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the division of the profession enables the client to
obtain
legal advice at a moderate cost. Mr.
O'Donnell said he had spent two years in the
States—one in Harvard, and one in a large law
firm in Chicago. The hallmark of the American
lawyer was essentially the American system of
legal education and training ; but there was very
little mobility between legal offices—once em
ployed, one tended to stay there all one's life.
It is essential to obtain a law degree before passing
the Final Bar Examination and the failure rate is
surprisingly high. The Chicago firm contained no
less than 95 lawyers—45 partners and 50 asso
ciates ;
it was divided into Sections—Tax> Cor
poration, Trial, etc. There was a well stocked Law
Library in the actual firm, and there was an even
more comprehensive Law Library in the sky
scraper building ;
finally there was the famous
Chicago Bar Library. The apprenticeship system
was considered old fashioned, and it was more
important for the American lawyer to become a
specialist, with a team of researchers and investi
gators to help him. It is essentially a good system
of fusion without fuss.
Mr. Michael O'Mahony, favouring fusion, said
that it might remedy the glaring defects of the two
senior and junior counsel so prevalent in Ireland
and that often in practice barristers had only read
their briefs half heartedly. Mr. Neville, the chair
man, stressed that the Law Society had proposals
for text books under consideration. A report had
been published by the English Bar recommending
that the rule conferring two-thirds of the fee of
senior counsel to junior counsel be abrogated.
Mr. John Buckley said that changes were bound
to come. A unified system of legal education was
essential, whereby the inter-change between the
professions would take place. It was mediaeval
that barristers were not allowed to enter into
partnership or chamber system
to encourage
specialists. It was unfortunate that too many soli
citors tended to rely on the same counsel for every
legal problem. It was inevitable that, in applying
their
restrictive practices,
the Bar would be
excluded more and more from large commercial
transactions. As
regards judicial appointments
Mr. O'Donnell pointed out that the judiciary in
the American State and Federal Courts were on a
par with ours as a Senate Committee investigates
all judicial appointment; the dissenting judgments
of Hrandeis were famous.
Mr. Gleeson (Thurles) speculated on the effect
on the rural practitioner of the proposed increase
in jurisdiction, and of the effect of increased High
Court sittings in the country. It will be expensive
to provide an efficient service in rural areas, and it
was essential for the rural practitioner to have
access to the members of the Bar, in view of the
fact that there were no adequate law libraries in
country areas.
LEVY ON WAGES AND DIVIDENDS
URGED
A PRICES STABILISATION LEVY to be imposed by
the Minister for Finance on both dividends and pay to
stop rising prices was suggested by Professor Michael P.
Fogarty, director of the Economic and Social Research
Institute. He was speaking in Dun Laoghaire at a training
school for full and part-time officials of the Irish Congress
of Trade Unions.
He suggested also that this could be helped if there
were proper policies for farm incomes, the professions
and shopkeepers5 margins.
Everyone, said Professor Fogarty, resented rising prices,
but no-one, so far, had shown what could be done to stop
them. Prices had risen by two-thirds in the last ten years,
and by 35. or 35. 6d. in the £i in the last two years alone.
The worst part of the damage done by rising prices was
the part that was least visible, the damage to the prospect
of new jobs and of ending emigration.
Suppose, he said, that the growth of income over the
last 12 years, since the time when the economy really
began to move, had been kept to what was needed to buy
the extra production as it became available without forcing
up prices ; in that case, he said, prices today would have
been I2s. in the £i, compared to what they were now ;
so would incomes and in real terms each would have
been exactly as well off as now, neither better nor worse.
Professor Fogarty drew attention to the effect of this on
development, and said that it would have meant that the
Irish salesman visiting Britain, Germany or America could
quote a price of I2s. where today he quoted £i.
The Industrial Development Authority, talking to firms
interested in coming to Ireland, could point to Ireland as
the cheapest country in the world from which to export.
The Irish housewife, comparing the price of foreign
and Irish products in the shops, would see a price of I2S.
on the Irish product where she saw £l today.
EXPORT ORDERS
There would be no need for a " Buy Irish " movement;
no one in his senses would buy anything else ; export
orders would be pouring in ; we could, he said, bury
Buchanan and all his works under an avalanche of appli
cants to build factories anywhere in Ireland and could
afford to pick and choose from the applicants.
He added that a proper degree of Irish participation,
Irish directors en the board and scientists in the labora
tory and encouragement to native Trish enterprise could
be insisted uoon. Emigration, he siid, would vanish over
night ;
people would be streaming back ;
the farmer
coming off the land would have no need to chase a job ;
recruiters for Irish firms would be chasing him.
The resources of the country would be overstrained to
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