The Gazette 1988

GAZETTE

DECEMBER 1988

Company /Comme r c i al Referral Serv i ce 1. H i s t o ry a nd Na t u re The Coun c il es t ab l i shed a consultancy service in Company/ Commercial Law in April, 1983. Since that date the Council has established a consultancy service in Taxation Law and Practice and in order to ensure t hat t he consultancy services established by the Society operate on a similar basis there has been a review of the terms and basis of the Company/ Commercial Referral Service. Practitioners should be reminded that the service is intended to assist solicitors in dealing w i th particular Company Law/Com- mercial problems which affect their clients. 2. Terms of Con s u l t an cy Se r v i ce (1) The principle upon which the consultancy service will work is that the consulting firm will not accept from the client within t wo years of the completion of the Consultancy Assignment, any work of the type which, at the time when

the consu l t i ng firm was first retained in relation to that client's affairs, was being carried out by the referring firm, without the approval of the referring firm. This will not however, be an absolute rule as obviously circum- stances can arise, such as the death of a sole practitioner, in a practice where the client would insist on going elsewhere anyway. (2) The client shall remain the client of the referring solicitor unless there is some special arrangement to the contrary. The consultant will not, without the referring solicitor's consent, consult directly w i th the client. Again, however, this cannot be an absolute rule as in certain circumstances it would not be right for the consultant to be in a situation where the facts in which they were being asked to advise were limited only to those which the referring firm gave them or if the advice was being conveyed at secondhand to the client. (3) The referring solicitor would be personally responsible for the consultant's fee.

(4) The referring solicitor may charge the consultant's fee either as an item of outlay or absorb such fee and include an equivalent amount in his professional charges to the client. (5) It is not envisaged that a fee would be payable to the referring firm by the consultancy firm. 3. Co n s u l t a n ts (1) A list of the firms prepared to participate in this service is now available from the Society. Contact Anne Hegarty, Solicitor, The Law Society, Tel.710711. (2) A member of the panel may decline to accept a referral in any case without specifying a reason for such refusal. (3) While neither the Company Law Committee nor the Law Society can accept responsibility for the advice given by the consultant the Committee will be monitoring the operation of the scheme and will be anxious to hear of any problems that arise and will endeavour to assist in solving them. •

L A U R E N CE S I M O N S

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A S S O C I A T ES

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LEGAL RECRUITMENT London Calling The demand for solicitors in London and the South East continues to substan- tially exceed the supply. We have a wide range of clients, from 2 partner firms in the West End to the largest practices in the City, who are keen to recruit Irish solicitors. In particular demand are those aged 22 to 28 with good qualifications and experience in conveyancing and company/commercial work. Anne Stephenson is an Irish solicitor with several years' experience both in the Profession and in the recruitment of lawyers in London. Having successfully introduced many Irish solicitors to London firms, nobody has more knowledge and experience of the market or is better placed to understand your requirements. For further information, please contact Anne Stephenson on 031 831 3270, or write to her with a full Curriculum Vitae, if possible including home and work telephone numbers, at Laurence Simons Associates, 33 John's Mews, London WC1N 2NS. All approaches will be treated in strict confidence.

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