New Clause 18 — Rules against referral fees

Part of Education and Training (Young People with Autism) – in the House of Commons at 7:00 pm on 1 November 2011.

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Photo of Jack Straw Jack Straw Labour, Blackburn 7:00, 1 November 2011

Surely, the firm would get paid for the costs it had incurred. Indeed, it would not pass on the file until its costs had been paid. Does the hon. Gentleman accept that a further defect of referral fees is that they might skew the judgment of the first solicitor advising the client on the best firm to go to? The solicitor might make a decision on the basis not of which is the best firm, but of which is likely to pay the biggest referral fee.