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GAZETTE
APRIL 1981
Mr. Alexander in the Follies of Divorce said that "the
Law doesn't really divorce husbands and wives. It seems
to think it does, but in fact they divorce themselves." A
divorce statute must protect the parties from coerced
decisions. It must safeguard the interest of the children,
and provide the adult parties with an opportunity to avoid
rash decisions.
A divorce statute must neither
discourage co-operation and good faith efforts to resolve
issues of finance or custody, nor aggravate the tensions
and hostile emotions that accompany the break-up of
marriage. It must also facilitate, or at least not
undermine, the development of sound re-organised family
relationships. It must also recognise the law's limits in
what is basically a highly personal situation where the law
is not always the best equipped instrument in the
particular circumstances of the case. However, any
statute even if it fully covers all these matters will be of
little use if it does not make divorce equally available to
people who because of financial inability are unable to
pay counsel and court costs and other expenses.
"The question of the introduction of divorce raises
questions of religious beliefs, the requirements of society
and the needs of individual couples who find themselves in
intolerable positions. Those who both advocate for and
against divorce must recognise that the question of the
introduction or not of divorce in this country is not an end
in itself. A total re-appraisal of our family law, which is in
many areas archaic and unsuited to present day require-
ments, is necessary.
"The time has been reached when legislators and the
general public must seriously consider the deletion of
Article 41.3.2° from the Constitution and the enactment
of legislation to correspond with the social reality of
marriage. A whole new codification and re-appraisal of
our family is now required.
"Let us hope that those who are in a position to intro
duce change have for the sake of society the political will
to do so.
Independent Actuarial Advice regarding
Interests in Settled Property
and
Claims for Damages
BACON & WOODROW
Consulting Actuories
58 Fitzwilliom Square
Dublin 2
(Telephone 762031)
GAZETTE BINDERS
Binders which will hold 20 issues are
available from the Society
Price £4.75 (inc. VAT) + 72p postage.
BOOK NOTE
The Society's Library has received an Index to Legal
Citations and Abbreviations by Donald Raistrick
published by Professional Books at £15 Sterling.
Identifying abbreviations has long been a problem for
the legal profession, as there has been no standardisation
and many abbreviations have more than one meaning.
This is the first near-definite work of its kind to have been
compiled in English and the first to have attempted to in-
clude all the known variants of the citations listed.
The geographical coverage is broadly the United
Kingdom, Commonwealth and the U.S.A., but frequently
encountered abbreviations of Common Market countries
are also included.
While the book must be of'principle use to libraries and
universities, the Index, with over 20,000 entries, should
find its place as an invaluable bibliographical tool in the
hands of all who have need to consult law books.
Mr. Raistrick is the Librarian at the United Kingdom
Law Commission.
INTERNATIONAL
BAR ASSOCIATION
John F. Buckley has been appointed Chairman of the
International Bar Association's Committee on Legal
Education and Continuing Legal Education, which is a
Committee of the General Practice Section of the I.B.A.
APPRENTICESHIPS
Professor Woulfe of the Society's Law School has drawn
our attention to the fact, that while the demand for
apprenticeships is great, the Society is satisfied that it has
succeeded in ensuring that no candidate who was
qualified to enter the Society's Professional Course under
the new system has failed to find a Master.
DEED OF
APPRENTICESHIP -
ADDENDUM
Conditional Indentures
The Education Committee draws to the attention of any
practitioner about to take on an apprentice that, where
the Indentures are executed before the student has passed
the Final Examination — First Part, the following
specimen clause may be added to the deed of apprentice-
ship:
"These Indentures are conditional upon the
Apprentice's passing the Final Examination — First
Part* (at the next sitting). In the event of the
Apprentice's failing to satisfy this condition then
these Indentures of Apprenticeship shall be deemed
to be cancelled by mutual consent."
*may be deleted if not required
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