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The Gazette of the Incorporated Law Society of Ireland.
[JULY,
1919.
Recent Decision.
CHANCERY DIVISION (IRELAND).
(Before Sir James H. Campbell, Bart. C.)
JUNE 28th, 1919.
In re. a Solicitor.
Statu
tory Committee appointed tinder Section
34
of the
Solicitors'
(Ireland) Act,
1898. —
Professional
Misconduct—" Touting " for Business.
This was an application on behalf of the
Incorporated Law Society of Ireland to the
Lord Chancellor to make such an Order as he
should think fit upon the report dated 27th May,
1919, of the Committee appointed under Section
34 of the Solicitors' (Ireland) Act, 1898.
The report dealt with an application made
to the Committee by a Solicitor against another
Solicitor, the applicant alleging that the Solicitor
had been guilty of professional misconduct,
such professional misconduct consisting of
" touting " for the business of one of the appli
cant's clients.
The Committee having heard the application
reported upon the facts and found that the
Solicitor " had been guilty of repeated acts of
seeking business in a manner which, in the
opinion of the Committee, amounts to ' touting,'
which is conduct unbecoming of a Solicitor."
The Committee further found " that a
prima
facie
case of misconduct had been proved against
the Solicitor within the meaning of Section 35
of the Solicitors' (Ireland) Act, 1898."
Counsel for the Society, and Counsel for the
Solicitor against whom the application had been
made, having been heard, the Lord Chancellor
in giving judgment said that he would apply
the judgment of Lord Justice Lopes in the case
of Allison v. The General Medical Council ([1894]
1 K.B. 750) to cases reported upon the by
Statutory Committee, unless he found that the
Committee had been wrong on a question of law,
or that there was no evidence upon which they
could reasonably arrive at the conclusion to
which they had come.
Lord Justice Lopes
in the case above referred to in considering
the functions of the General Medical Council
in
relation to applications against members
of the medical profession said that "if it
is shown that a medical man, in the pursuit
of his profession, has done
something
in
regard to it which would be reasonably regarded
as disgraceful or dishonourable by his pro
fessional brethren of good repute and compet
ency then it is open to the General Medical
Council to say that he has been guilty of infamous
conduct
in a professional
respect."
His
Lordship stated that in applications in relation
to Solicitors the Statutory Committee
take
the place of the General Medical Council, and
their opinion
as
to what
is professional
misconduct on the part of a Solicitor is the
best opinion on
the question
that can be
obtained, being an opinion arrived at by
leading members of
repute at
their
pro
fession as to what is to be regarded as pro
fessional misconduct on the part of a member
of their profession.
In the present case the
Committee had reported that the Solicitor had
been guilty of " touting" for business, and
they had also found that a
prima facie
case of
misconduct had been proved against him. His
Lordship expressed his opinion that " touting "
for business by a Solicitor is professional mis
conduct, but in the case before him the " touting"
had not been of an aggravated character, and
while expressing his disapproval of the Solicitor's
conduct, he would not in the circumstances
make any order against him other than that he
should pay the Society's costs of the motion.