Boeremag will cost LAB R4.5m

2003-07-30 19:09

Pretoria - The Legal Aid Board (LAB) expected to fork out as much as R4.5m for the defence in the Boeremag treason trial over a two-year period, an official said on Wednesday.

The figure was based on an estimated cost of R10 000 per day to defend eight of the accused currently receiving aid from the LAB, the board's legal services executive Peter Brits told Sapa.

On the assumption that the court would sit 160 days a year, and that the trial would last two years, this amounted to a total cost of R3.2m.

However, the likely hiring of additional counsel would add about R1.3m to the total, Brits said.

Of the 22 trialists, one has not applied for legal aid, and one has withdrawn his application until such time as his own funds dried up.

Thirteen others have indicated they would apply for aid at a later stage.

The board also decided at a meeting on Saturday that lawyers for the trialists would not receive a higher fee than the maximum stipulated - regardless of how many clients each represented.

LAB legal services committee chair Geoff Budlender said five of the lawyers, representing a total of 16 clients, had asked for higher fees. The normal tariff was R960 per lawyer per day, which could be increased to a maximum of R2 160.

Won't change fee scales

The board decided not to change its policy or its fee scales for the Boeremag legal representatives, Budlender said.

This was expected to particularly affect advocate Piet Pistorius and attorney Paul Kruger, who represent a total of 13 of the trialists. They have indicated in court they would apply for legal aid once their funds run out, and have objected to the board's stance to pay them the same rate as counsel with just one client.

Neither of the two would be eligible for more than the maximum daily LAB fee, and that was final, Budlender said.

However, the board said it would consider granting those representing more than one client additional fees for preparation time.

The fee was R180 per hour, with two hours allowed for preparation per court day. This included consultations.

In this case, the board would consider requests to increase the number of preparation hours allocated, Budlender said.

Reasonable

He said it was worrying that the decision might result in further delays of the trial, but stressed this would not be the LAB's fault.

"In our view, the policy is reasonable and we have accommodated the accused in a number of ways."

These included allowing them to retain the services of private lawyers, and agreeing in some cases to pay the maximum rather than the usual daily fee.

"We have to apply the same principles in all cases and deal with all people consistently," Budlender said. "We believe it is possible for these accused to have effective legal representation at the rate we are paying."

The trial, due to resume next Monday, has been postponed four times over disputes between the LAB and defence lawyers.

The 22 men stand accused of plotting to overthrow the government with the aim of declaring a Boer republic.

They face 42 charges, including high treason, murder, and several arms and explosives contraventions.

- SAPA