The Gazette 1988

GAZETTE

SEPTEMBER 1988

The most helpful chapters in the book for the practitioner are those d e a l i ng w i t h r e s u l t i ng and constructive trusts and the newer remedies such as t he Mareva Injunction and the An t on Pillar Order. The most interesting, at least to your reviewer, were those dealing w i t h promissory estoppel (The High Trees Case) and abuse of confidence (The Spycatcher Case et at). The p r o o f - r e a d er m u s t be superstitious because he or she skipped Chapter 13 where there are 2 4 clerical errors. The description (p.327) of Lord Denning as "Ma s t er off the Rolls" wou ld no doubt bring a t w i n k le to the eyes of t hat re- markable old man. There will, w i t h- out doubt, be further editions of this excellent book, when the blem- ishes can be eradicated. Keane's Equity has succeeded and surpassed Kiely's Equity and is here to stay for at least as long, and is unreservedly r ecommended t o s t uden t s, practitioners and, may one add, to the author's brethren. Robert W. R. Johns t on

busy men wou ld t hen have rested on their laurels w i t h o ut tackling a treatise on the complex subject of equity w i t h all its ramifications. The author tells us t hat " Eq u i ty is a well defined body of doctrines and remedies f ound largely in the decisions of judges w h o have mou l ded its development since it first emerged in the middle ages". The legislature rarely intervened, the Judicature Act being a notable exception, and even t hat Act did not alter equitable principles, it just extended t h em to the Common Law. The i ns i gn i f i cant amo u nt of statute law means that the princip- les of equity as administered by the Irish Courts are very mu ch in line w i t h t he p r i nc i p l es g o v e r n i ng English Law and also adopted by t he Courts of the British Common- wea l th countries. There are many examples in the book of cases whe re the Irish Courts have f ound " c omp e l l i n g" reasons to f o l l ow English decisions whe re equitable principles were updated by the judiciary, and in particular by Lord Denning, as Master of the Rolls.

The author also refers to a number of English decisions on issues yet to c ome before the Irish Courts, and indicates whe t her or not he thinks an Irish Court wou ld adopt the ratio decidendi. The provisions of our Co n s t i t u t i on would be the main reason inhibiting t h e f o l l o w i ng of all Eng l i sh decisions. The author also quotes freely from cases heard in Australia and Canada. The Law of Trusts is an area where the author, in his capacity as President of t he Law Re f o rm Commission, might persuade the legislature to amend the Trustee Act, 1893, before its centenary. Some t h i r t y yea rs ago, y our reviewer and a colleague prepared a report, at the request of the Law Society, suggesting a number of amendmen ts to the 1893 Act. Nothing came of it, but t he author me n t i o ns a n umb er of t h o se matters wh i ch could be tidied up and improved. The rule in Shelley's Case is now over 4 0 0 years old and serves no useful purpose, but there are other helpful provisions wh i ch could be introduced into our law.

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