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There was an attendance of 59 members at the Annual
General Meeting of the Incorporated Law Society of
Ireland held at Blackhall Place, Dublin, on November
18th, 1983.
The President, Mr. Michael P. Houlihan, presided. The
Minutes of the Half-yearly General Meeting, held on May
7th, 1983, were taken as read and signed.
Accounts/Balance Sheet
Commenting on the figures, which were for a period of
eight months due to the change in the accounting year,
Mr. Quentin Crivon said that if they were prepared on an
annualised basis they would show a significant drop in
miscellaneous income and in
Gazette
income and convey
the impression that before long the Society would be
"broke".
The President pointed out that there had been very
heavy claims on the Compensation Fund. The figures in
the accounts reflected the financial position prior to his
taking up office, and he had taken steps at the beginning
of the year to ensure that a brake was put on expenditure.
Mr. T. D. Shaw, chairman of the Finance Committee,
explained that the figures which Mr. Crivon was quoting
related to the sources and application of funds, reflecting
the cash flow. The real figures relating to the Society's
work were in the income and expenditure account which
showed a surplus. The shortfall in the cash flow was due
to a decline in the use of the premises for public functions.
A determined effort had been made to contain the
Society's expenditure and this was reflected in the fact
that the increase in the subscription for the coming year
would only be £10. The Finance Committee was
budgetting for a break-even figure in the current year and
again for the coming year.
Mr. Shaw explained the operation of the Compensa-
tion Fund and added that a first stage claim on the
insurers had now been approved for payment. From the
low figure reported in the accounts, the Compensation
Fund now stood at £500,000. Mr. Crivon asked that, with
the new arrangement, the members be given an outline of
the accounting situation at the end of nine months at the
Annual General Meeting.
Mr. Desmond Moran was informed that civil
proceedings had been initiated against auditors arising
out of the claims on the Compensation Fund. Mr. Moran
argued that the Society should take criminal proceedings.
The audited accounts and balance sheet were agreed.
Council Election
The result of the Council election was published in the
December, 1983
Gazette.
In reply to a query from Mr. Michael Murphy, Mr.
Peter Prentice detailed how votes were spoiled in the
course of the election. Mr. Moran urged that ballot papers
which were voted on in numerical basis, be accepted. In
reply, Mr. Doyle pointed out that the scrutineers gave
careful consideration to each faulty ballot paper before
declaring the vote a spoiled one. Mr. Donal Kelliher
asked that in the case of future elections, the number
entitled to vote should be specified.
Council Report
The President referred to the Council Report, as
circulated to members and invited comment. The report
was discussed under the following headings:
President and Council
Mr. T. C. G. O'Mahony commended the Council on
agreeing to the appointment of a 'troubleshooter'.
Parliamentary
Mr. Crivon referred to the proposed Family Law Bill
and asked if there had been any consultations with the
Minister or his Department. Mr. John Buckley explained
that the Conveyancing Committee had written to the
Department offering help in a working party, but the
Department stated it would not be organising a working
party. As a result, the Conveyancing Committee had
commissioned Mr. Patrick Horgan, U.C.C., to prepare a
position paper which, hopefully, would be available by
the end of January. This position paper would be
submitted to the Department.
Mr. Crivon commented that the Society should be
making representations to the Taoiseach and the
appropriate Minister and not to Departmental officials
who did not have the interests of the profession at heart.
The President explained that the Society had
established a liaison with the solicitor members of the
Oireachtas and while consultation was difficult to
achieve, every effort would be made to do so at the
political level.
Mr. Ken Murphy referred to the recent comments at the
Fine Gael Ard Fheis by Deputy Bernard Allen on the
subject of the Disciplinary Committee. The President said
he had discussed this matter with the Minister and the
Society would be putting forward specific proposals to
provide for their representation on the Committee. In
addition, the Society had two representatives on a
Committee established by the Attorney General to review
what might be termed "Lawyers law", with a view to
amending legislation to clear out the deadwood.
Mr. David Pigot referred to the fact that the Society's
representatives on the Superior Court Rules Committee
had been extensively involved in the work of that
Committee in producing amendments to the Superior
Court Rules with a view to expediting business.
In reply to Mr. Moran, the Director General confirmed
that the Roll of Solicitors was maintained in bound
volumes.
Finance
Arising out of the Committee report, Mr. Brendan
Garvan raised the question of professional indemnity
insurance. The President gave a detailed report of
developments over the year. The discussions with the
various interests were still ongoing and at the moment,
the market was very fluid. There was a possibility that the
situation would become clearer towards the end of
February but it seemed that for a number of years ahead,
the Society would be advising members to seek
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