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GAZETTE
T E C H N 0 L 0 G Y
N O T E S
MIWH
NOVEMBER1993
Lawlink is Up and Running
by John Furlong, Solicitor
LAWLINK, the ambitious
communications project initiated by the
Technology Committee of the Law
Society in 1989 is to begin pilot testing
at a number of sites from this October.
LAWLINK will allow for direct access
to a range of databases and to an
electronic mail system especially
designed for the legal profession.
Practitioners will be able to make
inquiries across a communications
gateway to a range of databases includ-
ing the Land Registry and Companies
Registration Office (CRO) directly from
their own PC. Initially, access will be
available to the Dublin region of the
Land Registry allowing users to make
direct inquiries of the names index and
to print inspection copies of folios in
their own offices. With over 190,000
folios available in the Dublin region
alone, the service is sure to enhance the
efficiency of practices particularly those
involved in conveyancing, debt
collection and credit monitoring etc.
Access will also be available through
LAWLINK to the CRO on a gateway
similar to the existing CROLINE
service. This also allows direct access
for inquiry purposes; printouts of
company details and the automatic
ordering of company documentation
from the CRO image database.
Later in the project, it is envisaged that
access will also be provided to other
public databases. It is hoped that this
will include the Registry of Deeds and
the Probate Office at an early stage.
LAWLINK Limited
LAWLINK Limited, the company
operating the service, was established
by the Technology Committee of the
Law Society in 1989 and has been in
negotiation with various bodies since
then. Earlier this year, the company
received funding from the Telematique
L-r: Frank Lanigan, Chairman, Lawlink Limited and Joe Thompson, General Manager,
Eirtrade, signing the contract for the X400 link.
Project of the European Communities
and this funding has enabled the initial
phase of the project to proceed.
Chairman
Frank Lanigan
says "Lawlink
represents a major breakthrough for the
legal profession. This new service will
mean that access to information held on
certain public databases will be
facilitated and will also provide a more
efficient method for solicitors to submit
their search requests. The whole process
can be operated from the office with a
minimum of fuss and time delays."
Communications
The system will operate across an X400
link provided under contract by
Eirtrade, the data communications arm
of Telecom Eireann. Eirtrade is a
network service which acts as a data
clearing house. Instead of having to
establish many connections between
different subscribers, only one link to
Eirtrade is needed for each. The
network also overcomes the inherent
problems of different computer types
communicating with each other as a
single protocol (X400) is used
throughout and it caters for all popular
makes. Since the network is nationwide
it does not matter where a subscriber is
located. Eirtrade are constructing the
communications, billing and auditing
elements of the LAWLINK system in
both the Companies Office and the Land
Registry Office.
To avail of the service, is envisaged that
users will register with LAWLINK and
on payment of a small registration fee
will be provided with the necessary
access codes and passwords. Hardware
required at the user site will include a
modem, a suitable PC and a printer. The
appropriate communications software
will also be installed. LAWLINK will
provide the necessary communications
software. Users will then have direct
access to the database as they come on-
line. The fee to bq charged for each
search made promises to be extremely
attractive given the speed and currency
of the information which will be
obtained.
While the system is being developed by
LAWLINK Limited and targeted
specifically at members of the
Incorporated Law Society, it will be
available to other users such as banks,
building societies, law searchers etc.
Electronic Mail
LAWLINK subscribers will
automatically have access to EIRMAIL
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