The Gazette 1964/67

staffed by local salaried lawyers who practise in the local courts. Questions arising under this head include : — Whether a foreign firm should be entitled to open an office in another jurisdiction; If such a practice is permissible whether a foreign firm should be entitled employ local lawyers or associate with them in partnership; Whether the scope of its activities should be restricted to advising citizens of its own country on local law; Whether a foreign firm should have EOI un restricted or limited right to represent its clients before a local tribunal. As might be expected, many different views were expressed on these subjects. In continental coun tries the topic is a fluid state, having regard to the developing law of the EEC countries. Unauthorised Practice of the Law In every country, with the possible exception of Finland and Sweden, the practice of the law is restricted to persons possessing recognised legal professional qualifications. Even in Finland and Sweden, where there is no statutory prohibition against the practice of the law by laymen, it is more de jure than de facto. In practice all im portant legal business is conducted by lawyers. The law in the Republic of Ireland, generally speaking, follows the lines of English and Scottish law. In Germany the prohibition against practice by unqualified persons extends to all legal activit ies, including the giving of advice or dealing in any way with the legal affairs of another person for a reward. In France, on the other hand, the position of the avocat, corresponding to Counsel in this country, and the avoue who performs some of the duties of a solicitor, is not coextensive with the legal profession in England or Ireland. The avocat and avoue engage almost exclusively in court proceedings and this has given rise to the proliferation of conseils juridiques and agents d'affaires, who perform many of the business func tions of solicitors in England and Ireland. It was generally agreed that the justification for the exclusive practice of the law by lawyers must be found in the public interest. Lawyers must serve the public and justify their position by that test. There was general agreement among the national correspondents that the ultimate test

must be whether the protection afforded to a member of the public against the incompetence of unqualified persons outweighs the commercial principle that there should be a free market for services. Limits and Restrictions of Public Reporting on Criminal and Civil Court Proceedings The discussion on this matter dealth with such topics as :— prohibition against the conduct of legal pro ceedings in camera; the right of the Press to attend all court proceedings; limitations on publication of court cases in the interest of the accused or public mor ality : auto-censorship by the Press; proceedings in juvenile courts, and contempt of court in publication of court proceedings. the control of court proceedings in the Republic of Ireland is that it is exercised by the court over its own procedure, and in the interests of the parties, that the State has no authority to prohibit Press publication of court proceedings. This is an important safeguard, because the court, in the exercise of its statutory powers, is bound to have regard to the important constitutional principle that justice is to be ad ministered in public. Any exceptions to this prin ciple must be directed by the courts not by any governmental agency. The contributions by the various countries to this topic revealed a common respect for this principle. The conference also discussed the nec essity for a Press Council, or other disciplinary body, to which newspapers would be amenable for unprofessional practice and improper intrus ion and oppresive conduct affecting individuals in their private and family affairs. It was pointed out that in the Republic of Ireland these abuses do not generally exist and that auto-censorship by the Press itself is sufficient to protect the public. In practice this works well due to the fact that the population is small, the absence of very large and powerful newspapers compared with England and the United States, and the climate of public and Press opinion. The next conference of the International Bar Association will be held in July, 1968, in Dublin. An important feature of

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