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GAZETTE
APRIL 1995
Disciplinary Cases
Re: James M. Sweeney,
Solicitor, formerly practising as
James M. Sweeney,
14, New Cabra Road,
Phibsboro, Dublin 7.
The High Court Petition No.
8SA/1994.
On 4 July, 1994, the Acting President
of the High Court ordered that James
Sweeney, Solicitor, stand censured
regarding his conduct as a solicitor
and be fined £500 and that he pay the
costs of the proceedings before the
Disciplinary Committee measured in
the sum of £315 and the costs of the
Society of the petition and order when
taxed and ascertained.
The Court had before it the report of
the Disciplinary Committee of its
hearing on 29 June, 1993 and 20
January, 1994, in which the
Committee made a finding of
misconduct in the light of the
solicitor's admissions that:
a) he failed to respond to the
correspondence of the Society;
b) he failed to attend before
meetings of the Registrar's
Committee on two occasions
when requested to do so;
c) he failed to comply with the
following undertakings given to
the Registrar's Committee on 12
November 1992:
(1) to immediately apply to the
High Court to have a copy of
a will proved;
(2) to make arrangements to
immediately discharge the
funeral expenses of the
Testatrix;
(3) to be responsible for the
costs involved in having the
copy will admitted to
Probate.
d) (1) he failed to extract the
relevant grant of probate, as
instructed.
(2) he failed to administer the
estate, as instructed.
(3) he failed to make full and
frank disclosure of the loss
of the original will of the
testatrix.
(4) he led the two complainants
to the Society to believe that
he was administering the
estate of the late testatrix,
when he was not.
(5) he failed to reply to the
letters of the solicitor of one
of the two complainants.
Re: Joseph Gilsenan
Practising as Gilsenans,
Ormond House,
179, Lower Rathmines Road,
Dublin 6.
The High Court Petition No.
6SA/1994.
On 5 July 1994 the acting President of
the High Court affirmed the findings
of the Disciplinary Committee of the
High Court that there had been
misconduct on the part of Joseph
Gilsenan and ordered:
(1) that the said Solicitor pay a fine
of £5,000.
(2) that he pay the Incorporated Law
Society of Ireland £5,500 in
respect of the costs incurred by
the Society in the proceedings
before the Disciplinary
Committee.
(3) that he pay the Incorporated Law
Society of Ireland the costs of the
petition, to be taxed in default
agreement.
The Court had before it the report of
the Disciplinary Committee of the 29
June 1994 in which the Committee
found that there had been misconduct
on the part of the Solicitor in that he
had:
1. failed to protect the interests of a
named client
2. deducted fees and expenses from
monies received from the said
named client without clearing in
advance the quantum of such fees
$nd expenses and obtaining his
client's authority to make such
deductions
3. failed to advise the said client, as he
should have done, in taking a letting
of premises owned by the solicitor,
that independent legal advice should
have been taken in relation to the
taking of that letting
4. failed to advise his client in relation
to the letting referred to a 3 above
that an independent valuation
should be taken in relation to the
rent payable
5. failed to have a company, in which
he was beneficially interested,
discharge a sum of £3,150 due to a
venture in which his client was
interested, which estimate had been
accepted for the work
6. continued to act as a director of a
company in which his client was
interested after he had purported to
resign as an officer of that company
7. in furtherance of his own interest
did not give the independent legal
advice to his client which is
expected of a solicitor and which is
the due of every client.
Re: Niall Joseph O'Connor
Practising as O'Connor Mohan & Co.,
12, Fairview Strand,
Fairview,
Dublin 3 and
4, Fitzwilliam Square,
Dublin 2.
The High Court Petition No. II
SA/1994.
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