Legal Aid (Scotland) Act 1986

Staff

7 (1) The Board shall, after consultation with, and subject to the approval of, the Secretary of State, appoint on such terms and conditions as it may determine a person to be the principal officer of the Board.

(2) The principal officer shall be responsible to the Board for the exercise of its functions.

8 (1) Subject to paragraph 9 below, the Board may appoint, on such terms and conditions as it may determine, such other employees as it thinks fit.

(2) A determination as to terms and conditions under paragraph 7(1) or sub-paragraph (1) above shall be subject to the approval of the Secretary of State given with the consent of the Treasury.

(3) The Board shall, in respect of such of its employees as it may determine, with the approval of the Secretary of State and the consent of the Treasury make such arrangements for providing pensions, allowances or gratuities as it may determine ; and such arrangements may include the establishment and administration, by the Board or otherwise, of one or more pension schemes.

(4) The reference in sub-paragraph (3) above to pensions, allowances or gratuities in respect of employees of the Board includes a reference to pensions, allowances or gratuities by way of compensation to or in respect of any such employee who suffers loss of office or employment.

(5) If an employee of the Board becomes a member of the Board and was by reference to his employment by the Board a participant in a pension scheme established and administered by it for the benefit of its employees—

(a) the Board may determine that his service as a member shall be treated for the purposes of the scheme as service as an employee of the Board whether or not any benefits are to be payable to or in respect of him by virtue of paragraph 6 above; but

(b) if the Board determines as aforesaid, any discretion as to the benefits payable to or in respect of him which the scheme confers on the Board shall be exercised only with the consent of the Secretary of State given with the approval of the Treasury.

9 (1) The Board shall, not later than such date as the Secretary of State may determine, make an offer of employment by the Board to each person employed immediately before that date—

(a) by the Law Society for the purpose of their functions under the [1967 c. 43.] Legal Aid (Scotland) Act 1967 ; and

(b) in the civil service of the State wholly or mainly in connection with the assessment of a person's means under section 4 of that Act.

(2) The terms of the offer shall be such that they are, taken as a whole, not less favourable to the person to whom the offer is made than the terms on which he is employed on the date on which the offer is made.

(3) For the purposes of sub-paragraph (2) above no account shall be taken of the fact that employment with the Board is not employment in the service of the Crown.

(4) An offer made in pursuance of this paragraph shall not be revocable during the period of 3 months commencing with the date on which it is made.

10 (1) Where a person becomes an employee of the Board on acceptance of an offer made under paragraph 9 above, then, for the purposes of the [1978 c. 44.] Employment Protection (Consolidation) Act 1978, his period of employment with the Law Society or, as the case may be, in the civil service of the State, shall count as a period of employment by the Board, and the change of employment shall not break the continuity of the period of employment.

(2) Where an offer is made in pursuance of paragraph 9(1) above to any person employed as is mentioned in that paragraph, none of the agreed redundancy procedures applicable to such a person shall apply to him and—

(a) where a person employed as is mentioned in sub-paragraph (a) of that paragraph ceases to be so employed—

(i) on becoming a member of the staff of the Board in consequence of that paragraph ; or

(ii) having unreasonably refused the offer,

Part VI of the [1978 c. 44.] Employment Protection (Consolidation) Act 1978 shall not apply to him and he shall not be treated for the purposes of any scheme under section 12 of the [1967 c. 43.] Legal Aid (Scotland) Act 1967 as having been retired on redundancy ;

(b) where a person employed as is mentioned in sub-paragraph (b) of that paragraph ceases to be so employed on becoming a member of the staff of the Board in consequence of that paragraph, he shall not be treated for the purposes of any scheme under section 1 of the [1972 c. 11.] Superannuation Act 1972 as having been retired on redundancy.

(3) Without prejudice to sub-paragraph (2) above, where a person has unreasonably refused an offer made to him in pursuance of paragraph 9 above, the Law Society or, as the case may be, the Secretary of State shall not terminate that person's employment unless it or, as the case may be, he has first had regard to the feasibility of employing him in a suitable alternative position with the Law Society or, as the case may be, in the civil service of the State.

(4) Where a person continues in employment in the Law Society or, as the case may be, the civil service of the State either—

(a) not having unreasonably refused an offer made to him in pursuance of this paragraph, or

(b) having been placed in a suitable alternative position as mentioned in sub-paragraph (3) above,

he shall be treated for all purposes as if the offer mentioned in paragraph 9(1) above had not been made.

11 (1) Any dispute as to whether an offer under sub-paragraph (1) of paragraph 9 above complies with sub-paragraph (2) of that paragraph shall be referred to and be determined by an industrial tribunal.

(2) An industrial tribunal shall not consider a complaint referred to it under sub-paragraph (1) above unless the complaint is presented to the tribunal before the end of the period of 3 months beginning with the date of the offer of employment or within such further period as the tribunal considers reasonable in a case where it is satisfied that it was not reasonably practicable for the complaint to be presented before the end of the period of 3 months.

(3) Subject to sub-paragraph (4) below there shall be no appeal from the decision of an industrial tribunal under this paragraph.

(4) An appeal to the Employment Appeal Tribunal may be made only on a question of law arising from the decision of, or in proceedings before, an industrial tribunal under this paragraph.