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april 1982
office, and I understood it to be the decision of the
Association of County Registrars.
Yours sincerely,
F. Briain O'Gadhra,
Limerick County Registrar,
Courthouse,
Limerick.
BOOK REVIEW
Salmond and Heuston on the Law of Torts,
18th Edition
(1981), Sweet & Maxwell Ltd. £ 15.50 (Sterling)
McMahon and Blnchy, Irish Law of Torts,
1st Edition
(1981), Professional Books Ltd. IR£34.00
Comment. . ..
(Continued from P. 75)
Historically, it must be suspected that the strength of
the doctrine in Britain and Ireland during the 19th Century
and the greater part of the present century derives from the
fact that, in their different ways, both countries were
emigrant countries. In the case of Ireland, people left
involuntarily, seeking a decent living abroad with the hope
of returning to Ireland with their fortunes made, while in
the U.K. many left to serve, either in a military or civilian
capacity, in outposts of the far flung empire, confidently
expecting to return to Britain at the end of their tours of
duty.
The attraction of the Doctrine of Domicile as a link with
the home country for such persons was clearly great, but
the changes which have taken place in the world during the
past 40 years have much reduced the desirability for
maintaining the Doctrine. •
Practice Note
Land Registry Ground Rents Purchase
Scheme — Expiry of Procedure
The attention of practitioners is drawn to the fact that,
unless a statutory extension is granted, the procedure pro-
vided under Part III of the Landlord & Tenant (Ground
Rents)(No. 2) Act of 197 8 forthe vestingofthe fee simple in
dwellinghouses through the Land Registry will expire on
the 31st July 1983.
Section 18 of the Act provides that the procedure shall
have effect only in relation to applications made under it dur-
ing the period of 5 years beginning on the 1 st August 1978.
Practitioners should ensure, in any case where clients
who would be entitled to avail ofthe procedure have discus-
sed the possible purchase of the fee simple with their
solicitors, that such clients are advised of the expiry date. C
For legal practitioners (solicitors and barristers) and
law students alike, 1981 should be remembered as the
year when the first comprehensive book on the Irish Law
of Torts was published and when Salmond on the Law of
Torts became, in its 18th edition, 'Salmond and Heuston'
on the Law of Torts.
For many years, it was a matter for some reflected pride
for all of us in Ireland that a book (I almost say
"institution") as famous as Salmond was being edited,
updated and, in effect over time, almost totally re-written
by Professor Robert Heuston of Trinity College, Dublin.
Salmond is, like Cheshire and Fifoot (Contract), Megarry
(Real Property) and Snell (Equity), "part-of-what-we-
are" as lawyers. It is only fitting that Professor Heuston is
now joined in the title of the book; I think"Salmond and
Heuston" has a nice ring to it and will, undoubtedly, give
Heuston the posterity he richly deserves.
Dr. Bryan McMahon (Solicitor and Professor of Law at
University College, Cork) and Mr. William Binchy
(Barrister-at-Law and Research Counsellor in the Law
Reform Commission) with their new book on the Irish
Law of Torts, have filled a void which Salmond could not
reasonably have been expected to fill, namely the
exhaustive citing of all Irish cases on the subject, both
reported and unreported. The principal effect of this
mammoth task will very soon be felt, as is highlighted by
Mr. Justice Brian Walsh in the Foreword to the book — as
advocates and judges place greater reliance on the now
more readily available body of Irish decisions in tort cases.
The Bar Library, with its own unique personal-recall
"precedent bank" — a necessary but fallible substitute in
the past for an effective case-reporting system, will now
have something concrete to rely on in this area of the law,
which Mr. Justice Walsh describes as "one of the main
supports of the Irish Bar".
The synthesis of Salmond and Heuston with McMahon
and Binhy produces a complete up-to-date presentation of
this most important subject — suitable both for the 'bread-
and-butter' practising lawyer and the academic student.
Particularly interesting and helpful for the student is the
different format of both books, but with each covering all
the traditional topics. McMahon and Binchy present their
treatment of the subject in five main parts, Introduction,
Parties, Injuries to the Person (physical and non-
physical), Injuries to property (real property and chattels),
and, General Matters. This gives rise, for example, to
occupiers' liability being dealt with as a chapter in Part III
on Injuries to the Person (sub-category, physical),
whereas liability for animals is in a much later chapter in
Part IV on Injuries to Property (sub-category, Real
Property). In contrast, Salmond and Heuston set out the
93