The Gazette 1971

Society's interest in the Solicitors' Buildings would place the Society in a financial position to cope with the capital and current expenditure on King's Hospital. He also referred to the President's statement on the subject of legal remuneration and the Central Costs Committee. Every member, he said, should resolve to stand firm on the principle of the independence of the profession from executive control and should support the Council in their demand that any control of solici- tors' remuneration on orders made by the various costs fixing bodies should rest with the Oireachtas. Executive control was not acceptable irrespective of the political party in office (applause). There should be no surrender on this principle. The proceedings then terminated.

company. He also pointed out that the fee included the work done in preparing a proper report of the pro- ceedings in the District Court which is required by the insurance company and that a solicitor would not be obliged to prepare or furnish a report unless he was properly remunerated for the work. Mr. William B. Allen, Galway, congratulated the President on his admirable address. He referred to what he regarded as frustrating delays in connection with the King's Hospital and the problem of escalating building costs which he stated might get out of hand and he knew that the King's Hospital Committee and the Council were making every effort to bring the nego- tiations with the Commissioners of Public Works to a satisfactory conclusion so that the price realised for the

The Minister for Justice on Legal Education

legal education in this country (both in regard to solici- tors and barristers) is in many ways outdated and unsa- tisfactory. I might also add that the system in England and Wales is not significantly different from ours and has from time to time been subjected to an amount of criticism. In Scotland, substantial changes have been made in legal education in the past ten years. Tradi- tionally, the Scottish universities have always played a highly important role in legal education : and this is, to my way of thinking, only as it should be in any system of legal education, properly so called. A Committee under the chairmanship of a High Court Judge, Mr. Justice Ormrod, was established by the former British Lord Chancellor, Lord Gardiner, at the end of 1967 to enquire into the field of legal educa- tion in England and particularly the problems of training and qualifying for the legal profession. The Committee's Report was published quite recently and I strongly commend a study of it to the members of your Society as well as to all those concerned with the future of the legal profession. In addition to dealing with the legal education system in England and Wales, the Committee in an Appendix to their Report furnish a very valuable survey of the systems of legal education operating in Scotland, in the United States, in various British Commonwealth countries and in a number of European countries. To my mind the greatest defect in our present system of legal education is the lack of co-ordination between the various teaching authorities. There are four univer- sity colleges, each one independent of the others, pro- viding courses for university degrees in law which, how- ever, do not entitle the holders to practise law. In order to practise, a person must undertake a course of studies prescribed by either the Honourable Society of King's Inns or the Incorporated Law Society of Ireland, which leads to a professional qualification to practise. In fact, however, the professional bodies are only able to provide part of the courses of education they prescribe and have to depend on the universities to provide the rest. The present confused system is, to say the least, illogical and wasteful of resources. The universities are the only bodies providing comprehensive courses in law; yet a university degree in law is not an entitlement reauired in addition to university examinations. In a speech which I delivered at a meeting of the 37

About eighty guests and thirty members of the Council attended the annual dinner of the Council, which was held in the Library of Solicitors Buildings, Four Courts, on Thursday, 22nd April 1971. The President, Mr. Brendan McGrath, presided and welcomed the guests at a reception beforehand. Mr. Peter Prentice, Vice- President, proposed the toast of "Our Guests", to which Judge McGivern responded. Subsequently, the Minister for Justice, Mr. O'Malley, in proposing the toast of the Society said. I should like to express my sincere thanks to the Presi- dent and Council of the Society for inviting me here tonight. It is an honour and a privilege for me to propose the toast of the Society. Yours, or perhaps I should say ours, is an old and venerable Society with a proud record of achievement. The high esteem in which the solicitors' profession is held is due in large measure to the activities of the Society since its foundation over a century ago. The success of any organisation is the result of unstinting devotion of time and energy on the part of a small number of members. In the past the Society has been fortunate in being guided by Councils of exceptional dedication. From my unique position as a member of the profession and Minister for Justice I can say that the present Council is in the very best tradition of the Society. Needless to remark, Government Ministers and pro- fessional organisations may not always see eye to eye on matters of mutual concern and I am acutely conscious that from time to time I have to take decisions which do not meet with the full approval of the Society. However, the important thing is that we do not disagree on fundamentals. The end of all our endeavours is the achievement of the greatest possible measure of liberty and justice for all our people. In my dealings with the Society since I became Minister for Justice I have found the Council members not only formidable advocates and sturdy defenders of the interests of the profession but at the same time not unmindful of the public interest. Legal Education A matter of vital concern to the solicitors' profession and to the country in general presently engaging our attention is the question of legal education. I have already publicly expressed the view that the system of