The Gazette 1955-58

Gaining and Lotteries Act, 1956

MEMBERS asked the opinion of the Council as to the

propriety of accepting instructions for the recovery

of gaming debts since the passing of the Act.

Section 36 (2) of the Act states that " no action shall

lie for the recovering of any money or thing which

is alleged to be won or to have been paid upon a

wager which has been deposited

to abide

the

event on which a wager is made ". In a recent

English case R.

Weisz (1951, 2 A.E.R. 408),

Lord Goddard criticised counsel and solicitor who

acted in a case for the recovery of a gaming debt

in which the cause of action was described as an

account stated and settled. It is understood that

since the report of this case members of the Bar have

been unwilling to sign pleadings. The matter was

referred to a committee for a report. Having con

sidered the committee's report the Council decided

to advise members as follows :

A solicitor is acting

unprofessionally if he knowingly institutes pro

ceedings for a client on a non-existent (as distinct

from a valid although un-enforceable) contract or

cause of action. It is therefore unprofessional to

threaten or institute proceedings on behalf of a

client for a gaming debt which falls within the pro

hibition of the statute, even although no attempt is

made to disguise the nature of the action.

••"

FEBRUARY 6xH :

The President in the Chair. Also

present: Messrs. Desmond J. Mayne, James J.

O'Connor",

John Maher,

Joseph

Tyrrell,

Christopher E. Callan, Eunan McCarron, Peter E.

O'Connell, Robert McD. Taylor, Patrick R. Boyd,

George G. Overend, John J. Sheil, George A. Nolan,

Niall S. Gaffney, John R. Halpin, Arthur Cox,

Patrick Noonin, Francis J. Lanigan, Cornelius J.

Dily, Charles J. Downing, Desmond J. Collins,

John J. Nash, James R. Quirke, Terence de Vere

White.

The following was among the business transacted :

Undertaking for Return of Title Deeds

A SOLICITOR obt lined title deeds from a bank on

tehalf of a client in exchange for the following

receipt and undertaking sign3d by the solicitor :

" Received on loan from the X Bank the documents

hereunder specified which I hereby undertake to

return on demand and in any event within 30 days.

I hereby further undertake to hold the said docu

ments on trust for the said Bank and not to do any

act which would enable the property dealt with by

them to be mortgaged or assigned without the said

Bank's consent or their lien thereon to be in any

way postponed or prejudiced. In default I hereby

undertake to pay to the bank the full amount of their

claim against such documents." The documents

included an original land certificate which had been

deposited with the bank as security for the client's

liabilities and the object of their delivery to the

solicitor was that a portion of the lands comprised

in the folio might be sold.

Nothing was said as to the disposal of the proceeds

of the sale. The dealing was duly registered on the

folio and the land certificate for the balance of the

holding was returned by the solicitor to the bank.

The bank enquired about the disposal of the proceeds

of sale and were informed by the solicitor that the

amount had been paid direct to the client. The

Council were asked to state whether on the facts

submitted it was the duty of the solicitor to pay

the proceeds of sale to the bank. The Council, on a

report from a committee stated that in their opinion

it was the duty of the solicitor, having regard to

the terms of the undertaking, to pay the proceeds

of sale to the bank, unless he had obtained the con

sent of the bank to disposing of them otherwise.

Mr. C. G. Vanston

THE Council passed a vote of sympathy with the

family of the late Mr. Cecil G. Vanston. Mr. Vanston

was one of the Society's representatives on the

District Court Rules Committee.

LAND REGISTRY

SALE OF POSTAGE STAMPS IN FOUR COURTS

AT the Society's request the Revenue Commissioners

have agreed to maintain a supply of is. postage

stamps at the Stamp Office in the Four Courts to

facilitate practitioners in stamping copies of Land

Registry folios.

ORGANIZATION FOR EUROPEAN

ECONOMIC CO-OPERATION

VACANCY for a principal administrator (Grade II),

as Assistant Legal Adviser in Paris.

Members i

nterested in a

bove may obtain particu

lars from the

Secretary.of

the Society. Closing date,

i4th March.

SOLICITORS' BENEVOLENT

ASSOCIATION

THE 94th Annual General Meeting of the Associa

tion was held on Friday, 3oth January, 1958, at the

Solicitors' Buildings, Four Courts, Dublin. The

Chairman was Mr. R. A. O'Brien. •

The Chairman, in the course of his address moving

the adoption of the annual report, congratulated

Mr. John Carrigan on his appointment as President

of the Incorporated Law Society of Ireland. He

mentioned that while membership still fell far short

of what it should be, there had been a gratifying,

increase since last year of over 100 members.

7,8.