party, the costs to be allowed, it will be observed, are the costs of the action, and accordingly in such a bill no allowance is made for any thing done before the action was commenced.

It is, therefore, useless (unless

the other party agree to it) to make any charges in such a bill for any negociations which may have been going on between the attorney and any other party on the subject of the action, before it was commenced. There is one exception, however, to this, which is grounded on convenience, and it is, that where a plaintiff's attorney writes a letter to the defendant for payment of the debt before he brings the action, he will be allowed his charge for it; 38. 6d. is allowed for the letter, where the debt exceeds 201., and 2s. where it does not. It should, however, be understood, that though more letters than one have been written, one only will be allowed for.

No specific allowance is ever made in an attorney's bill for his letters to his agent in the course of an action, for his agent's letters to him, for the postage of any such letters, nor for the carriage of any parcels merely with instructions; all these matters are covered by the charge which is allowed, as for "letters, &c.," and by the term fees. The carriage of a parcel with a record and with briefs sent to town for taxation of costs, and perhaps occasionally in some other cases, is however specifically allowed. A term fee is allowed for the term in which the declaration is delivered, and for every subsequent term in which any step is taken in the cause; and for this purpose the term and the vacation following it are considered as one term; that is, if the step be taken in the vacation, it is considered as being taken in the term, and carries a term fee. A term fee is, however, never allowed before declaration; if the writ have been issued before the term in or after which the declaration is delivered, the attorney is entitled to make the charge for letters, &c., after charging for the writ; but if no term have commenced between the issuing of the writ and the date of the declaration, this charge cannot be made. It will sometimes happen that, during a term and the vacation following it, there may be charges allowed