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The Council expressed the following opinion
on the facts before them,
(i) Agency allowance
covers the correspondence between the Irish and
the foreign solicitor. Member could not be paid
twice for this correspondence and it would probably
be an implied term of the retainer that member
would be entitled to the agency allowance which
would relieve the client from any further liability
in respect of this work.
(2) Member is not obliged
to pay to the client the whole or any portion of the
agency fees allowed to him by the English solicitor.
(3) Member may properly charge the client additional
fees for correspondence with or attendances on the
client in Ireland if this work has not already been
charged in the English solicitor's bill.
(4) Com
mission received by one solicitor from another on
the usual agency terms is not a secret commission
as the practice is well established and recognised.
(5) The allowance of agency does not increase the
costs for which the client is liable and avoids the
necessity of submitting two bills, one from the
English solicitor to the client and the other from
the Irish solicitor to the client in respect of cor
respondence with the English solicitor.
(6) The
costs of the English solicitor are payable by the
client unless recovered from the other side and
it is
immaterial whether the English
solicitor
keeps the whole or shares it with the instructing
solicitor.
Land Registry Northern Ireland. Affidavit
of attesting witness.
THE Secretary reported that as the result of re
presentations made by the Incorporated Law Society
of Northern Ireland at this Society's request the
Registrar of Deeds in Northern Ireland had made a
rule whereby documents bearing the attestation of a
solicitor who holds a practising certificate in the
Twenty-Six Counties will not require an affidavit
of attesting witness.
Depreciation of Land Bonds.
IT was decided
to make representations to the
Irish Land Commission that where bonds stand
at less than par either at allocation or date of issue
additional bonds should be issued to make up the
deficiency to the payee.
MAY
3 IST:
The President in the Chair.
Also
present Messrs. R. J. Walker, G. G. Overend,
T. A. O'Reilly, J. R. Quirke, F. X. Burke, D. J.
Collins, R. J. Nolan, George A. Nolan, F. J. Lanigan,
J. R. Halpin, A. Cox, T. de Vere White, Joseph
Barrett, Desmond Mayne, J. J. O'Connor, Derrick
M. Martin, C. J. Downing, John J. Sheil, P. R. Boyd,
F. Gallagher, Peter E. O'Connell, John Carrigan,
N. Gaffhey, R. McD. Taylor, W. J. Norman,
C. J. Daly, P. F. O'Reilly, John F. Foley.
The following was among the business transacted :
Regulation.
THE Solicitors Act 1954 (Apprentices' Fees) Reg
ulations 1956 (S.I. No. 140 of 1956) were made by the
Council for submission to the Chief Justice. The
Regulations having been approved by the Chief
Justice may be purchased at
the Government
Publications Sales Office.
Schedule 2 Costs.
THE Council discussed the advisability of making
application
to
the Statutory Committee under
Section 2 of the Solicitors' Remuneration Act 1881
for an increase in the item costs under the old system
as amended by Schedule 2 S.R.G.O. 1884.
The
matter was referred to a Committee with instructions
to draft the details of such a proposal for con
sideration by the Council.
Land Commission Costs.
THE Council considered and approved a written
application
to have meetings convened of the
Statutory Committees under Sections 3 and 7 of the
Land Act 1933 to consider an application by the
Society with reference to costs and a deputation was
appointed.
GRANTS
FOR
HOUSES
FOR
LETTING.
THE attention of members is drawn to the principal
provisions of the Housing (New Houses) Regulations
1954—S.I. No. 261 of 1974 as follows :—
i. By section 13 of the Housing (Amendment)
Act, 1954 the Minister for Local Government may
with the consent of the Minister for Finance and
subject to regulations made under this section make,
out of money provided by the Oireachtas to a
•p&tson providing a housefor letting
a grant not exceeding
£175 if the number of rooms in the house does not
exceed three; £225 if the number of rooms in the
house does not exceed four and £275 if the number
of rooms is five or more; these rates are reduced
by £50 for each grant if sewerage and piped water
supply are not available.
In order to obtain the
grant, the erection of the house must have been
begun before the ist April, 1954, and must have
been completed before the ist April, 1956.
The
applicant must also comply with all the regulations.
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