The Gazette 1967/71

agreed between the Accident Claims Association and the Irish Medical Association and the Medical Union (see Gazette, April 1968. Vol. 61. P. 102) the Committee observed that these scales do not make any distinction between the eminance of one medical witness and another, or between the general practitioner and the consultant nor do they draw distinction between a witness who spends only a relatively short time in Court and one who spends a whole day in Court. The Committee recommended the abolition of the fixed fee of 8 gns prescribed in appendix W part 3 of the Rules of the Superior Courts. The fee payable to a professional witness on party and party taxation should be measured with regard to the evidential importance of the witnesses testimony, the standing of the witness in his profession, the time necessarily spent by the witness in familarising himself with the testimony which he will have to give, the amount of time actually spent in Court, the financial loss occasioned to the witness, and the number of other professional witnesses called on the same topic. The fee allowed should be a reasonable indemnity. Other recommendations of the Committee were that allowances for fees should vary with the jurisdiction of the Court; that there should be no limit on the number of reports for which allowance would be made on taxation provided that the Taxing Officer is satisfied that they were reasonably required, and that meetings should be held at regular intervals between the Taxing Officer an dthe professional associations with a view to keeping the amount of fees awarded under constant review. The report is published by Government Publications, price l/9d. RESTRICTIVE PRACTICES The Third Programme for Economic and Social Development 1969-72 (published by the Govern ment Publications. Price 8/6d) refers in chapter 10 to the need to reduce restrictive practices in the auctioneering, legal, insurance and architec tural professions and suggests that these practises should be referred to the Fair Trade Commission in order to devise methods of increasing competition in these activities. In particular the report points to the fixing of remuneration by reference to scale fees settled by the professional associations themselves or by statutory authorities which are in the main composed of members of the profession concerned.

In the light of this pronouncement the reference of the architectural, auchioneering and Legal Professions to the Monopolies Commission in England assumes a more immediate importance for the profession. In the Monopolies Commission Report on Estate Agents (H. C. 127: H.M.S.O.; 10/6,) recently published the Commission's views on scale charges and professional rules regarding undercutting, touting and advertising are quite clear and while these refer to Auctioneers in this instance it is quite possible that similar conclusions will be arrived at when Solicitors practises are investigated. The main criticism levelled by the Commission at ad noloraem scales is that they shield the less well organised and progressive practitioners and generally reduce the incentive to try radically new methods or to strive for increased efficiency. Continually rising prices automatically offset rising costs to which the estate agent may be subject and so remove the necessity for them to seek more efficient methods of operating in order to achieve the same objects. While the soliecitor's charge reduces as a percentage of the purchase as the price increases no doubt the same argument will be put to the profession by the Monopolies Commission and in Ireland the Fair Trade Commission. The Commission recommended that both national and local society's of auctioneers should no longer recommend or publish scales of fees and that their rules restricting their members ability to compete for business on the basis of fees or to charge whatever fees they think fit should be withdrawn, while those rules of conduct which may prevent or discourage competitive fee charging such as the rules of touting and adver tising should be so interpreted as not to do so and should if necessary be amended for that purpose. Fixed scale fees, the Commission say, result in some overcharging and lead to inefficient operating inhibit experiment in finding new and better methods of operating and deny the client the choice of a lesser charge if he does not require "the full service that goes with the standard price". Recently there have been several widely publicised books published in England criticising restrictive practises in the legal profession and it is hoped to review some of these in forthcoming issues of the Gazette so that members will be in a better position to appreciate the type of argument which the profession must meet before the Fair Trade Commission. 119