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willing to sign a contract to purchase, but the vendor

refused to execute the contract for reasons of his

own.

It was held that " a purchaser who is able

and willing to complete the transaction" meant

a person who was willing to sign a contract to pur

chase it at the seller's price, and that the fact that the

purchase did not go through did not deprive the

agents of their right to commission.

In another

recent, case Reed Ltd.

v.

Nicholls (1948 2 All E.R.

914), the contract was differently worded. The

vendor instructed the agents to procure a person

able, ready and willing to purchase at £2,900 or

near offer, and undertook to pay them commission

on the introduction of such a person making a firm

offer to purchase at the price required. The agents

secured an offer of £2,800, from a prospective

purchaser who was willing to put down a deposit

of £20.

The vendor refused to sign the contract.

It was held that £2,800 was a " near offer " and that

ability to purchase did not mean that the prospective

purchaser must have the whole purchase money

available at the date of the offer, but that it was

sufficient if the agents could show that he would

have found the balance of the purchase price at

the proper time. These cases show that it is of

equal importance for house-agents to draw up their

agency agreements with care, as it is for their prin

cipals to scrutinise them carefully before signing

them, if misunderstandings and possible litigation

are to be avoided.

House agents' authority

IN the recent case of Wragg

v.

Lovett (1948 2 All

E.R. 968) the question to be decided was whether

on a particular set of facts a firm of estate agents

had authority to bind the defendant on a contract

for the sale of a house which they purported to sign

on his behalf.

In the course of his judgment Lord

Greene M.R. said " while accepting the learned

judge's conclusion upon the particular facts of this

case, we must not be understood as suggesting that

when a vendor merely authorises a house agent to

sell at a stated price he must be taken to be author

ising the agent to do more than agree with an intend

ing purchaser the essential (and, generally,

the

most essential) term, i.e. the price. The making of

a contract is no part of an estate agent's business,

and, although, on the facts of an individual case,

the person who employs him may authorise him to

make a contract, such an authorisation is not lightly

to be inferred from vague or ambiguous language."

Notaries Public

THE Second Reading of the Solicitors, Public

Notaries, etc., Bill took place on 20th January.

Sir Hartley Shawcross introduced this as a " very

dull little Bill" and then proceeded, in explaining

its provisions, to give an interesting review of several

ancient legal offices. The Bill's main purpose is to

abolish stamp duty on practising certificates taken

out by solicitors. These certificates, he said, could

be refused to a solicitor for some disciplinary reason

or " where during the past year—and this is a risk

to which members of my profession are particularly

exposed—he has been made bankrupt or driven

mad." He explained that the relief was a

quid pro

quo

for the additional burdens placed on solicitors

of contributions to the Compensation Fund, imposed

in 1941, and of employing accountants, imposed

in 1947.

The Bill also repeals a number of statutory pro

visions dealing with those whose practice in the

law was distinguished by some form of specialised

title.

" Conveyancers " (i.e., those persons who,

being neither barristers nor solicitors, formerly

employed themselves solely in drafting deeds) had

ceased to exist as a separate profession, and hence

the Bill abolished their statutory privileges. " Special

Pleaders " (i.e., those barristers who devoted them

selves mainly to drafting common law pleadings

and appearing in chambers on procedural matters)

would also lose their privileges—though the name

would remain as a term of abuse, no doubt. The

like fate was also to befall " Draftsmen in Equity "

who were special pleaders dealing in Chancery

matters.

Finally,

the Bill abolished

the necessity

for

notaries public to take out special practising certi

ficates as such. These, he said, were, by definition,

officers who " took note of anything which might

concern the public," but their functions were in fact

rather more specialised than that. They were the

original " scribes " of the Roman Law and were

originally appointed by the Pope, but now, under

an Act of Henry VIII, by the Court of Faculties

presided over by the Archbishop of Canterbury.

The profession has 523 members of whom 500 are

solicitors. Their main task is to prepare deeds and

legal and commercial documents for use abroad in

conformity with foreign law. They also translate

legal documents from and into the terms of Foreign

legal systems.

In the Middle Ages their badge was

an ink-horn and pen-case suspended by a silken

cord, which led Cave to say of one such : " Away

with him, I say. Hang him with his pen and ink-

horn round his neck."

(The Solicitors' Journal.}

OBITUARY

MR, JAMES SHUEL, Solicitor, died at his residence

" Kencraigie," Cahirciveen, Co. Kerry, on 2nd

March, 1949.