  We present a theoretical study of elastic spin-dependent electron scattering
caused by a charged impurity in the vicinity of a two-dimensional electron gas.
We find that the symmetry properties of the spin-dependent differential
scattering cross section are different for an impurity located in the plane of
the electron gas and for one at a finite distance from the plane. We show that
in the latter case asymmetric (`skew') scattering can arise if the polarization
of the incident electron has a finite projection on the plane spanned by the
normal vector of the two-dimensional electron gas and the initial propagation
direction. In specially preparated samples this scattering mechanism may give
rise to a Hall-like effect in the presence of an in-plane magnetic field.
