The Gazette 1915-16

The Gazette of the Incorporated Law Society of Ireland.

JANUARY, 1913]

47

Arbitrary Measuring of Costs. is one which is constantly before your Council. Your Council was in hopes that the resolution that was passed at the Special General Meeting of the Society held in the month of February last, and which was forwarded to all the Judges of the High Court as well as County Court, would have been more universally adopted. Your Council do not suggest for one moment that the discretion of awarding costs should be taken away from the Judges, but when the Judges do exercise that discretion the costs should not be arbitrarily fixed against the desire of the party to whom the costs are payable and in the absence of any special circumstances. In many cases costs are fixed at, say, £4 4s., and after payment of Counsel, Court Fees, and outlay, a few shillings only remain for the Solicitor to cover the work done by him, such sum being, not only un reasonable, but most unfair to the profession. Rule 25, Order 65, provides that on the appli cation of the party to whom the costs are directed to be paid, or if under special cir cumstances of the case the Judge shall think just, the Court may direct payment of a sum in gross in lieu of costs to be taxed. That rule specifically states that the costs are only to be fixed upon the application of the party to whom such costs are directed to be paid, or, if under special circumstances, the Judge shall so think just. Your Council, therefore, submit that in no case ought costs to be fixed except by the consent of both parties, or, in the absence of such consent, upon the appli cation of the person to whom such costs are to be paid, or under the special circumstances of the case, and I submit that the duty lies upon the party who is directed to pay such costs to show that there are such special cir cumstances in existence as would justify them in asking the Court to fix a gross sum. Before passing, however, from this subject, I would like to draw special attention to the fact that unless the Solicitors themselves will assist in putting into practice the resolution of the Bar Council, a copy of which is set out in the Report, there is little use in their making com plaints to the Council. Therefore, I would ask the Solicitors to back up the Council in doing away with this most objectionable practice. The Lord Chancellor has invariably made it a practice before making alterations in Rules,

or revising any question of practice, in which the profession is affected, to consult and invite the opinion of the Council relative to such alterations, and I would like to take this opportunity of thanking his Lordship for the courtesy extended to the Council of the Society by him in this respect. This practice, however, is not followed by the County Court Judges, because in the month of July last, without any previous intimation either to the President or the Council, a scale of County Court Costs in respect of The Courts (Emergency Powers) Act, 1914, was drawn up and published in the press. Your Council were of opinion that many items of these costs were inadequate, and, con sequently, they communicated with the Secretary of the County Court Judges Com mittee on the subject, and a reply was received stating the Judges had fully considered the matter and could not see their way to alter the scale. I may mention, however, that this scale is not binding upon any individual Judge, and I am glad to say that many of the County Court Judges throughout Ireland have not adopted it. Your Council prepared a scale which appears in the appendix to the Report. Some of the County Court Judges have adopted that scale, while others have adhered to the scale previously allowed by them which had been settled after consultation with the Sessions Bar of their County, and which in amount almost corresponded with the scale suggested by the Council. Early in the year your Council had the honour of presenting an address to Lord Wimborne on his appoint ment to be His Majesty's Representative in Ireland, and a copy of that address and His Excellency's reply will be found in the appendix to the Report. There being no other matter of special importance that I think I need refer to, I formally have the honour to propose the adop tion of the Report. Mr. JAMES MOORE (Vice-President] in seconding the motion for the adoption of the Report, said that personally he felt pride in the profession—pride for the way members responded to the call of the Country—both Solicitors and Apprentices. They should all feel that pride, tempered with sorrow, because they had lost some of their very best, some of