The Gazette 1964/67

scale of Circuit Court costs as agreed by him for his formal approval and they added to it the 12% increase to which the Minister has not yet intimated his agreement. The Minister took the view that the two matters should be dealt with separately and refused to concur to the rules submitted by the Committee and that was the position some weeks ago when the Minister became Minister for Agriculture. The 12% increase in the District Court costs was approved by the Minister and the District Court Rules Committee was asked to supply detailed scales of costs but they took the view that composite scales should be sufficient as they would make future working much more simple especially in the event of increases in outlay. As I understand it, the practical difference is that if detailed scales are insisted on there may be 16 to 18 of these scales whereas if the composite scales are accepted, there would be approximately 6. This question had not been determined either at the time that we were trying to solve the Circuit Court costs problem. Finally, in the case of the Land Registry costs, the 12% increase was approved by the Minister and the Rules Committee was asked to formally submit the application for written approval and they did so approximately one month ago but so far their letter has not been acknowledged. In view of the unsatisfactory position in these three cases, I asked Mr. Brian Lenihan, the Minister for Justice, if he would see me to discuss these outstanding matters and I had a personal interview with him on Tuesday, the loth November. I am hopeful that any minor difficulties which exist in finalising these three matters will now be overcome without delay and I will be extremely disappointed if we do not receive official notification to this effect before my term of office ends. The Compensation Fund When the Compensation Fund was established in 1954, there were some members of our Society who thought that it was unreasonable that the vast majority of reputable solicitors should have to compensate clients who suffered loss through the dishonesty of a very small minority of defaulters. This feeling was no doubt sharpened when the annual contribution was raised from £5 to £20 in 1960. I think, however, we must all admit that the Fund is the best public relations activity which could have been undertaken by the Society because it maintains public confidence by assuring clients that losses suffered in the event of dishonesty by any practitioner will be borne by the Fund. The respect and confidence of our clients is the greatest asset which we possess. By accepting corporate responsibility for the honesty of our profession we are preserving that confidence. It is therefore necessary to ensure that the reserve fund is kept at a safe level and to take positive action in time to avoid losses. These are matters which receive continuous attention from the Compen sation Fund and Registrars Committees. There are of course statutory provisions which are designed to protect the Fund against losses suffered by clients as the result of their own negligence or where there has been co-operation between the solicitor and the client in unethical practices. When such circumstances are found, the society has a discretionary power to refuse or reduce compensation. The Report of the Compen sation Fund Committee has been circulated to all of you and it shows the surplus in the hands of the Committee which makes me hope that this time next year it may be possible to reduce the present contribution of £15 per annum still further. I think we owe a deep debt of gratitude to the Committee for the excellent manner in which they have administered the Fund. Conclusion My year of office has been exciting, exasperating, memorable and enjoyable, all of course at different times. The visit to Mexico, Los Angeles and New York in connection with the

He gave us every opportunity of putting our views before him and received us most courteously. It has been announced that various substantial amendments to the Bill will be made but your Council has not, as yet, considered these amend ments which will be the subject matter of discussion in Dail fiireann, and, therefore, I cannot at the present time enter into any more detail about this Bill save to say that I believe that very many of the amendments suggested by your Council, particularly those dealing with undutiful wills in parts IX and X contained in the two memoranda already referred to, have been accepted and that these amendments to the Bill will relieve the very considerable uneasiness, not only of the public but of the solicitors' profession, which the first publication of the Bill evoked. Section 77 of the Bill provides that the testator's signature shall be made or acknowledged in the presence of each of two or more witnesses who need not be present at the same time. The Council recommended that there should be no change in the existing provisions and consider that section 77 will give rise to many difficulties and possibly to unnecessary litigation. It seems that this recommendation has not as yet been accepted. The Solicitors' Benevolent Association At the half yearly meeting of our Society I asked that every member of our profession should become a member of the Solicitors' Benevolent Association and I repeat this request. The Association is now in its hundred and second year and once more I draw your attention to the fact that the sub scription is the very modest sum of £i per year. I think that the Association is worthy of all the support that the members of our profession can give it. It would be impossible to overestimate the wonderful assistance which it has given to so many during that period. Legal Aid The Criminal Justice Legal Aid Act, 1962, was introduced by Mr. Charles Haughey, then Minister for Justice, who was assured that our profession looked upon legal aid in criminal matters as a substantial advance in the social legislation of the State and my predecessor, Mr. Lanigan, referred to this when he spoke to you in the month of May, 1963. At that time he said that no regulations had been brought into force for setting out the procedure to be followed and the fees to be paid. I consider that Mr. Haughey deserves the greatest possible credit for bringing in this Bill but I think also that the public should know that the proposed service of legal aid is a service rendered by the legal profession for considerably reduced fees. Your Council asked for an escape clause where the Court is of the opinion that the case is of exceptional difficulty. Such provisions apply in Northern Ireland. We have not been able to get the agreement of the Department in this matter. The Minister states that the scheme is experimental and will be reviewed in a year's time. Costs Applications During the past year, the iz% increase in the Schedule 2 and High Court costs was granted. The position with regard to the increase in Circuit Court, Land Registration and District Court costs is slightly confused. After many years work, the new scale of Circuit Court costs was approved by the Minister and then came before the Circuit Court Rules Committee. It was intended that when the Circuit Court Rules Committee sent the Rules back to the Department of Justice and received confirmation that we would at once lodge the application for the 12% increase and the Department knew that that was what was intended. However, the Circuit Court Rules Committee took the view that it was quite unnecessary to have two separate applications so they sent to the Minister the new