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exercised, could not properly be described as limited
within the means of Article 37.
The Court decided that the powers and functions
assigned
the Disciplinary Committee were not
" limited powers and functions ", that the Com–
mittee was administering justice, and that " such a
tribunal unless composed of Judges is unconsti–
tutional." The Court held that the two appellants
were not validly struck off the roll of solicitors.
The position, therefore, is now that the Incorpora–
ted Law Society has a Disciplinary Committee
which has no powers of any kind whatsoever.
It cannot investigate complaints brought before it,
it cannot suspend a solicitor from practice, it cannot
fine him, it cannot strike his name from the roll of
solicitors, nor, lastly, can it order a solicitor to make
restitution or satisfaction to any aggrieved party.
This state of affairs is so serious and so gravely
affects the profession and the public that it cannot
be allowed to continue. And, furthermore, I under–
stand that this decision not only affects the solicitors'
profession, but also may well affect in like manner
other professions than ours who must equally be
seriously disturbed.
The decision of the Supreme Court in this case
is in my view the most far-reaching interpretation
of the Constitution which has yet been given
by our Courts.
It has, I think, been generally
thought down to the present that Article 37 of the
Constitution, which deals with limited powers of a
judicial nature, authorised the Oireachtas to set up
vocational bodies for various professions with disci–
plinary jurisdiction including power to exclude
practitioners for proved misconduct, subject to an
appeal to the Courts. That view is no longer correct
if the effect of the assigned disciplinary powers is
to affect profoundly those against whom they are
exercised in their property, fortunes or reputation.
When the Society accepted the obligation to establish
the Compensation Fund and to provide full indem–
nity for clients from 1960 onwards, it was thought
essential in the interests of the financial stability of
the Fund to secure the powers which have now been
held to be invalid. The necessary counterpart of the
Compensation Fund is a fair, effective and speedy
disciplinary procedure. It is also necessary that the
Society should have effective powers to forestall and
prevent defalcations. Without such protection the
Council cannot ensure that the Fund will be solvent.
It is now the immediate duty of the Council to seek
powers which will be both effective and constitu–
tional so that the public and the profession may not
continue to suffer serious injury from the actions
of a small number of dishonest practitioners.
As soon as the judgment of the Supreme Court
was pronounced, the Council of the Society sought
an interview with the Minister for Justice to ask
for amending legislation to establish a new disci–
plinary system. TheMinister for Justice and the officers
of his Department met our deputation most sympa–
thetically and gave us an assurance that such legis–
lation would be brought forward immediately. The
Council have already submitted to the Department
a memorandum dealing with the matter and they
have been in constant touch with the Department
of Justice since then. I hope and believe that we
shall have new legislation passed through the Ddil
and Seanad before the Summer recess. It will be
realised that this is a most difficult and complicated
matter and must be approached with the greatest
care and in the greatest detail, and I can assure you
that the Council will spare no effort whatsoever to
recover the necessary disciplinary powers which are
so essential to the proper rule and supervision of
our profession.
SOLICITORS' ACCOUNTS REGULATION.
The Solicitors Account Regulations were settled
and passed some years ago and by now every
member of our profession knows the tenor or these
regulations and what they contain. Shortly it may
be said that they provide that every solicitor shall
keep his clients' money separately from his own and
that he shall keep his clients' money in a client
account at a bank. Clients' moneys may be dealt
with only in the manner provided by these Regula–
tions ; and in addition a solicitor shall at all times
keep properly written-up such books and accounts
as may be necessary to show all his dealings with and
particulars of, and information as to clients' moneys,
and may be required to submit his accounts at any
time to the Council for scrutiny.
By an Order dated the jth December, 1957, signed
by me as President by direction of the Council and
by the Chief Justice, the regulations dealing with
the keeping of proper books of account were
brought into operation on the ist January, 1958,
and they have been in operation since that date.
By the same Order it was provided that the re–
mainder of the Solicitors' Accounts Regulations
shall come into operation on the ist July next, and
after that date every solicitor practising in Ireland
will be bound by these regulations and must carry
out their requirements in accurate detail. From the
ist July next every solicitor must open and keep
a client account at a bank and into this account
he must pay all moneys which he receives on behalf
of his client as provided in Part II of the Regulations
nor can he withdraw any clients' money from a
client account except as therein set out.