The Gazette 1976

G A Z E T T E

N O V E M B E R

1976

PRESENTATION OF PARCHMENTS

At the Presentation of Parchments to newly qualified

solicitors in Solicitors Buildings, Four Courts, Dublin on

2nd December 1976, the President, Mr. P. C. Moore,

delivered the following address:-

Ladies and Gentlemen, it is my privilege to welcome

you on this happy and very special occasion.

Firstly I must congratulate the students on their

achievements and qualifications for entry into the

Profession after so many years of hard work and en-

deavour. Secondly I congratulate your parents and

friends and it must indeed be a great joy for them to

join and participate with us in the happiness that an

occasion like this creates for all-

I welcome you as colleagues into the Solicitors' Pro-

fession and I am certain that you will maintain the high

professional standards of service and dedication that is

the aim and ambition of the Profession to provide ad-

equately for all who entrust their problems to our care-

It is also usual on an occasion like this to speak on

some matters of interest and concern to the Profession

and perhaps to the public generally, but only in a

limited way, as this is really a social occasion primarily.

Suggestions for new entrants

To the new entrants into the Profession, I would like

to make a few suggestions;

(a) If at all possible do not go into practice on your

own immediately but instead seek a couple of years

experience in an established practice and not necessar-

ily in Dublin Offices. There are I understand oppor-

tunities for such activities available throughout the

country, and you will be well advised to avail of this

experience;

(b) It is also important that you become a member

of your local Association and if setting up practice in

Dublin develop an association with the Dublin Sol-

icitors' Bar Association and the Young Solicitors Soc-

iety; I might say that it is hoped at some future date

to provide lectures and discussions on special topics

from time to time so that we can all be updated in new

and existing Law, and particularly the practice and

procedure consequent thereon.

It is hardly necessary to indicate that we are living

in an ever changing Society and it is not a cliche to say

that your student days have not ended but in fact that

they are only beginning;

On a previous occasion, I indicated the desirability

or in fact the necessity for all Young Solicitors to

create now their own Library. Your beginnings in this

area may be small, but once started it is remarkable how

it develops and grows. You will find it an invaluable

asset and a source of confidence and strength when

confronted with the many problems presented to you

for resolution.

I will now mention some matters of concern to the

Council of your Society and no doubt of considerable

importance to the public generally.

The provision of adequate Court services at Circuit

and High Court Level

1 • With the advent of Civil Aid and Criminal Legal

Aid the Council anticipates an escalation in the de-

mand for Court services on a more expeditious and less

costly basis than that presently available. There are

only I understand about sixty four Judicial Personnel

available for the administration of Justice from District

Court to Supreme Court level and it is quite clear that

no re-organisation of the Courts will be sufficient un-

less accompanied by an adequate increase in Judicial

Personnel to man the additional Courts and help clear

the backlog and maintain an up-to-date, efficient and

economic service so necessary for the public generally.

Apart from the excellent work done over the years by

the Committee on Court Practice and Procedure, there

has been no specific investigation or enquiry into the

overall organisation and re-organisation of our Courts.

In my view there is an urgent need for re-examination

of the present structures and an extension of the ser-

vices presently available. It is recognised that our Judi-

ciary and our Court Officials are making a valuable

contribution within the limits of the structures at their

disposal.

2. Briefly I will now mention some matters in the

non-contentious area of legal practice. The provision of

legal services by the Dublin Corporation and Dublin

County Council is of concern to all and in particular

the sealing of documents, the availability of Titles, the

registration of Titles and the provision of Title in the

large areas for building development recently acquired

by the Dublin Corporation. The staff of the Legal

Departments while most co-operative and helpful, can

only operate within the limitations of personnel avail-

able to them. In this connection the decision of the

Corporation to employ Firms of Solicitors in private

practice to deal with certain aspects of their activities

is noted with satisfaction. The compulsory Registration

of Titles by Local Authorities has indeed added to the

burdens in this area.

Land Registry

This perennial topic is always with us and will no

doubt be on our Agenda for a number of years to come-

The Compulsory Registration Provisions of the Regis-

tration of Titles Act, 1964 which came into operation

on the 1st January 1967 has only been extended to

three Counties, Carlow, Laois and Meath and it is un-

likely that there will be any further extension of com-

pulsory registration to other Counties until there is a

solution of the many problems that still beset the Land

Registry system. It is only right to say that the Regis-

trar of Titles and his Officials are doing their best

with the personnel, and space at their disposal. The

Mapping situation which is the foundation of a Land

Registration system is engaging special attention, and

there appears to be no immediate hope of the Land

Registry Map being annexed to the Certificates of Title

or official copies of Folios in the foreseeable future- It

is understood that large sums of public money must be

expended if the system is to be equated to the service

it is intended to give.

Another comment is the imposition of Land Registry

fees on Purchasers in addition to the burden of heavy

Stamp Duties at the three and four per cent levels.

There appears to be no reason why there should not

be a substantial reduction in these areas, and the pres-

ent discrimination between Purchasers of new houses

and secondhand houses is an anomaly which should be

examined especially where secondhand houses are pur-

chased up to the threshold of say £15,000. There

is no reason why the Land Registry should be a self-

supporting system thereby imposing an unneccessary

burden on Purchasers in addition to stamp duty.

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