The Gazette 1952-1955

tions. It would be out o f place to discuss in public, the amendments made by the Government, beyond saying that they do not in their entirety meet with the Council’s approval. However, something has been accomplished and it need not be hoping for too much when I say that the successors o f that Govern­ ment and of this President, may be associated with the passing of legislation only too long overdue. Jurisdiction o f the Circuit and District Courts. S ince November, important changes have been made in the jurisdiction o f the Circuit and District Courts. Your Council was consulted before the Act affecting those changes became law and was, I think, alive to the rights and the interests of solicitors in putting our observations and suggestions before the Govern­ ment. The question o f costs applicable to the reconstituted Courts received very close attention from the sub-Committee appointed by the Council, and if the scales finally settled, are not what the profession hoped for—and in the matter o f costs they rarely are—the fault lies not with your repres­ entatives, but with others associated with Rule- making Committees who do not seem to appreciate the fact that our profession shares with all sections o f the community the enormous increase in the cost o f living and in the employment o f labour without as yet having received commensurate increases in their own remuneration. Audience o f Solicitors in Central Criminal Court. M y immediate predecessor won for us the right to appoint two members to the Superior Courts, Rules- making Committee—a privilege o f which this Coun­ cil took speedy advantage when nominating one of its members, Mr. Ralph Walker, with Mr. James J. Hickey. That our choice was a wise one is exempli­ fied by the fact that they recently overcame oppos­ ition on that Committee to the appearance of solicitors as advocates in the Central Criminal Court in cases involving persons without the means to employ Counsel. For their efforts in thus preventing what might amount in many cases to a denial of justice to an accused person, they are entitled to the best thanks, not only o f this Council, but o f the profession as a whole. Stamp Duties on Property. A promised relief in the rates o f stamp duty applic­ able to houses purchased without the benefit o f a Government grant, must be a matter o f gratification not only to our profession, but to the public. The former Minister for Finance when referring to this matter in his Budget Statement, recognised the

anomaly by which a purchaser acquiring an older type o f house had to pay ad valorem duty, in the case o f an Irish citizen, at 3% , whereas the purchaser of a new house qualified for a Government grant got the benefit of a special rate o f duty at 1% . By way o f comment, may I suggest that this circum­ stance acted as an encouragement to purchasers to build with the aid o f a Government Grant, while suitable premises were available, though subject to the higher rate oi duty at 3% . Has this resulted in over-building ? I think it has. Large areas extending from Dublin on all sides are being developed, or maybe over-developed, creating many problems particularly in the matter o f transport to the work­ shop and to the school house. This is o f course merely my private view, and strictly speaking, it has nothing to do with my duty in presenting this report. Revision o f Sentences by Minister for Justice. I t is not without reluctance that I now mention a subject to which perhaps undue prominence has been given, touching the powers o f the Minister for Justice to defer the execution o f warrants in cases o f a criminal nature, and to exercise his powers o f remission o f disqualification imposed on drivers following convictions under the Road Traffic Act o f 1933. My reluctance arises from the fear that my remarks may be taken to be partisan criticism—such is not the case. No particular Minister and no particular Government is here referred to. Clearly Section 23 o f the Criminal Justice Act, 1951, gives power to the Minister to consider petitions and to exercise clemency in proper cases. We o f the solicitors’ profession know only too well that there are cases in which the exercise o f the Minister’s powers may be right, and justified by the particular circumstances o f the case, but surely public uneasiness that these powers are being too widely used should be allayed. In some parts o f the country it is felt that the normal processes o f the law are being ignored and that cases which should be dealt with on appeal in the Circuit Court, are made the subjects o f appeal to the Minister under the provisions o f the Act o f 1951 already referred to. The ultimate effect of such a belief may be to devalue the standing of the Courts in question, as well as the services rendered by those administering the law in these Courts. It is not out o f place, therefore, to suggest that much harm can follow from public misconception o f the Minister’s powers and rights in matters o f this sort. I must concede that I have here touched only lightly on the many activities o f the Council, but if Provi­ dence spares me to address you again in November, I hope to inform you fully on certain matters now only in the process o f development. That every

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