The Gazette 1977

APRIL 1977

GAZETTE

(D) OTHER BENEFITS The deserted wife should in the required circumstances also be advised to apply to her Local Authority for a waiver of rates and to her Local Health Board for details of the current schemes that may be in operation for the supply of free milk and footwear to her children. Note: It is advisable to obtain the Summary of Social Insurance and Assistance Services published annually by the Department of Social Welfare, Dublin 1, which gives a very comprehensive outline of the benefits afforded by the State in all cases.

recognition of foreign divorces and adoption are treated in a thorough and most helpful manner. The inclusion by Mr. Shatter of his personal criticisms of the present law and his suggested reforms will appeal more to the academic lawyer than to the practitioner and while some might say that such criticisms and suggestions should be incorporated in a separate report, one can understand Mr. Shatter succumbing to the temptation of airing his views in his book in the light of his practical experience in dealing with Family Law matters. The footnotes to the text are comprehensive and refer to a large number of articles and lectures on specific topics. Perhaps in a future edition the author might add an appendix of a list of the books, articles, and other authorities to which he has referred, in order to facilitate further reading on the topics concerned. The maze surrounding Irish Family Law has not been altered by the publication of Mr. Shatter's book but he has painted very clear signposts which will help all those dealing with this subject to find their way much more easily. For this, the legal profession and all others who are involved with Family Law in the Republic of Ireland owe him a considerable debt. Michael Carrigan When the Society of Young Solicitors originally embarked on its Guidelines of Family Law it did so not only because it was a topic in which a number of practi- tioners expressed interest but also because it felt that this was an area of law in which all practitioners were becoming more and more involved and which sadly lacked an authoritative textbook to which the inexperi- enced practitioner might in need refer. The programme which it undertook was designed tofill that void but in the light of Alan Shatter's new book it would seem that to continue with the programme is only to do inadequately what Mr. Shatter's book does so well. It is therefore proposed over the coming months to consider further topics of interest. We would not only ask members of the profession to suggest topics which might be included in our programme but would also invite them to contribute articles of a serious or humorous nature and to submit notes on practice or procedure which might be of general legal interest. SOLICITORS' GOLFING SOCIETY Half-Yearly Meeting at Wexford Golf Competition (7 May 1977) Ladies: Mrs. Joan Toolan (17) 17 points. Men: 1, Ernest Margetson (17) 34 points; 2, Harry Robinson (9) 32 points (on second nine). Visitors: Len Cotton (18) 32 points. President's Prize The President's Prize will be at Milltown Golf Club on Thursday, 30th June, 1977.

RELEVANT LEGISLATION Public Assistance Act 1939. Social Welfare Act 1952. Social Welfare Act 1970, Section 22. Social Welfare Act 1973, Section 17. Social Welfare (No. 2) Act 1974.

BOOK REVIEW Family Law in the Republic of Ireland by Alan Joseph Shatter (Dublin: Wolfhound Press, 1977). The publication of any book dealing with Irish Law is a welcome event but when the book contains a detailed study of Family Law in the Republic of Ireland, the occasion is very special indeed. Alan Shatter has produced a book which will immediately replace the collection of miscellaneous lectures and articles on Family Law which have been the principal sources of information to practitioners and students alike on recent developments in an intricate area of Law. In recent years, the general public have become more aware of the complexities of Irish Family Law and in particular its constraints and shortcomings. The much discussed Government proposals on changes in the Law on nullity are considered in detail in the work and the draft proposed Nullity of Marriages Bill is reprinted in full. Mr. Shatter has also analysed the Guardianship of Infants Act, 1964 and the controversial Family Home Protection Act, 1976 both of which have had enormous effect on Family Law. Indeed, the chapter on the 1976 Act will also be of interest to conveyancers (when and if they manage to escape from the multitude of practical problems created since the Act came into force). The structure of the book is logical, starting with a chapter on "The Family, Marriage and the Consti- tution", then covering the jurisdiction of the Courts and moving on to the Engagement and the Marriage. Although some items, such as the detailed history of the jurisdiction of the Courts and similar treatment of the historical formalities of marriage, are unlikely to have day to day relevance in practice, Mr. Shatter has recognised that they are the foundations of our present procedures and system. He has obviously gone to considerable trouble to research these and other historical aspects of the topics covered. Practitioners may be somewhat dis- appointed with the relatively short chapter on Separation Agreements but, on the other hand, the difficult topics of 62