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of Title Acts,

1891

and

1942

by

the

Solicitors' Remuneration General Orders,

1884 to 1947, with the exception of Clause

6 and Rule 11 in Part I of the Schedule to

the Solicitors' Remuneration General Order,

1884.

*NOTE.

This section replaces Section 48 of the

Housing

(Miscellaneous Provisions) Act,

1931-

It is understood that the Parliamentary Draftsman

has advised that the reference to the Land Registra

tion Rules 1937 in Section 32

(a)

above includes

all the subsequent amending rules including the

Land Registration (Solicitors' Costs) Rules, 1947.

DISTRICT COURT RULES 1948

THE above rules (S. R. & O., 1947, No. 431) have

now been printed and may be obtained from the

Government Publications Office, 3 College Street,

Dublin, or from any book-seller, Price 3/6.

The following Rules are revoked:—

District Court Rules 1926.

District Court Rules (No. i) 1941.

District Court Rules 1942. Rules 32,33,34 and 35.

District Court Rules (No. i) 1945.

The new Rules will come into operation on 3151

March, 1948. New scales of solicitors' costs and

counsel's fees are prescribed in the schedules to the

Rules.

POLICE REPORTS

FOLLOWING representations made by the Council,

the Commissioner of Police has agreed to permit the

names and addresses of witnesses to traffic accidents

in which criminal proceedings are pending, to be

supplied to members of the legal profession. Here

tofore, this information has been withheld until the

termination of the criminal proceedings.

LIABILITY FOR COSTS ON THE

GRANTING OF LEASES

THE Council recently referred to a Committee, for

consideration and report, the existing law relating

to the liability for costs on the granting of a lease

and the extent, if any, to which it requires amend

ment. The report of the Committee was considered

at the last meeting of the Council. As a matter of

law, in the absence of a stipulation to the contrary,

the lessor's solicitor is entitled to prepare the lease

and the lessee must pay the lessor's solicitor's costs

whether the lease is granted in consideration of a

rent only or in consideration of a rent plus a fine.

The recommendations of the Committee were con

fined to the latter case where the lease is really a sale,

being granted in consideration of a rent plus a fine.

It was not recommended that any change should be

made in the existing law and practice whereby the

lessor's solicitor is entitled to prepare the lease.

In the opinion of the Committee, with which the

Council agreed, the existing practice whereby the

lessee is liable to pay the costs both of the lessor's

solicitor and of his own solicitor is in the interest

neither of the public nor of the profession. It is an

unduly onerous burden on the lessee, and, so far as

the profession is concerned, the Committee was of

opinion that the liability for two sets of costs has

often prevented purchasers from being separately

represented. Acting on the recommendation of the

Committee,

the Council passed

the

following

resolution :—" (i) That the Secretary be directed

to write to the Department of Justice suggesting

that, at the first available opportunity, legislation

should be

introduced to abrogate,

in any case

in which a lease is granted in consideration of a fine

and of a rent, the existing common law rule that

a lessee must pay the lessor's solicitor's costs on the

granting of a lease; (2) That, in the opinion of the

Council, in any case in which a lease is granted

in consideration of a fine and a rent the contract

for sale or conditions of sale should contain a clause

stipulating that the lessor will pay his own solicitor's

costs of showing title and of preparing, settling, and

completing the lease and counterpart, and that the

lessee will pay his own solicitor's costs of investi

gating title and perusing the draft lease and com

pleting, and that the lessee will, in addition, pay the

stamp duty on the lease and the Registry of Deeds

fees ;

(3) That the Council disapproves of the prac

tice, in so far as it may exist, of including in contracts

for sale, a clause making a purchaser liable for

the vendor's costs, whether the sale be carried out

by way of conveyance or lease, inasmuch as it tends

to induce the purchaser to retain the vendor's

solicitor and not to consult his own solicitor. A

vendor who wishes to provide for his costs can do

so by adjusting the minimum price but, in the

opinion of the Council, the contract should contain

no reference to the costs."

The above recommendations are made in the

interests of the public and of the profession and

the Council request every member of the Society

to give effect to them forthwith.

APPOINTMENT

MR. PATRICK F. O'REILLY of 8 Sth. Gt. George's

Street, Dublin, has been appointed Solicitor to the

Attorney-General..