What factors will the registrar consider when reviewing a bill for fees, expenses and disbursements?

21 Resort to the factors set out in Yule v. Saskatoon are no longer required because of the coming into force of s-s.71.1(2) of the Legal Profession Act which provides: 71.1 (1) ... (2) At a review of a bill for fees, expenses and disbursements, the registrar shall consider all of the circumstances, including (a)the complexity, difficulty or the novelty of the issues involved, (b)the skill, specialized knowledge and responsibility required of the member, (c)the member's character and standing in the profession, (d)the amount involved, (e)the time reasonably expended, (f)where there has been an agreement between the member and the member's client that fixes a fee rate that is based on an amount per unit of time spent by the member, whether the rate was unreasonable, and (g)the importance of the matter to the client whose bill is being assessed, and the result obtained.

22 Although this statutory code embodies the essentials of what is set out in Yule v. Saskatoon, clause (f) of s-s. 71.1(2) enables the registrar to review the reasonableness of hourly rates adopted by a solicitor for determining the remuneration he or she charges a client. This is not included in Yule v. Saskatoon. Its presence in the statute recognizes the widespread use of this measure of remuneration. However, it also recognizes that a rate may reflect factors which are unrelated to the services required by the client. An hourly rate may reflect only the solicitor's seniority at the Bar or it may be struck without due or any regard to the factors relevant to the particular service the solicitor is asked to perform.

23 In the case at bar, whether the registrar's decision is examined in light of Yule v. Saskatoon or the statutory code in s-s.71.1(2) of the Legal Profession Act, I think the result would be the same. In my view, where there is neither a contract of the kind described by the chambers judge nor a series of interim accounts based on the product of hourly rates and time spent, the registrar is not arbitrarily restricted in his review of a solicitor's bill by the fact that the apparent premium for success exceeds what has been heretofore allowed.