The Gazette 1964/67

admitted solicitors their certificates of enrolment and to welcome them to the profession. It is difficult for a President to break new ground in this speech of welcome. What I have to say to you has been said by my prede cessors on some occasion before but the saving factor from my point of view is that you have not heard it before now, at least from me. It is customary for the President to stress some particular aspect of a Solicitors practice or method of life. I feel that I cannot do better than give you the advice that above all things you should ensure that you keep proper accounts particularly of your client's money. You should start your career by installing a proper set of books so that you will always be in a position to be able to ascertain your indebtedness to your clients and at a moment's notice be ready to give them a full account of all the money you have in hand for them and be pre pared to vouch such account with all necessary vouchers. If you do this and always keep it in the forefront of your mind there is little possibility of your going astray. I do not for one moment wish to convey that I have the remotest idea or fear that you would go astray but it is an old saying that prevention is better than cure. I feel that in the past that some unfortunate men who have fallen by the wayside because of comparatively small defaults have done so because they failed in this one very essential aspect of our way of work. You have had the advantage of a series of lectures on methods of book keeping and you have shown sufficient proficiency in this to pass an examination designed to test the way you have absorbed the instructions imparted to you. Those of us who are older never had this opportunity and we had to work out our own salvation. I merely had to answer one or two questions on book-keeping as part of my Inter mediate and I fear that if I had not done quite well in my real property paper that I might not have passed that examination at the first attempt. I hope that I always have been and am in a position to carry out what I said you must always be able to do. Even if you do not launch out on the wild seas of practice on your own behalf it would be well for you to study working methods of an established practice on this entire question of keeping books. If you take a position as an assistant or go to work in a family practice, my remarks still hold good—some day, please God, you yourself will be a partner or outright owner of a practice and that is not the point of time for you to learn how to apply practical methods in dealing with your clients money. The accounts regulations were not drawn up just for fun. The wisdom of more than one generation of solicitors went into the concept of their being drawn up and promulgated to the profession as something that it was the bounden duty of all its members to observe and maintain carefully. One more point before I close—the growth of legisla tion and the changing pattern of Laws nowadays makes it difficult to keep up to date on all matters. Use every means in your power to maintain the knowledge you have acquired. The Council of the Law Society issues from time to time booklets on current topics and tries in its Gazette so far as it can in that limited journal to indicate changes in laws and tell the profession where and when such Acts of Dail or new sets of Rules or Statutory regulations can be found or were made. Study these aids closely, join your local Bar Association, attend its meetings, join the Law Society and follow its work through its publications and attend any lectures given by any legal body having the Council's approval. May I wish you every success in your chosen career 53

were not sufficiently interested to vote on position of that Council? It may be that I have omitted some item which has caused anxiety or been discussed by the Council during the year but my function here is to ask the Society for approval of the Report of the Council. This Report has dealt with nearly all or if not all of the matters raised before us and I do not want to bore you with repetition On a personal note, I would like to thank the many Bar Associations throughout the country who entertained me so lavishly and kindly. I hope that my inner feelings of having made many friends may continue to be true for the rest of my days. May I close by expressing the hope that I have not failed the Society in any of the duties that were imposed upon me. I tried to do my best for the Society on all occasions and if I did not succeed it was not because of want of effort but perhaps because I was not blessed with the ability of some of my predecessors. I wish to thank the Council, my Vice-Presidents, Mr. Robert McD. Taylor and Mr. Eunan McCarron and indeed the entire profession for the help tendered to me and I will try to carry out my duties for the remainder of my office at least as well as I hope I have done heretofore. The staff of the Society and particularly Mr. Eric Plunkett deserve a special note of praise. No President, no matter how capable, could carry on even for a few days if he had not the helping hand, guiding force and friendly co-operation of Eric Plunkett of whom it has been said that he has no thought for anything in his daily working life than the well being of the Law Society. He has the co-operation of a loyal and hard working staff. They will do anything for you any time and still make you feel that it is a pleasure to do it. They will pardon me I am sure for not mentioning each individually by name. I thank you for your patience. Messrs John Carrigan, E. O. Shell, J. B. McGarry, S. V. Crawford, J. J. Nash, Andrew Curneen, Maurice Kenny, J. V. Buckley, Ernest Margetson spoke on matters arising from the report. The motion for the adoption of the report was seconded by Mr. Taylor and carried unanimously. Thursday 24th November 1966 was appointed as the date of the next annual general meeting. Mr. Margetson proposed a vote of thanks to the President for his valuable services to the Society during the year which was carried with acclama tion. The President having replied the proceed ings terminated. ADMISSION CEREMONY On Thursday 25th November, 1965, the Presi dent presented Certificates of Admission at a ceremony in the Society's Library. Addressing the newly admitted solicitors and their friends the President said: Ladies and Gentlemen, one of the most pleasant duties that falls to the lot of the President of the Law Society during his year of office is to present to newly the com