Money David Bain receives from interviews does not have to go
towards paying for his legal aid, but Legal Aid Services
today confirmed he does have to repay some of his
multi-million dollar legal aid bill.
Legal Aid Services said he had received more than $2.7
million in legal assistance since his original trial and a
final figure would not be known until all invoices had been
received and assessed.
Yesterday a spokeswoman for the agency told the Otago Daily
Times Mr Bain would not have to repay his legal aid
from any money he got from interviews or any other money he
came into.
New
Idea reportedly paid up to $50,000 for the interview
it published this week with Mr Bain about his 13 years in
prison.
Under the Legal Services Act any changes to a person's
financial situation once a matter was dealt with could not be
taken into account retrospectively, the spokeswoman said.
This evening she clarified that thee separate grants of legal
aid were made in relation to Mr Bain's retrial - the retrial
itself and the pre-trial appeals to the Court of Appeal and
Supreme Court.
He did not have to repay the grant for the retrial but "does
have a repayment established on his aid for the pre-trial
matters".
Asked how much he had to repay, she told NZPA: "That sort of
information is private to the individual."
Members of Mr Bain's legal team could not be contacted this
evening for comment.
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