The Gazette 1911-12

The Gazette of the Incorporated Law Society of Ireland.

[DECEMBER, 1911

procedure in Ireland for some time past. The

public after all are really the people interested

and concerned in this matter. We only

endeavour to relieve them of the unquestion

able defects that exist with regard to' the

present County Courts procedure in Ireland.

Now this dog-in-the-manger policy is being

pursued, and the pretence is that it is being

pursued in the public interest.

I don't agree

with that at all.

I believe it is being pursued

by reason of personal interests involved and

not public interests. So far as the procedure

in two or three of the County Courts in

Ireland and the Recorder's Courts is con

cerned, after the issuing of a Civil Bill now,

where a defence is entered, it really means

that one could carry through a very involved

and troublesome Chancery suit in the time

that is now occupied in having a Civil Bill

decree obtained, where a defence is entered.

That is a shocking and deplorable condition

of affairs, and whoever is responsible for it

deserves, in my opinion, grave censure ; and

(here ought to be no hesitation, if the Council

are aware who the opponent of the measure

is, in naming him to the public, and let them

know who is behind all this humbug. The

Chamber of Commerce has approved of the

Bill which this Society after great labour,

got introduced by my friend Mr. Brady into

the House.

I understood, too, that all the

mercantile associations throughout Ireland

have given their approval to this Bill. Why

is it opposed ?

The public gro;vl and say,

" You never bother about County Courts

procedure nowadays. We never get a decree.

We never hear the end of our case. The

result is that when .we do obtain a decree,

it has taken such a long time to obtain it

that recovery is hopeless—absolutely hope

less." Now, I do not desire to name anybody

in particular in regard to this matter, but I

say that practitioners in the County Courts

have suffered very severely the burthen of

this delay. The whole County Courts pro

cedure in Ireland is suffering from the defects.

If the Government were worth their salt they

should make this a Government measure in

the public interest and not allow these people

to adopt the dog-in-the-manger policy.

wish the public to understand that so far as

this Society is concerned, we throw the onus

on the public now to remedy the evil. We

have done our best—many of us have got

into disrepute and bad odour with the powers

that be, because we took the manly stand

which several members of 1he Council did on

different occasions. Our action has gone as

far as we can possibly put it.

It now rests

with the public themselves to insist that the

present deadlock shall cease, and that a

remedy shall at once be obtained in the public

interest.

(Hear, hear.)

I will say no more

on that subject, but if it arises here again, and

if I can get any information as to who this

dog-in-the-manger is, I will call for a special

meeting of the Society and have the whole

thing discussed here in public.

I am very pleased to see that the Council

during the year have taken very proper steps

with

reference

to persons

appearing at

different inquiries and in different Courts

other than Solicitors.

Great efforts have

been made for some years past—efforts which

strange to say are assisted by the Treasury

who nobble all our licence and. other duties—

to facilitate gentlemen who call themselves

Trades Unionists acting in the interests of

those Trades Unionists in the capacity of

what they would call, if anybody interfered

with their little pickings, " blacklegs," or

" scab " labourers. These gentlemen forget

—no doubt some of them are very able men

and deserve very great consideration—but I

must tell them as a Trades Unionist myself

and belonging to a body that is a real,

genuine Trades Union body in a sense, that

I am not going to allow them to act " black

leg."

If any of them wish to join the pro

fession I will be willing and always anxious

to stand beside them, but I will protest

whenever this effort is made by a Secretary

or President, or any other person who is not

a licensed advocate, to appear in the interest

of any person or any body.

I am sure I will

have

the honour of Mr. Gerald Byrne's

company, as I had some years ago, when, with

the assistance of this Council, we endeavoured

to prevent and succeeded in preventing the

Government passing a measure which would

have given

assistance

to Trades Union

officials to represent their bodies at legal

inquiries, such as Coroners' inquests. So long

as we have to pay the big fees attaching to

our profession we ought not to allow these

encroachments on our profession. No one

will be more strenuous to down them than

I will be when they endeavour to encroach as