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The Gazette ol the Incorporated Law Society of Ireland.
[JUNE,
1918
I am sure there is no member of the pro–
fession who did not hear with regret of the
resignation of Mr. Justice Barton, whose
unfailing courtesy we will always recollect
with feelings of pleasure.
It is not often that civil honours are con–
ferred by the Government upon Solicitors,
and therefore it is with special gratification
I refer to the fact that Mr. John Garvey,
D.L., Crown Solicitor for Mayo, and Mr.
William Geoghegan, Solicitor of this City,
have recently had conferred upon them the
Order of the British Empire.
During the period which has elapsed since
our last meeting, your Council has not been
idle in endeavouring to promote the interests
of our profession.
There are very many
matters, more or less of detail, which I
cannot enter into without making my speech
unduly prolonged, and the particulars of
which no doubt most of you have read in the
GAZETTES published by the Society and
circulated each month among the members.
I think any of you who have read these
GAZETTES will admit that the Council have
not been unmindful of your interests and not
altogether without some good results.
I will
merely refer, however, to a couple of the
more important matters which have been
dealt with by the Council since our last
meeting.
You are all aware of the great dissatis–
faction which was felt, not only by the
members of the profession but by the public,
at the great inconvenience caused by the
delay in the taxation of costs owing to the
non-appointment of a third Taxing Master
in the place of the late Master Culhane.
Shortly after my election as President the
Council took up a very firm attitude in this
matter, and a strong deputation waited upon
the Lord Chancellor, and pressed upon him
the importance, both from the point of view
of the profession and of the public, of having
a third Taxing Master appointed, with the
result, as you are aware, that Mr. R. A.
Macnamara, an able and popular ex-President
of this Society, was appointed.
I am sure
every member present would wish to join
with me in congratulating Mr. Macnamara on
his appointment, and in expressing our entire
satisfaction at his
selection
to
fill
that
important office.
I am glad to inform you
that as a result the arrears have already been
cleared off, and Solicitors can now have their
costs taxed without any undue delay.
At the November meeting of the Society
my predecessor referred to a question which
affects us all very materially, viz :
while
Solicitors'
establishment
charges
have
increased tremendously there has been no
corresponding increase in Solicitors' remun–
eration. My predecessor stated he was sure
the matter would be taken into consideration
by the new Council which was then elected.
The Council lost no time in acting upon this
suggestion, and one of their first acts was to
appoint a Committee to formulate proposals
for
a
reasonable
increase
in
Solicitors'
remuneration to meet the exigencies of the
times. These proposals, when approved of
by the Council, were submitted to the Lord
Chancellor, who summoned a meeting of the
Rule Recommending Authority, of which
your President is a member, to consider them.
This meeting was held on the
zjth
February
last, when I attended and laid the views of
the Council before the meeting. The Rule
Recommending Authority
received
the
proposals of the Council most favourably,
but suggested that certain modifications of
the original proposals would be desirable, and
adjourned the meeting in order that the
Council might have
an opportunity of
considering their suggestions.
The Com–
mittee, having considered the suggestions
made, modified
their demands so far as
possible to meet the views of
the Rule
Recommending Authority, and the recom–
mendations of the Committee, having been
approved of by the Council, were submitted
to the Lord Chancellor. At a further meeting
of the Rule Recommending Authority held
on the yth day of this month, these proposals
were further considered and, subject to some
slight modifications, were approved of. The