67 / 364
of share and goodwill valuation and mentioned
en
passant
the extent to which the private limited com
pany has replaced the more conventional forms of
property in the last twenty-five years. The lecturer
also stated that the Revenue Commissioners are at
present considering the simplification and amalgama
tion of a number of estate duty forms. This
suggestion was made by the Society some years ago
and there is ground for hope that it will be adopted
in the near future.
GROSS SUM BILL
The Society recently obtained counsel's opinion
as to the essential requirements of a gross sum bill
under schedule II of the Solicitors Remuneration
General Order 1960 which broadly speaking relates
to all non-contentious business other than completed
sales, purchases and mortgages for which the com
mission scale fees are chargeable. The gross sum
provisions of S.R.G.O. 1960 provide that remunera
tion of a solicitor for the work to which it applies
may, at the option of the solicitor, be by a gross sum
in lieu of detailed charges, provided that within
twelve months after delivery of a charge by way of
gross sum or within one month after payment,
(whichever shall be the earlier date), the client may
require particulars of the charges computed in the
manner prescribed by the order of 1884, as amended,
and the solicitor shall thereupon comply with the
requisition and any further bill so delivered shall be
subject to taxation as if the gross sum provisions of
the order had not been made. In the majority of cases
the client either pays the gross sum bill furnished
or agrees with the solicitor on an abated sum or
exercises his right to call for a detailed bill.
If the
client adopts none of these courses the solicitor
cannot sue for the costs claimed within the period
of twelve months unless he brings himself within
the terms of section 2 of the Attorneys and Solicitors
(Ireland) Act 1849 anc^ he must therefore show
that he has delivered or posted to his client "a bill
of such fees and disbursements" duly signed by the
solicitor and that more than one month has expired
after such delivery or posting. The bill so delivered
for the purpose of proceedings must be in the usual
form and the Court may refer it to taxation. If the
client calls for a detailed bill under the provisions of
S.R.G.O. 1960 it will replace the gross sum bill and
it is the detailed bill so furnished that is liable to be
taxed. There is no provision for taxation of a gross
sum bill.
The only case in which proceedings can be taken
for recovery of the amount of a gross sum bill
without delivery of a detailed bill is a case in which
the period of twelve months from delivery of the
gross sum charge has expired without a request by
the client for detailed bill.
As regard the form of a gross sum charge it should
at least distinguish between professional charges and
disbursements and if there are several main items of
business involved separate charges should be shown
for each of them. The gross sum bill is suitable
only in cases in which it is anticipated that the client
will pay or settle or cases in which it is not intended
to proceed for recovery of the bill within a period
of twelve months. If the solicitor thinks it desirable
for any particular reason to proceed for recovery
within that period the bill should be drawn in the
ordinary form. In this connection the decision of
Kenny J. in re: Greenmount Oil Co. Ltd. and
Le Brocquy
(see
Society's GAZETTE, May 1964,
page 7) is important. In that case a gross sum charge
was furnished at £2,600 and the client required
particulars under clause 6 of S.R.G.O. 1960. In the
particulars submitted all the work done was sum
marised under an instructions fee running to over
100 pages and the last six pages of the Bill comprised
item charges amounting to a sum between £300 and
£400. It was held by the Court that in a detailed bill
the items should be separately listed and priced under
items 2 to
2.0
of schedule II and that the Taxing
Master had authority under the heading of instruc
tions fee to allow remuneration over and above the
total of the itemised charges where having regard
to the considerations enumerated in item i of the
schedule he thought it reasonable to do so.
A statement of a gross sum without details
contained in a cash account delivered by a solicitor
to the client will in general not be a sufficient gross
sum charge. If the client pays the amount stated by
the solicitor in a proper gross sum charge he may
not have the bill referred to taxation after the expira
tion of one month from payment or twelve months
from the delivery of the charge whichever date
is earlier. This is subject to section 2 of the Attorneys
and Solicitors (Ireland) Act 1849 which remains
unrepealed and which provides that payment shall
not preclude the Court from referring a bill to
taxation after payment in special circumstances.
Accordingly if the client pays the bill he is never
absolutely or conclusively barred from re-opening
the matter if he can show that the bill was obviously
quite unconscienable or in other special circum
stances.
The above observations relate to costs chargeable
under schedule II S.R.G.O. 1960 and there are
complications where all or part of the gross sum
bill relates to
(a)
Land Registry work or
(V)
costs of
extraction of probate which are regulated by the
Rules of the Superior Court 1962. Inconvenient
as it may be, the only way in which the solicitor can