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Commissioners asking that legislation be introduced
authorising the payment to the Society of the
amount produced annually by the Stamp Duty
on indentures of apprenticeship to enable a fund
to be created to subsidise improvements in the
system of legal education and the publication of
legal text-books. It was decided that a letter should
be written to the Minister for Finance and that
the President
should
approach
the
Revenue
Commissioners.
New Stamp Duties
THE Secretary reported that he had already been
in communication with the Revenue Commissioners
and had asked them to receive a deputation from
the Society on the subject of the new stamp duties
but that he had not yet succeeded in obtaining
an appointment for the deputation.
The Council adopted a resolution received from
the Waterford Bar Association urging that the 5%
duty should be repealed and that the former duty
of i% should be reinstated.
Ordered that a letter should be written to the
Revenue Commissioners sending on a copy of the
resolution and asking that effect should be given
to it in the next Finance Act.
Applications under Section 47
THREE applications under Section 47 were received.
One application was granted on payment of two
years' duty, and the remaining two applications
were granted on payment of the current duty only.
THE CALENDAR
THE Society's Calendar and Law Directory has
been on sale since April ist. It is regretted that,
owing to difficulties in the printing trade, publication
was delayed
this year.
After supplying orders
received a limited number of copies
is available,
and any solicitor requiring a copy should order
same immediately.
INTERMEDIATE EXAMINATION
AN
Intermediate Examination will be held on
June ist. The latest date for lodging notice of in
tention to attend the examination will be May nth
CERTIFICATES OF
DISCHARGE
FROM DEATH DUTIES
SECTION XI of the Finance Act, 1894, as amended
by Section 14 of the Finance Act, 1907, is as follows r
" XI—(i) The Commissioners
on
being
satisfied that the full Estate duty has been or
will be paid in respect of an estate or any part
thereof, shall, if required by the person account
ing for the duty, give a certificate to
that
effect, which shall discharge from any further
claim for Estate duty
the property shown
by the certificate to form the estate or part
thereof, as the case may be.
" (2) Where a person accountable for the
estate duty in respect of any property passing
on
a death applies
to
the Commissioners,
and delivers to them and verifies a full state
ment to the best of his knowledge and belief
of all property passing on such death and the
several persons entitled thereto, the Commis
sioners may determine the rate of the Estate
duty in respect of the property for which the
applicant
is
accountable,
and on payment
of the duty at that rate, that property and the
applicant, so far as regards that property, shall
be discharged from any further claim
for
Estate duty, and
the Commissioners
shall
give a certificate of such discharge.
" (3) A
certificate of
the Commissioners
under
this Section shall not discharge any
person or property from Estate duty in case
of fraud or failure to disclose material facts,
and shall not affect the rate of duty payable
in respect of any property afterwards shown
to have passed on the death and the duty in
respect of such property shall be at such rate
as would be payable if the value thereof were
added to the value of the property in respect
of which duty has been already accounted
for ;
" (4) Provided nevertheless that a certificate
purporting to be a discharge of the whole
Estate duty payable in respect of any property
included in
the certificate shall exonerate a
bona fide
purchaser for valuable consideration
without notice from the duty notwithstanding
any such fraud or failure."
The general position with regard to certificates
of discharge from death duties is most unsatisfactory
inasmuch as Certificate No. 149, which is
issued
by the Revenue Commissioners, is qualified by the
statement that the certificate is given on the facts
disclosed to the Commissioners and further goes
on to state that in the event of any increase in the
value of the property within a period of six years,
the certificate will not operate to discharge any
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