The Gazette 1971

Society of Young Solicitors

Maurice Curran has been elected as Chairman of the

Society for 1971-72, Derek Greenlee as Hon. Treasurer

and Anne O'Toole as Secretary.

Autumn Seminar

A Seminar on the Practical Implications for the

Solicitor of Ireland joining the Common Market will

be held on Saturday/Sunday the 6th/7th November

1971 at the Talbot Hotel, Wexford. Amongst the

speakers will be Mr. Stanley Crossick, Secretary of the

European Group of the English Law Society, Mr. John

Gemple Lang, author of The Common Law and The

Common Market and at least one lawyer from the

Continent. This will be a full two day seminar and

will differ substantially from previous seminars. Attend-

ance at the seminar will be limited to 200. Full details

will be available by the time this Gazette is published.

Undertakings by Solicitors to Banks

A common form of undertaking used by banks making

bridging loans to customers for the purpose of purchas-

ing property requires the solicitor for the purchaser or

intending purchaser to hold the title deeds of the pro-

perty on trust for the bank and to hand them over with

all other deeds necessary to show that the purchaser is

absolutely entitled to the property in possession free

from all charges or incumbrances as soon as the con-

veyance shall have been registered. A solicitor by sign-

ing this undertaking makes himself personally account-

able in law for any failure to carry it out and the

undertaking takes priority over his lien for the costs due

by the client in connection with the purchase or other-

wise. The undertaking further amounts to a guarantee

that the client will be entitled to the property in

possession free from all charges or incumbrances so that

the solicitor in additional to his personal liability for

negligence to the client assumes a personal liability for

any loss or damage suffered by the bank. If the solicitor

for the purchaser is also solicitor for the bank and re-

ceives professional remuneration from the bank for in-

vestigating the title on their behalf the undertaking as

to the title amounts to no more than the ordinary pro-

fessional obligation of a solicitor to a client to transact

his business properly. If a solicitor is acting merely for

the purchaser and not for the bank it would seem that

he is being asked to accept a voluntary liability towards

the bank to which he is not under any other contrac-

tual or professional liability. It would therefore seem

that such undertakings ought to be amended to exclude

any obligation by the solicitor other than to hold the

deeds on trust for the bank with such title as the docu-

ments may create. If the solicitor wishes to preserve his

lien for costs due by the client the undertaking will re-

quire further amendment. Opinion DR 14 (1) of the

Council printed in the 1968 edition of the Members'

Handbook states that where a solicitor gives an under-

taking to lodge title deeds on behalf of a client with

bankers on the completion of the purchase he is bound

to carry out the undertaking although no provision was

made for his costs.

EAP

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