The Gazette 1973

relate to modern conditions, could have been omitted. Messrs Cheshire and Fifoot are to be highly com- mended for having precisely achieved this aim of Con- centration upon modern cases. While Smith and Thomas have managed to give us extracts from no less than 218 judgments, Cheshire and Fifoot appear to have confined themselves to 100 cases. It might be useful to select as an example a case which is fully considered in the two casebooks. Take Oscar Chess Ltd. v. Williams (1957) 1 All E.R. Smith and Thomas summarise Denning L.J's Judgment in 3 pages, while Cheshire and Fifoot take 5 pages, but admittedly the size of the book is shorter. Morris L.J.'s dissenting judgment is disposed of in 8 lines in Smith and Thomas, while Cheshire devotes more than 4 pages to this judgment. Thus it will ultimately depend on whether the reader wishes to study the case in detail as in Cheshire, or to read several cases more briefly on the same subject in Smith and Thomas. Whichever the Practitioner chooses, he will find that the learned authors of the two works have chosen their material with skill and care, and have occasionally interspersed the cases with useful comments. M. Storz, A.A. CC.A., F.T.II.—The Taxation of Businesses and Business Transactions. Oyez Publica- tions; Price £2.50. The paperback is designed as a short hand guide to the problems relating to the taxation of companies and certain business transactions. The work also discusses further problems of business transactions carried out by other bodies corporate, partnerships, sole traders and individuals so, in relation to the latter, individuals, it deals with Schedule D. Case 1 and 2 and the treatment of trading. The treatment of capital expenditure and receipts is dealt with in Part I I of the book, and Part I I I deals with such topics as hiring of plant and machinery, transactions associated with loans and credits, dealings and transactions in land. Chapter 20 purports to give the case law relating to transactions in land but, as in the remainder of the book no reference is given and the cases which support the description are not named. It follows that the value of this to lawyers is strictly limited. But a student of Accountancy would benefit from the uncomplicated simple descriptions of various tax problems as an in- troduction to the subject. BRIAN D E M P S EY LTD. UNDERTAKING documents." It was pointed out that by signing this undertaking the solicitor accepts the full liability for the full amount of his client's indebtedness to the bank even although it exceeds the proceeds of sale or the value of the property. The Council took the matter up with the Allied Irish Bank but the bank was unwilling to alter the form of the undertaking. It was decided to bring the matter to the notice of members so that they may themselves negotiate suitable forms of undertaking when dealing with the bank and that any member signing the undertaking in the form mentioned above may be fully aware of this consequent liability.

ing Exemption and Reliefs. In considering Tax avoid- ance, we can but agree in the Russell L.J. in Rallis Settlements (1963) that "it is not right to level some- thing a "device" and then strain to see that it fails". And in Weston's Trusts (1908), the Court refused to sanction a scheme of Tax avoidance on the ground that the family were going to live in Jersey. Mr. Esson has compiled this intricate material with lucidity and learning, and students of this intricate subject have cause to be most grateful to him. Cheshire (G.C.) and C.H.S. Fifoot. Cases on the Law of Contract. Sixth Edition; 8vo; Pp. xxvi, 514; London, Butterworth, 1973; Casebound £6.75; Paperback £5.80. Smith (John C. and J.A.C. Thomas)—A Casebook on Contract. Fifth Edition; 8vo.; Pp. xxvii, 592; London, Sweet & Maxwell, 1973; Cloth, £5.75; Paperback, £3.75. The fact that the second Casebook on the interesting but at times complicated subject of Contract has under- gone no less than five editions between 1957 and 1973 has undoubtedly shown how successfully Professor Smith and Professor Thomas have undertaken this venture, inasmuchas Cheshire and Fifoot in the sixth edition of their Contract Cases published also in 1973 have listed the actual cases under headings, they would seem easier to find. But Professor Smith and Professor Thomas have listed the cases in capitals in the list of Cases and provided us with an Index, which Dr. Cheshire has omitted. Smith and Thomas have divided their work into five sections as follows : (1) The Formation of a Contract, including offer, acceptance and terms. (2) Consideration and Priority. (3) Obligations arising from the Contract—such as questions of misrepresentative implied terms, mis- take and frustrations. (4) Rights and Remedies of the Injured Party including Rescission, Damages, Specific Performance and Rectification. (5) Vitiating Factors—such as, Incapacity, unenfore- able Contracts, and Void and Illegal Contracts. While we must admire the erudition and scientific legal learning displayed by the learned authors, it may be stressed that the work could have been shortened if some early 19th century and earlier decisions, which may have been important in their day, but which hardly ALLIED IRISH BANKS A member submitted to the Society for consideration the undermentioned form of undertaking which he was asked to sign by the Allied Irish Banks Ltd. "Received from the Allied Irish Banks Limited the documents hereunder specified which I/we undertake to return on demand. I/we promise to hold the said documents in trust for the said bank and not to do any act which would enable the property dealt with by them to be mortgaged or assigned without the bank's consent or their lien thereon to be in any way postponed or prejudiced. In default I/we further undertake to be accountable to the bank for the proceeds of any sale or mortgage transaction which may have been concluded and for the full amount of the claim against the said

170