207Unreasonable legal costs—disciplinary action

207 Unreasonable legal costs—disciplinary action

207 Unreasonable legal costs—disciplinary action

(1) A contravention of a requirement of this Part that a law practice must not charge more than fair and reasonable legal costs is capable of constituting unsatisfactory professional conduct or professional misconduct on the part of—

(a) the responsible principal or principals for a bill given by the law practice (see section 188); and

(b) each legal practitioner associate or foreign lawyer associate who was involved in giving the bill or authorising it to be given.

(2) Subsection (1) applies to a responsible principal—

(a) whether or not he or she had actual knowledge of the bill or its contents; and

(b) whether or not he or she had actual knowledge that the legal costs were unfair or unreasonable.

(3) However, subsection (1) does not apply to a responsible principal if he or she establishes that it was not reasonable for him or her to suspect or believe that the legal costs in the bill were unfair or unreasonable in the circumstances (otherwise than by the mere assertion of someone else involved in the law practice).