237 / 364
paid to answer requisitions on title. The requisi
tions asked for were the provision of the copy
folios, the showing of a discharge of outgoings,
the production of evidence that there was no claim
for death duties and whether there were any
lay-tithes payable out of the estate. The rulings
were issued on September 10th 1964 and with
the exception of the sending in of the copy folios
nothing has been done. It was a matter in which
any experienced clerk in a solicitor's office could
deal with. It might be that the Land Bonds had
failed in the meantime and that this woman had
suffered. If she had she might have redress and
recoup her loss but not in any action against the
Minister or Land Commission. That woman's
£11,000 plus the accumulated interest would be
lying there until Tibs Eve until her solicitors did
what every single solicitor must do in any similar
case."
The Council of the Society asked the solicitor
concerned for an explanation of the position and,
with his client's permission, he sent a copy of his
file to the Society. An examination of the file
clearly shows that the owner's solicitor was active
and diligent in the conduct of his client's busi
ness, that no part of the delay was attributable to
him and that allocation could not have taken
place in February, or even in May, 1965, having
regard to the difficulty of obtaining a certificate of
clearance from death duties from the Revenue
Commissioners.
Immediately on receipt of the Examiners' rul
ings on 10th September, 1964, the owner's solici
tor applied
to
the Estate Duty Office
for a
certificate of discharge from death duties, which
was the only matter of difficulty; since then he
had been in constant communication with that
office, and he had since then received not only
one but a whole series of different queries at
different times on different points which were
duly answered. The latest additional queries from
the Estate Duty Office were received on 26th
May, 1966.
The facts have been brought to the attention
of the Minister by a letter from the President
and he has been requested to withdraw the al
legations made against the solicitor.
CIRCUIT COURT RULES 1966
'These Rules' which came into operation on
13th June, 1966 provide for an increase in costs
in debt and liquidated claim cases settled before
entry. The Rules are available from the Govern
ment Publications Sales Office, G.P.O. Dublin,
1, or through any book-seller, price 6d. (S.I. No.
128 of 1966).
SOCIETY OF YOUNG SOLICITORS
A meeting was held as usual
in Bushwell's
Hotel, Molesworth Street, Dublin, on Thursday,
26th May, when a Senior Counsel delivered a
lecture on "the preparation and presentation of
a case for counsel." The lecture appealed
to
solicitors
to
try, where possible,
to prepare a
written case when presenting a relevant file to
counsel, rather than
to merely give an entire
file,
containing other matters
relating
to
the
querist's affairs, and asking counsel, verbally, to
give an opinion. By doing this counsel's time is
wasted, as is indeed the solicitor's, when counsel
has to sort the file out, and send queries to the
solicitor concerned.
The lecture was followed by a lively discussion.
At the private business, held prior to the lecture,
a sub-committee was formed
to
look
into the
proposed new Solicitors' Accounts (Ammendment)
Regulations.
The next lecture will be delivered by Mr. M.
Gavagan, Chief Examiner and Public Trustee, of
the Land Commission, and will be dealing with
inter alia,
Land Commission practice.
Current publications,
available
to members
only, include :—
Hire Purchase and Credit Sales
•
Building Contracts
Office Procedure
Lecture and Discussion on Bankruptcy
Registration of Title.
Lecture on :
"Succession Act."
"Probate Office Practice."
LAND REGISTRY PRACTICE
Section 18 Land Act 1965
Certain sporting rights which have not been
exercised for the twelve year period referred to
in the Section may be cancelled on the register
provided the Registrar of Titles is satisfied that
the rights have not been exercised in such period.
In the interests of conformity the Reigistrar
has in consultation with the Land Commission
drafted a form of Affidavit and Advertisement
for insertion
in
the local paper. The form of
Affidavit and Advertisement is as set our here-
under. If solicitors use these forms in any applic
ation they make under the section, provided there
are no sustainable claims,
there will be
little
19