The Gazette 1971

number of offices would be advantageous not alone to the Society which deals with the matter in the interests of the profession as a whole but to the individual offices because it has been found that the adoption of time costing methods and knowing what it costs to provide different kinds of professional services has resulted in increased profitability and efficiency where such methods are used. In the strenuous years ahead the profession must ever strive to increase its efficiency by amalga- mation, equipment and by the adoption of progressive methods of business and I feel certain that time costing is a high priority. Legal remuneration—Central Costs Committee Discussions have continued between the Council and the Minister for Justice on the subject of a single com- mittee to regulate solicitors' remuneration. As mem- bers are aware five different committees are concerned with this matter, the most important being the statutory body under the Solicitors' Remuneration Act, 1881, which deals with non-contentious business geutu-ally. There is a separate committee for each Court and lor the Land Registry. The Council suggested as far back as 1962 that a general costs committee should be appointed which without interfering in any way with the method or form of charges fixed by particular rules committees would be empowered to authorise general increases in all solicitors' costs by way of a percentage addition to be added to existing charges. In a subsequent discussion with the predecessor of the present Minister in 1968 the committee again put forward this proposal and suggested that there should be a single costs com- mittee with public representation and the assistance of chartered accountants which would make orders dealing with solicitors' remuneration generally and would be responsible to the Oireachtas. The Council were opposed to a ministerial or executive veto on decisions of such a committee as being contrary to the accepted principle of professional independence. The Minister for Justice met representatives of the Rules Committees early in August 1970 and following that meeting a circular was sent out to members on September 10th last. Since then there have been two meetings between the Minister personally, the first with representatives of the Society, the Bar and represen- tatives of the Rules Committees and the second with representatives of the Society alone. I do not want to go into any detail about these discussions but we are hopeful that the Minister will accede to the proposals put forward to him on behalf of the Society which I am convinced would be in the public interest. Over a large area of professional practice solicitors have no exclusive rights and in these areas they are in the same posiiton as architects, accountants and medical practi- tioners with this difference that solicitors' charges are controlled, while those of other professions are fixed by the professional bodies themselves. It is accepted that there is a case for supervision of charges in Court proceedings for party and party costs which are paid by parties other than clients and for non-contentious work where there is exclusivity but for non-contentious work where there is no exclusive right it is difficult to see the logic or argument for external regulation. In fact in Scotland the Law Society prescribes the scale of non-contentious costs which is regarded with respect but not necessarily as the final authority by the Courts. External Control Nevertheless the Council has accepted the principle of external control by a broad based committee with representation as I have said from the judiciary, the professions, the public and representatives of the pro- 3$

professions and other employments. It was pointed out that the capacity of the transportable goods industries to compete with imports depended not alone on their own internal efficiency but also on the prices they had to pay for materials and the services they bought in Ireland and examples of these services given were legal, auctioneering and architectural services, insurance and financial facilities, building, electricity, gas and water. It had been suggested in the N.I.E.G. report that there should be procedures for referring restrictive practices between persons and firms in the services shelter of the economy to the Fair Trades Commission in order to devise means of increasing competition in these activi- ties. The Council naturally paid serious attention to these statements and to later official announcements that the restrictive trade practices legislation would be amended and extended to bring professional services within the scope of the Fair Trades Commission. This had already been done by the Monopolies Commission in England which held an inquiry into the solicitors and other professions. The Council has made a survey of earnings in a representative sample of solici- tors' offices and the results have been analysed by the Society's accountants. Steps have also been taken to institute a time costing exercise in accordance with a scheme drawn up with the assistance of the Society's accountants and in which a number of offices will be invited to participate. It is hoped that there will be a wide response to this request because in order to present the Society's case properly the Council must be armed with adequate statistical and other information. The areas of investigation envisaged are the fee structure of the profession, the commission scale fee, cross subsidis- ation and so-called restrictive practices. These practices include the existing prohibitions against advertising, supplanting, undercutting and Unfair attraction of business by advertising or otherwise. If experience in England is any guide it will be suggested that there should be price competition between individual solici- tors and offices and that solicitors should be free to advertise their services and compete in the same way as commercial and industrial concerns. Terms of Reference of Fair Trade Commission The terms of reference of the Commission are not yet known as the legislation has not yet been published in Bill form but officials of the Department have met representatives of the Society on several occasions at which, while accepting that legislation will be introduced, the Council have put forward suggestions as to the form which it should take. The Council are particularly concerned that whatever form the legislation takes it should not be accepted as a foregone conclusion that price competition, advertising, undercutting and similar practices are justified. The Council have no objection whatever to such an inquiry and indeed welcome it because they feel confident that an impartial investi- gation will show that the public interest would not be served by the commercialisation of the profession. This is not said from any affection of superiority of the professions over commerce but merely to indicate that they are different and I do not intend here to enter into the arguments on either side of the case. I am concerned, however, to see that the terms of reference of the commission will treat this matter as at least an open question. Reverting again to the time cost exercise I would like to appeal to offices which have any interest in this mat- ter to write in to the Secretary of the Society who will supply them with a memorandum prepared by the accountants which I think would repay careful perusal. Participation in an exercise of this kind by a large