The Gazette 1980

GAZETTE

JANUARY-FEBRUARY 1980

Society participates in Inaugural

Meeting of Law Teachers Body

The Society was represented by John F. Buckley.

Chairman, Education Committee, and Professors

Richard Woulfe and Laurence Sweeney as well as the

Misses Pearse and Sheehan, wholetime tutors, at the

inaugural meeting of the Irish Association of Law

Teachers which was held in University College, Cork,

from December 14th to 16th. Professor Woulfe was

elected to the Council of the Association for the coming

year.

The meeting was attended by approximately sixty law

teachers from various third-level institutions in Ireland.

The Association is to be congratulated, not only in estab-

lishing itself on an all-Ireland basis, but in opening its

doors to all engaged in third-level law teaching. The U.K.

example where university and professional teachers group

themselves in the Society of Public Teachers of Law while

those teaching in polytechnics and other "lesser"

institutions are grouped in the Association of Law

Teachers has well been avoided.

The opening lecture was given by Dr. Paul O'Higgins

on "Irish Law — does it really exist?" and his principal

theme was our neglect of our own legal history. It must

have come as a considerable surprise to many of his

audience to learn just how great a treasure house they

were ignoring (and were probably ignorant of).

The other principal guest at the meeting was Professor

William Twining, formerly of Queens University, Belfast,

and now of the University of Warwick, whose contri-

bution to the session on "Legal Literature and Publica-

tions in Ireland" was extremely valuable and illum-

inating. Professor Twining was Chairman of the Society

of Public Teachers of Law's Working Party on Legal

Literature in Small Jurisdictions. Dr. Henry Ellis of

N.I.H.E. was the other invited contributor to this session

while Tom Hadden of Q.U.B., Andrew Prideaux of Sweet

and Maxwell and John Buckley also took part in the

discussion. As the Society is now the leading law

publisher in Ireland its representatives were most

interested in the views expressed in the discussion.

They were even more interested in the succeeding

session on Professional Legal Training in which Professor

Woulfe participated as a guest speaker. Unfortunately,

the Kings Inns had no official representative present. We

learned from Mr. James Russell of the Institute of Profes-

sional Legal Studies, Belfast, that the problems facing an

institution endeavouring to teach a "skills" course leading

to a professional qualification in one jurisdiction are

remarkably similar to those which arise in other juris-

dictions.

After the morning session the Madrigal Society of

University College, Cork, treated the attendance to a

short concert of medieval songs and Christmas carols

which we much appreciated. Working sessions on the

teaching of various subjects were held in the afternoon

and the meeting concluded with a dinner in the Arbutus

Lodge Hotel on the Saturday evening at which the

President of University College, Cork, was the guest of

honour.

The meeting was organised with great efficiency and

friendliness by the Law Faculty of University College,

Cork, to whose head, Professor Bryan McMahon, and his

staff, particularly David Tomkin and David Morgan, the

thanks of the participants are due. It is to be hoped that

the Association having got off to such an auspicious start

will grow and flourish.

The officers of the Association for the coming year are:

President

Prof. R. F. V. Heuston

Hon. Treasurer

Mr. j . Brehony

Hon. Secretary

Prof. D. S. Greer

Council Members: Professors K. Boyle, J. C. Brady, B.

McMahon, R. Woulfe, Dr. H. Ellis, Ms. P. Maxwell.

INTERNATIONAL BAR ASSOCIATION

Berlin to be 1980 Conference Site

for International Bar Association

The Eighteenth Biennial Conference of the

International Bar Association will be held from 25th to

30th August 1980 in Berlin. Karl Carstens, President of

the Federal Republic of Germany, will address the

opening session.

General sessions of the conference will focus on dis-

cussion of two topics: a code of conduct for transnational

corporations and lawyer advertising and specialisation.

Simultaneous translation into French, German and

English will be provided.

In addition to the general sessions there will be dozens

of committee-sponsored meetings. Among topics to be

debated in these meetings will be atomic energy projects

in Europe, expropriation by governments of real property,

procedures for settling disputes, construction contracting

in the Peoples Republic of China, and a wide variety of

criminal law subjects.

International Bar Association members attending the

meetings will be guests at receptions hosted by the

government of the Federal Republic of Germany at

Castle Charlottenberg, by the Deutscher AnwaltVerein in

the National Gallery, and by the government of West

Berlin at the Berliner Philharmonie.

Other social events highlighting die meeting will be a

banquet in the historic Funkturm, a boat trip on the

Berlin lakes, and excursions in both East and West Berlin.

For complete programmes and registration forms

contact the Director General, The Incorporated Law

Society of Ireland, Blackhall Place, Dublin 7; or write to

The International Bar Association, Byron House, 7-9 St.

James' Street, London SW1A 1EE; or Telex 8812664

INBAR G.