The Gazette 1961 - 64

Law Clerks Joint Labour Committee Senator Thomas J. Fitzpatrick was appointed to fill the vacancy among the Society's representatives on the committee in place of Mr. Dermot P. Shaw who has resigned. Trade Marks Bill, 1962 The Council considered the provisions of the Trade Marks Bill of 1962 and the Secretary's report thereon and decided that no action should be taken. Solicitor holding liquor licence A member wrote to the Society enquiring whether he could hold a seven day publican's licence as nominee for a company, a client of his firm, and of which he was secretary. While under indentures he had, with the permission of the Society, held the licence. The property in question was due to be redeveloped and pending redevelopment there was very little trading. Member wished to know if, on his admission, he could continue to hold the licence temporarily. The Council, on a report from a committee, decided that on the basis that normal trading was not resumed, member's application should be granted for a period of six months. If member wished to hold the licence for a longer period he should re-apply after the expiration of the six months. Lease of premises with fine. Lessee's liabilities for costs. A grant of premises by way of lease in consider ation of a fine of £600 and reserving a rent of £6 per annum contained a stipulation that the grantee would pay the full costs of the granting of the lease including the outlay of the grantor in its entirety. On completion the grantor's solicitors furnished a bill to the grantee charging £19 193. od. commission fee on the £600 fine, fy scale commission fee on the rent and the following additional items to which the grantee's solicitor took objection ; fees for copying and certifying documents of title £4 izs. 8d. (items 3—8), search in the Registry of Deeds £i zs. od. (item 9), P.D. stamp £4 135. 9d. (item 10), section 6 certificate £3 js. od. (item n). It was contended by the solicitor for the grantee that these items should be included in the commission fee on the fine. The grantor's solicitor on the other hand maintained that items 3—8 are outlay (a) not included in the com mission scale fee chargeable against the vendor and (&) were transferred to the grantee by the contract. The same applied, in his contention, to items 10 and 11 and the matter was referred to the Council by the solicitors concerned. The Council on a report from a committee decided that the grantor's solicitors

were not entitled to the fees in items 3 to 8 amounting to £4 izs. 8d. but that they were entitled to the fee of £i zs. od. for the Registry of Deeds search (item 9) if it represented outlay paid to a searcher and that they were entitled to the fee at item 10 amounting to £4 133. 9d. for the P.D. stamp and also to the fee of £5 53. od. (item u) for the section 6 certificate. Costs : Reduction for purchaser mortgagee Members acted for the subsidiary of an English company which was erecting a factory in Ireland. The company were advancing the sum of £2,250 towards the purchase price of a house by their manager B, and B was represented by other solicitors in the purchase. Members drafted the form of mortgage and sent it to B's local solicitors for approval. B was liable to his own solicitors for the full commission scale fee on the purchase. The mortgage was executed and registered and members costs amounted to about £58-6-8 plus outlay. They felt that the accumulation of the commission fee on the purchase and the mortgagor's and the mortgagee's charges would be a heavy imposition on B and they enquired from the Society if they could charge a lesser fee for the mortgage. If the purchaser had obtained a loan from a building Society instead of from his own company he would pay the reduced charges usually payable in respect of building society transactions. The Council on a report from a committee decided that the members should be authorised to charge a reduced fee com parable to the fees charged by building societies. DUBLIN SOLICITORS' BAR ASSOCIATION At the annual general meeting of the Dublin Solicitors' Bar Association held in the Solicitors' Buildings, Four Courts, on the 8th October 1962 the following officers and council were elected for the year 1962-63 : President, Mr. John A. Cullen; Vice-President, Mr. Synge Millington ; Hon. Secretary, Mr. Ernest J. Margetson; Hon. Treasurer, Mr. Edmond O. Sheil. Council: V. Wolfe, J. M. Farrell, E. Byrne, K. Burke, R. Knight, G. Williams, E. Barrett, G. M. Doyle and M. Kenny. DINNER DANCE Tickets for the Society's Annual Dinner Dance, which is to be held in the Shelbourne Hotel, Dublin on November 22nd, are now available from the hotel at z'js. each. Table reservations should be made through the hotel. The management advise that they are offering accommodation at 35/- per person, bed and break fast, plus io/- per person for private bathroom, if required, to any guests attending the dance.