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The Society's lectures in the various courses should
be taken before attending the examinations in which
the subjects are included.
These lectures may be
taken together in one year if the apprentice wishes.
An apprentice who has already obtained credit for
attendance at university law
lectures or at the
Society's law lectures in any subject under the former
regulations will be exempted from further attendance
at the University or at the Society for lectures in that
subject.
It should however be noted that an ap
prentice who may already have attended the Society's
lectures in property, contract and tort may have to
attend lectures in the University, in order to obtain
the remission of one year in the term of apprentice
ship under paragraph 3 of the second schedule to the
Solicitors Act 1954.
Apprentices attending the
compulsory university law lectures under regulation
21 and obtaining credit therefor will be autom
atically entitled to this remission.
4. Transitional provisions.
The
last
intermediate examination under
the
present regulations will be held in spring 1957 and
the new first law examination will commence in
autumn 1957.
Under the existing practice of the
Council an apprentice may attend the intermediate
after two years' service but may be admitted as a
concession to the examination after 18 months'
service.
Apprentices who pass the intermediate
examination including the book-keeping examination
may attend the final examination under the present
regulations which will continue until spring 1960,
subject to conforming with the regulations as to
time, etc.
An apprentice who passes the first law examination
which will commence in autumn 1957 may also
attend the book-keeping examination and the final
examination under the present regulations down to
spring 1960,
subject
to conforming as above.
If he passes the present final examination lie need
not attend the second and third law examinations
under the new regulations. An apprentice who does
not pass the final examination before spring 1960
must attend and pass the new first, second and third
law examinations. During the transitional period
the Court of Examiners may on special application
permit such an apprentice to take the examinations
together or separately. The regulations confer wide
powers on the Court of Examiners to deal with
special cases of difficulty during the transitional
period.
5. Apprentices who enter into indentures after 31 st
August, 1956, will not be subject to the transitional
provisions and will be bound by the regulations as to
the times at which the various examinations may be
taken and other matters.
6. The principal change effected by
the new
regulations is that the first law examination (unlike
the present
intermediate
examination) will be
conducted at final level and the successful candidate
will not be subject to further examination in the
subjects except as mentioned above. It is important
therefore for each apprentice now serving under
indentures to decide whether he will take the present
intermediate or the new first law examination and
to plan his studies accordingly. Apprentices who
intend to take the first law examination will bear
in mind that there will be no examination in practice
at this stage but a full and detailed examination in the
theory subjects. Apprentices who intend to take
the intermediate examination will bear in mind
that there will be a paper on practice and that some
of the more difficult parts of the law of property
will be excluded. Apprentices who pass the final
examination
in or before spring 1960 will be
examined over the whole course as at present, but
after spring 1960 the subjects taken at the first law
examination (except commercial law as mentioned
above), will not be included in the second and third
examinations.
7. Members who have apprentices are asked to
bring the above to their notice.
DEATH
DUTIES
AND STAMP
DUTIES.
FINANCE BILL, 1956.
THE attention of members is drawn to the following
important provisions of the Finance Bill, 1956,
of special interest to solicitors.
1. Where the property passing on the death of
any person dying domiciled in the State includes
any Irish stocks, shares, or securities the value of
such stocks, shares and securities for the purposes of
assessment of estate duty shall be deemed to be
two-thirds of their full value.
In order to benefit
from this concession the deceased person must have
been beneficially entitled to such shares for at least
three years before his death (Section 21), but any
charge or incumbrance may be deducted in full.
2. It will be recalled that Section 13 of the Finance
(No. 2) Act 1947 imposed astamp duty of 25 percent.