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GAZETTE
A P R IL 1 9 95
B O O K
R E V I E W S
Chitty on Con t r ac ts (Twenty
Seventh Edition)
Published by Sweet and Maxwell
(RRP STG £225.00) General Editor:
A. G. Guest CBE QC MA FBA.
The latest edition of this well known
English textbook updates all the
relevant legislation and case law since
the last publication in 1989. It is
published in two volumes. The first is
entitled "General Principles", the
second "Specific Contracts". Volume
1 has an excellent introduction
covering aspects such as the nature
and classification of contracts and
includes a new section on the
relationship between Contract and
Tort.
The volume then proceeds on a logical
path to deal in great detail with all the
various aspects of a contract. It
follows on with a consideration of
remedies for breach of contract and
restitution and concludes with a
discussion on conflict of laws, a
section which has been completely re-
written to take account of the Rome
Convention on the law applicable to
contractual obligations, which has
been implemented in the United
Kingdom by the Contracts (Applicable
Law) Act 1990.
Volume 2 deals with various specific
forms of contracts. It opens with a
detailed chapter on agency. The areas
of carriage by air and land are also
examined. The topic of employment
contracts is given comprehensive
treatment as are the areas of restrictive
agreements, completion and the sale
of goods.
In conclusion, this is a fine
publication which would prove a
valuable asset on any lawyer's
bookshelf. However, it must be noted
that this is an English textbook and
the law as stated must be checked to
ascertain its compatibility with Irish
Law.
Ronan Baird
Your Rights At Work
By Eddie Higgins and Nuala Keher,
Institute of Public Administration,
Dublin, 1994, 240pp., pback, £4.99.
Your Rights at Work is divided into
three parts. Part One covers the
various employment law statutes, Part
Two provides a comprehensive
section on Joint Labour Committees
and Part Three provides a listing of
useful addresses and a glossary of
industrial relations terms.
Up to date summaries of the various
employment law statutes are provided
to include the Terms of Employment
(Information) Act, 1994 which has the
requirement for detailed statements of
terms and conditions of employment
to be given to employees. Some of the
summaries are particularly useful, for
example the authors under the
Payment of Wages Act, 1991 which
prohibits non-agreed deductions from
wages
(inter alia),
have actually given
examples of the computation of
awards under the Act; the safety
legislation is also well done with a
summary listing of requirements for a
safety committee depending on the
size of the firm. If one was to criticise
this section of the book it would be on
the basis that the authors appear to
have a slight hesitation in stating that
certain legislation is repealed e.g.
there is a reference under the
Industrial Relations Act 1990 that the
Trade Disputes Act, 1906 and the
Amendment Act of 1982 are
'associated' with the 1990 Act. This is
untrue as both the 1906 and 1982 Acts
were repealed by the 1990 Act. It is
stated in the section on the Minimum
Notice and Terms of Employment
Act, 1973 that reference should be
made to the Terms of Employment
(Information) Act, 1994. It may be
slightly misleading as there is no
clear statement stating that the
original sections of the 1973 Act
providing for the statement on
terms and conditions of employment
have now been repealed by the 1994
Act. However these minor points do
not take away from the authors'
good work.
Section Two in providing a summary
of the Joint Labour Committees is no
mean feat - most people do not have a
clue what they are. Originally
established under the Industrial
Relations Act, 1946, JLCs provide for
minimum rates of pay and conditions
of employment for employees
working in certain industries and
services, for example the Law Clerks
JLC. This section is really a wealth of
information and makes fascinating
reading for anybody who has an
interest in labour history. In the age of
CD ROM how many people know that
employees working in the aerated
waters, brush and broom, provender
milling, shirtmaking, handkerchief
and household piece goods and
womens' clothing and millinery
industries either exist or are entitled to
minimum terms and conditions of
employment. Any lawyer who may
have to deal with queries on terms and
conditions of employment in such
industries and services must have a
copy of this book.
Finally this book is recommended as a
useful
vade mecum
on employment
queries and it is extremely good value.
The authors are to be complimented
and should make sure that they keep
this text up to date with future
editions in this increasingly complex
and growing area of law.
Frances Meenan
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