The Gazette 1907-8

DEC., 1907]

The Gazette of the Incorporated Law Society of Ireland,

61

fully prosecuted unqualified persons for drawing conveyances, and we rely on our country brethren to bring to the notice of our Secretary any cases of the kind ; and we resisted an ap plication to grant powers to a bank for their managers to act as trustees. While not altogether successful in our opposition, we obtained, as you will see from the report, undertakings -to safeguard the interests of our profession. Once more we have made an appeal to be relieved from the payment of annual licence duty. You will see from .our memorial to the Chancellor of the Exchequer that this duty was first imposed in England, in 1785, as a war tax. It was not extended to Ireland until 1816. It was increased from £S to £12 in 1842, and was changed again in 1853 to the present rate °f £9 f°r Dublin, and £b for country, solicitors. Some of us must console ourselves with the thought that it is a benefit we derive from the Union ; others possibly that the day is not far distant when this consolation will no longer exist. But in no event will the matter be lost sight of. Barristers, physicians, and the members of other learned professions can fix their own fees, and are not subject to any similar licence duty, while we are taxed and are restricted in regard to our fees. During the year I have been consulted by the Judges in regard to various rules, and my sug gestions have been most courteously received by them. It is only in comparatively recent years your Society has had any voice in making rules; but now that we are consulted we approach their consideration not from the restricted view that we are only to look to what may or may not affect solicitors ; we take the broader view that it is our duty to assist in the framing of the rules generally. In the case of theTownTenantsAct the schedule of solicitors' 'remuneration was materially altered b}- the Lord Chancellor and County Court Judges, and a sliding scale, according to the amount in volved, adopted—a system of payment which, I think,is acceptable notonlytotheprofession but to the public. Needless to say, before offering any opinion, I was fortified by the views of the members of our County Court Committee. I will only touch lightly on the Evicted Tenants Act and Rules. If you fail to understand them, don't blame me. This brings me to the Estates Commis sioners' new rules, and at the outset I wish to publicly acknowledge the patient consideration given by Mr. Justice Wylie to my several suggestions—I think I may say protestations—

in regard to several of the rules, and afterwards for the way he met your Council in regard to written representations made by me before the publication of the draft rules, and by the Council afterwards. All I can say is. very material concessions were made, all with the view of facilitating sales and the solicitors' work. You will probably wonder how we allowed a rule to pass which provides that documents already filed—some of them more than two years ago—are to be subjected to the scrutiny of Counsel at the vendor's expense when the Act provides for investigation ofpnma facie title at the cost of the Land Commission. I tried to persuade the Commissioners, and the Council subsequently protested, all to no avail, although I must say we were fairly met on other matters. That the subject of the Estates Commis sioners' Rules was one of vital importance is best illustrated from the following figures which I have extracted from the Report of the Estates Commissioners for the year ended 3151 March last. Up to that date, from November, 1903, 111,972 agreements for purchase had been lodged, the aggregate purchase prices being over 41 millions; but, towards satisfying this 4ii millions of mdney, advances had only been made to the extent of 12-i millions. Mr. Birrell in one of his recent speeches attributes a certain amount of delay to the lawyers, in a speech yesterday to want of sufficient staff; but the real cause of delay is want of money. There may be isolated cases of difficulty and consequent delay; but I unhesitatingly assert that both solicitors and officials have worked and are working loyally to carry through sales with the greatest possible expedition ; and we were anxious to see that no Rules would be passed which would cause difficulty and resulting delay. There have been various meetings of the Committee having charge of the rules under the Labourers Acts. We wished to make sugges tions to the Local Government Board, with the view of simplifying procedure and reducing the responsibility of solicitors, and therefore asked the Board to receive a deputation ; but we would not be received, which is, I feel, a matter of regret. Complaints have been received from our country brethren as to the inadequate remu neration under the Act; but it seems to me that they have a graver cause of complaint against members of our own profession who tender for work sometimes at a rate even below the miserable scale fixed by the Local