The Gazette 1993

GAZETTE

IMNAGEMN

JUNE 1993

did not get its jet engine mainten-

ance right. Equally it is my firm

belief that one of the true marks of

quality in the larger practices is that

they will never allow a client to

find a Tippex mark or a mis-

spelling on correspondence or on

documentation and therefore make

the unfair assumption that they are,

for example, bad conveyancers.

Visit your commercial clients.

If a

client has a problem about a right

of way at his premises or a faulty

machine, visit the scene and see for

yourself. You do not need to

profess any technical expertise but

at least the client will be happy that

you are taking a real- interest and

not just dealing with the matter on

paper. It is equally surprising how

much new business you will get if

you are on the spot and can be

consulted on other matters.

Quality statement.

Every firm

should have a quality statement and

this should be published

prominently in the reception area

for clients to read.

Consultation facilities.

consultation on a one-to-one basis

with clients, do not use your office

desk as a barrier - have two or

three comfortable consultation

chairs in front of the desk and sit in

one of them facing the client

directly.

Encourage clients to complain!

Now there's a novelty. Another

mark of quality driven

organisations is that they actively

encourage their clients to talk about

their perception of service and

whether or not it was delivered in

accordance with their expectations.

This is based on the simple

premise: how can you as a

practitioner know that there is

something wrong with the delivery

of your service if you do not ask?

Many clients who perceive poor

service may simply drift away from

your firm without saying anything.

Encouraging clients to discuss their

perceptions on conclusion of a case

will help you to learn your

strengths and weaknesses and do

something about them.

10. Advertising.

Do not spend one penny

on advertising (if you are so

inclined) without being satisfied

with your quality system. Using

client satisfaction to drive referral

business is far cheaper than adver-

tising for new business. Statistics

show that if a client perceives good

service he will speak highly of it to

8 or 10 people, but if he perceives

poor service he will criticise it to 10

to 12 people.

Lawyers as a group world-wide endure

a poor public image and it will always

be so. "The Law is an Ass" and we are

the messengers of that animal and it is

the messenger that clients tend to shoot.

This public misconception can be used

to great effect by being different and

establishing your practice as a quality

organisation will allow your clients say

with pride to others that "my solicitor is ;

different".

Brian O 'Reilly is Senior Partner with B. P.

O 'Reilly & Company, Solicitors,

Tallaght,

County Dublin, a practising Notary Public,

a member of the Institute of Chartered

Arbitrators, and is joint consultant to the

Law School on office management.

•

Apprent iceship

There is now a considerable time-lag

between the date a student becomes

eligible to enter the Law School and

entry on the Professional Course. (See

note on page 151 of May, 1993

Gazette).

It is timely to remind practitioners en-

titled to take apprentices that the 1954

Solicitors Act requires an apprentice to

serve a bona fide apprenticeship during

the whole term of indentures.

The period of training in a solicitor's

office and apprenticeship should reap

benefits for both apprentice and master.

This is possible only if the apprentice is

engaged full-time in meaningful legal

work in the master's office. This is,

indeed, the requirement not merely of

the Solicitors Acts but also of the

contract of "Indentures of

Apprenticeship".

If a practitioner completes a document

which avers that an apprentice has

attended at the office or has gained

experience in certain areas of practice

where this is subsequently found not to

be the case such conduct may be viewed

as a disciplinary matter and that solicitor

may be referred to the Registrar's

Committee.

In the same way, a student who

improperly or inaccurately represents

that s/he will complete or has completed

a full-time apprenticeship may be

brought before the Education

Committee. It may then report to the

President of the High Court that the

apprentice is not, in its opinion, a fit and

proper person to be admitted as a

solicitor.

•

Education Committee.

\ The Profession in the

| Media

(Continued from page 171)

shortage of High Court judges. In the

! article in the

Independent,

spokesperson for the Society said that a

I lack of judges was just one aspect of

| the problem and that a general lack of

| resources and funding of the courts

system also contributed to the delays.

I Finally, the President of the Law

Í Society, was interviewed on the RTE

! TV 6 pm news and 6.30 pm radio news

on 3 June, 1993, in response to a

motion by the DSBA about overcrowd-

ing in the profession. Raymond

I Monahan said that the profession was

! now at saturation point and the question

had to be asked whether it was fair to

allow people to engage in expensive

| and lengthy professional training when

there was scant likelihood of a job at

the end of the process.

•

; Barbara Cahalane

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