Running costs Attourney Generals Office

Summary

The request sought wage costs for the Attorney General's Office and details regarding legal actions against Dr Ranson, including decision-making levels and total costs. The authority provided links to public accounts for wage data, clarified that litigation decisions rest with the client, and disclosed specific legal fees while citing exemptions for information already available online.

Key Facts

• Wage cost information for 2020-2021 is available in public government accounts ('Light Blue Book', 'Dark Blue Book', 'Pink Book').
• The Attorney General's Chambers does not hold information on the internal decision level for appealing against Dr Ranson, as that decision belongs to the instructing litigating party.
• Specific legal fees disclosed include £1,125.00 plus VAT prior to the Tribunal main hearing and £1,631.25 plus VAT after the Decision and Reasons.
• Internal lawyer time recorded between 12 May and 30 August 2022 totaled 108 hours.
• Lawyers have a duty to secure justice before a court while fearlessly protecting their client's interests based on instructions.

Data Disclosed

• April 2020 to April 2021
• 2022-08-30
• 2022-09-26
• 11 May 2022
• 12 May to 30 August 2022
• £1,125.00
• £1,631.25
• 108 hours
• 2603077

Exemptions Cited

• Section 20(2)(b) of the Freedom of Information Act 2015 (Information accessible to applicant by other means)
• Section 11(3)(a) of the Freedom of Information Act 2015 (Practical refusal reason: information not held)

Original Request

Dear Sirs Please provide the yearly running costs associated with wages at the Attorney Generals Office for tax year April 2020 to April 2021. Also please advise at what level in the Attorney Generals Office was the decision made to appeal against Dr Ranson in the DSSC case and the total costs that the Attorney Genetals Office has accrued to date on all legal action with Dr Ranson . I would also be obliged if the Attorney Generals Office could provide an answer if they have a legal duty not to defend a government department, when the department is seeking to prevent public justice. Again for clarity I am referring to the lost appeals in the Dr Ranson appeal hearings by the Attorney General's Office

Data Tables (1)

Data Tables (reformatted)

Full Response Text

Attorney General's Chambers 2nd floor Belgravia House Circular Road, Douglas Isle of Man, IM1 1AE Telephone: (01624) 685452 E-mail: attgen@gov.im

Our ref: 2603077 26 September 2022

Dear ###

We write further to your request which was received on 30 August 2022 and which states:

"Dear Sirs 1. Please provide the yearly running costs associated with wages at the Attorney Generals Office for tax year April 2020 to April 2021. 2. Also (a) please advise at what level in the Attorney Generals Office was the decision made to appeal against Dr Ranson in the DSSC case and (b) the total costs that the Attorney Genetals Office has accrued to date on all legal action with Dr Ranson . 3. I would also be obliged if the Attorney Generals Office could provide an answer if they have a legal duty not to defend a government department, when the department is seeking to prevent public justice. Again for clarity I am referring to the lost appeals in the Dr Ranson appeal hearings by the Attorney General's Office Note: Paragraph references added for ease of reference. While our aim is to is to provide information whenever possible, in respect of part 1 of your request an absolute exemption applies under section 20(2)(b) [Information accessible to applicant by other means] of the Freedom of Information Act 2015 (“the Act”), as the information you have requested is available on the internet as follow: • Detailed Government Accounts 2020-21 – ‘Light Blue Book’ https://www.gov.im/media/1373798/detailed-government-accounts-year-ended- 31-march-2021.pdf • Government Accounts 2020-21 – ‘Dark Blue Book’ https://www.gov.im/media/1374132/audited-accounts-2020_21-final.pdf • The Budget 2020 – ‘Pink Book’ https://www.gov.im/media/1368490/pink-book- 2020-final-website.pdf In respect of part 2(a) of your request, while our aim is to provide information wherever possible in this instance a practical refusal reason applies under section 11(3)(a) of the Freedom of Information Act 2015, as the Attorney General’s Chambers

(“Chambers”) does not hold the information requested. In the interests of providing advice and assistance under section 15 of the Act, in respect of the rationale for the application of the practical refusal reason, the role of a civil litigation lawyer, wherever employed, does not extend to determining how litigation should be pursued without instructions from a client. The final decision on what course to pursue in civil litigation is always that of the litigating party instructing the lawyer. In respect of Part 2(b) of your request, while our aim is to is to provide information wherever possible, an absolute exemption applies to part of the information requested under section 20(2)(b) [Information accessible to applicant by other means], i.e. fees charged and paid to 11 May 2022, as this information is available on the internet as follow: https://iom.icasework.com/servlet/servlets.getImg?ref=D1271021&bin=Y&auth=0&db =ZVD1ZPdIGvo%3D&access_token=g2Byhqr_MB1ov_G3SbzR8vQ9sKaYOUCEafLYg1CY H8vzz2YuJNU3wPnimTG56H36.2z5EeUtFDciM2nlH2foa1g%3D%3D Regarding fees paid to counsel (other than as captured in the above FoI request concerning hearing costs), please see below:

• Prior to Tribunal main hearing: £1,125.00 plus VAT (outside scope of FoI response provided above) • After the Decision and Reasons:£1,631.25 plus VAT (post-dates last FoI response provided above)

• Internal lawyer time 12 May to 30 August 2022 - 108 hours In respect of part 3 of your request, whilst the Attorney General and Solicitor General each have over-arching good governance responsibilities relevant to the Department and Boards, constituting what is known as Isle of Man Government, and lawyers in Chambers in their conduct of litigation are mindful of such responsibilities, as stated above the final decision on what course to pursue in civil litigation is always that of the litigating party instructing a lawyer. In general terms, all lawyers (whether employed in Chambers or otherwise) have a duty to any Tribunal or Court before which they are appearing on behalf of a client to secure that justice is done before that Court or Tribunal. Lawyers also have a duty to fearlessly protect the interests of their client before a Court or Tribunal, in line with the instructions they receive.

Please quote the reference number 2603077 in any future communications.

Your right to request a review

If you are unhappy with this response to your freedom of information request, you may ask us to carry out an internal review of the response, by completing a complaint form and submitting it electronically or by delivery/post.

An electronic version of our complaint form can be found by going to our website at https://services.gov.im/freedom-of-information/Review . If you would like a paper version of our complaint form to be sent to you by post, please contact me and I will

be happy to arrange for this. Your review request should explain why you are dissatisfied with this response, and should be made as soon as practicable. We will respond as soon as the review has been concluded.

If you are not satisfied with the result of the review, you then have the right to appeal to the Information Commissioner for a decision on; 1. Whether we have responded to your request for information in accordance with Part 2 of the Freedom of Information Act 2015; or 2. Whether we are justified in refusing to give you the information requested.
In response to an application for review, the Information Commissioner may, at any time, attempt to resolve a matter by negotiation, conciliation, mediation or another form of alternative dispute resolution and will have regard to any outcome of this in making any subsequent decision. More detailed information on your right to a review can be found on the Information Commissioner’s website at www.inforights.im. Should you have any queries concerning this letter, please do not hesitate to contact me. Further information about freedom of information requests can be found at www.gov.im/foi.

I will now close your request as of this date.