Section 54: Agreements with respect to remuneration for

non-contentious business (1) Notwithstanding any rules as to remuneration for the time being in force, an advocate and his or her client may, either before or after or in the course of the transaction of any non-contentious business by the advocate, make an agreement as to the remuneration of the advocate in respect of that transaction. (2) The agreement may provide for the remuneration of the advocate by a gross sum, or by commission or percentage, or by salary or otherwise, and it may be made on the terms that the amount of the remuneration stipulated in the agreement for either shall or shall not include all or any disbursements made by the advocate in respect of searches, plans, travelling, stamps, fees or other matters. (3) The agreement may be sued and recovered on or set aside in the like manner and on the like grounds as an agreement not relating to the remuneration of an advocate; except that if on any taxation of costs the agreement is relied on by the advocate and objected to by the client as unfair or unreasonable, the taxing officer shall inquire into the facts and certify them to the court, and if on that certificate it appears just to the court that the agreement should be cancelled, or the amount payable under it reduced, the court may order the agreement to be cancelled, or the amount payable under it reduced, and may give such consequential directions as it thinks fit. (4) This section shall be subject to the provisions of section 80.