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2.9 The Council's Bye-Laws and Regulations were redrafted during the year, and updated
and adopted in new form.
2.10 The impact of the E.E.C. has enormously increased the work of the E.E.C. Committee.
There is a continuous flow of draft directives from various Government Departments and the
Committee has been very fully occupied in dealing with the drafts, in putting forward proposals
and in meeting the Department Officials concerned and in meeting with and discussing the
draft Directives with representatives of other Member States. In this respect, there has been
full consultation and meetings with our colleagues in the North of Ireland, in England and
Scotland and in the E.E.C. countries, with particular reference to the movement of lawyers
within the European Community and the provision of service by lawyers in the various Member
States.
2.11 As the profession is aware, the National Prices Commission has appointed a Consultant,
Professor Dennis Lees, to review our remuneration under wide terms of reference. So that
Professor Lees may be fully informed, it is essential that every Bar Association consider in
detail the terms of reference and the queries raised by Professor Lees in his letter to the Society
and arrange to submit, if they have not already done so, a memorandum containing their
comments and submissions. Individual practitioners are invited to do so also. It is absolutely
essential to ensure that comments and submissions, where possible, be supported by statistics
or factual information which prove the validity of the comments and submissions made. A
number of practitioners undertook to assist Professor Lees by furnishing accounts and by
making their offices available for inspection. It is equally essential to ensure that all commitments
in this respect be honoured immediately and if there is any outstanding commitment by any
member of the profession, the individual concerned should immediately contact our Director
General.
2.12 During the year, the Council accepted with regret the resignations of Mr. Ralph Walker
(Dublin) and Mr. T. V. O'Connor (Swinford, both past Presidents, as well as that of Mr. Peter
O'Connell (Dundalk). Mr. John F. Buckley (Dublin) and Mr. Raymond T. Monahan (Sligo)
were co-opted to the Council. Mr. Rory O'Donnell (Dublin) was co-opted as the representative
of the Dublin Solicitors' Bar Association instead of Mr. Buckley.
REGISTRAR'S
COMMITTEE
Patrick F. O'Donnell
Chairman
Walter Beatty
Anthony E. Collins
Maurice R. Curran
Gerard M. Doyle
Ernest J. Margetson
Roderick D. O'Donnell
David R. Pigot
Mrs. Moya Quinlan
Thomas M. D. Shaw
Patrick F. O'Donnell,
Chairman
3.1 At the commencement of its year of office, the Registrar's Committee met on a number
of occasions, for the specific purpose of considering how best to expedite the handling of
complaints against Solicitors, and to expedite the workings of the Committee itself, and the
following was decided:
A. The practice hitherto followed of writing three letters to a Solicitor against whom a
complaint had been made, would be dropped. In future, one letter only would be written to
the Solicitor against whom a complaint was made and if the Solicitor failed to deal with the
complaint, before the lapse of seven days, a second letter would be written, requesting him to
attend before the Registrar's Committee, and notifying him that failure to attend would result
in the matter being referred to the Disciplinary Committee.
B. The Committee would meet each week instead of once every two weeks, to endeavour to
clear up the back log and to expedite the ever increasing number of complaints.
3.2 The adverse commentary in the News Media,.regarding complaints against Solicitors,
and concerning the delays of the Incorporated Law Society, in dealing with these complaints,
posed particular problems for the Registrar's Committee. The publicity itself resulted in an
acceleration of the number of complaints lodged and resulted in added pressure on both the
Secretariat and the Registrar's Committee.
It is a source of great concern to the Committee, that a great number of Solicitors against
whom complaints have been made, fail to deal with the complaint in the first instance, and
latterly failed, without notice, to appear before the Registrar's Committee, when required
to do so. Investigation by the Committee is thus hampered, and delay reflects not only on the
individual member of the profession, but on the profession as a whole and the Society in
particular. It has therefore proved necessary to be more vigilant and diligent in our handling
of these complaints.
3.3 The Committee found it necessary to take a special look at the area of Accountant's
Certificates. At one period during the year, there were in excess of one hundred Solicitors who
had not filed Accountant's Certificate within the specified period, and some of these dated back
as far as 1971. It was therefore decided that these Solicitors would be notified that should their
Certificates not be filed within a period of eight weeks, then the Society's Accountant would
go to inspect their Books.
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