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cession Act as passed is vastly different in form
to that of the Bill as introduced. This is an ex
ample of what can
be
achieved by
intelligent
public criticism. In passing may I say that I wel
come the abolition of the law of primogeniture
but I am at a loss to understand why it was found
necessary to alter the law relating to the execution
of Wills which had worked so well and for so
long. With regard to the Registration of Title
Act; this
is a very far-reaching and ambitious
piece of legislation.
In view, however, of the delays already being
experienced
in connection with Land Registry
dealings, due in large part to lack of accommod
ation and scarcity of trained personnel, I cannot
for the life of me see how the Act can be made to
work unless steps are taken at once to recruit and
train staff and to extend the accommodation. The
coming into force of the Act should be deferred
until both these matters have been completed.
Fees
Recently and without prior warning the pro
fession found itself faced with new Fees Orders
resulting in increases of as much as one hundred
per cent, in the fees payable to the State on the
institution of proceedings and in Land Registry
proceedings. Basically this is an agricultural coun
try and most of the land is held by the owners
by virtue of the Land Acts.
Dealings with this land are necessarily within
the province of the Land Registry and it is the
expressed intention of our legislators that all land
will be registered there in
the not too distant
future. To have increased therefore all the fees
payable in the Land Registry in such a manner
and, in my opinion, without justification,
is a
matter which affects vitally the commercial life
of the community and one of which most of that
community is, I am satisfied, quite unaware. The
effect of the provisions of the Finance Act 1965
and of the recent Land Act are onlv now being
felt by the profession and by the public. Amend
ment of many of the provisions of both Acts is
called for and will, I trust, not be long delayed.
I may say that a wachful eye is kept by Special
Committees of the Society on all legislation intro
duced. There is,
however,
a limit to what these
Committees can achieve but I would like to pay
public tribute to the vast amount of work they do
and the time they spend purely volunatrily and
often without recognition or appreciation.
Legal Education
Legal education
is another matter receiving
careful attention from your Council. That the
present system leaves a lot to be desired is fully
recognised. At the moment a sub-Committee ap
pointed by the Council is meeting a similar sub-
Committee appointed by the Bar Council to dis
cuss ways and means whereby a common pro
gramme for both professions, at least to a certain
stage, can be worked out. Apart from this, the
whole question of legal education is under review.
We are living in an age of specialisation and
accordingly the work of the family solicitor is
becoming more and more difficult. This fact is
recognised both by the Society, its lecturers and
examiners, and it is hoped that a way may be
found whereby a newly admitted solititor will
be equipped in
the future with a far greater
practical knowledge of the matters involved in
the everyday practice of his profession than is the
case at present. In this connection I feel I should
refer to the Society of Young Solicitors which
forms a very welcome adjunct to the efforts of
the Society and
its Council. Among its other
activities it holds a series of
lectures on new
legislation and also on such varied subjects as
Solicitors Accounts, Death Duties, the organisation
and running of a solicitor's office, etc. Recently,
in conjunction with the Provincial Solicitors As
sociation it organised a most successful Seminar
in Mullingar. All who attended were
loud in
their praise of the excellent manner in which the
lectures were arranged and delivered, the effic
iency and thoroughness of the organisation and
the great benefit which resulted from the group
discussions and the questioning which followed
the lectures. With such enthusiasm and enterprise
being displayed by its younger members the pro
fession need have no fears for the future.
Jurisdiction
The increased jurisdiction of the District and
Circuit Courts has, I am aware, been the subject
of an inquiry by a Committee set up for the
purpose.
I understand that a report has been
made but nothing definite has yet been decided
upon. It seems obvious, however, that substantial
increases will be made in the jurisdiction of both
Courts. I trust that in order to avoid what has
happened in the past no change will be brought
into force until such time as necessary changes
in the rules and scales of costs have been made
to take effect at the same time. Other matters
which I am aware are under discussion and in
respect of which legislation
is contemplated are
such and the principle of Absolute Liability at
Common Law and, of course, there is at present
before the Dail the new Landlord and Tenant
Bill. About the former I do not propose to com-