The Gazette 1978

DECEMBER1978 INTERNATIONAL BAR ASSOCIATION 17th BIENNIAL CONFERENCE

GAZETTE

SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA September 10-17, 1978

Resources and many others. The Section on Business Law grows steadily, and it was reported to the Conference that there are now well over 3,000 members, most of whom have joined its committees and are thus making a substantial contribution to its work. The Council of the Section on General Practice also met, as did its 15 Committees. Among the many subjects under discussion were Legal Education and Continuing Legal Education, Town and Country Planning, Governmental Finance and Taxation, Estate and Tax Planning and Court Administration. In addition, there was a meeting of Young Lawyers to discuss the subject: "The Marketability of Lawyers". Mr. Maurice R. Curran, last year's chairman of the Education Committee, read a full and well-recieved paper on "Recent Developments in the Training of Intending Solicitors in the Republic of Ireland". The Irish contingent — the largest ever — included: Mr. and Mrs. Joseph L. Dundon; Mr. Peter D. M. Prentice and Mrs. Prentice; Mr. and Mrs. Ernest Margetson; Mr. and Mrs. Brian O'Connor; Mr. and Mrs. Maurice R. Curran; Mr. and Mrs. Denis J. Bergin; Mr. Anthony E. Collins; Mr. and Mrs. Bruce St. John Blake; Mr. and Mrs. Walter Beatty; Mr. George Overend; Mr. and Mrs. John Ross; Mr. Eric Bradshaw; and the only representative from Northern Ireland, Miss Thomasina McKinney, President, Incorporated Law Society of Northern Ireland. The Eighteenth Conference of the IBA will be held in Berlin from August 23 to 31, 1980. Meetings of the Standing Committees of the IBA were also held in Sydney. In particular there was an interesting discussion at the Ombudsman Committee meeting, led by its Vice-Chairman, Mr. Alex Weir. There were also meetings of the United National Affairs Committee, the European Affairs Committee and the Professional Ethics Committee, and a specially organised meeting for Judges attending the Conference. The Constitution Review Committee also met under the chairmanship of Sir William Carter (Vice-President). There was a meeting of Presidents and Batonniers, and the Law Council of Australia arranged a useful meeting for the senior staff members of the various Bar Associations and Law Societies represented at the Conference. The Society has received a considerable number of requests from students seeking apprenticeships. A register of solicitors willing to take on apprentices is being established. Members who are willing to take apprentices are asked to write to: Brendan J. Twomey, Education Officer, Incorporated Law Society of Ireland, Blackhall Place, Dublin 7.

More than 1,500 members of the International Bar Association, representing 43 countries, attended the Conference in Sydney. The Host Organisation was the Law Council of Australia, whose Chairman, Mr. David Ferguson, with his colleagues on the Australian Organising Committee, helped to ensure that the Conference was a real success. The Conference opened in the Concert Hall of the magnificent Sydney Ojpera House on Monday, September 11, 1978, when a welcome to members was extended by the Chairman of the Law Council of Australia, and by Mr. M. H. Byers, Q.C., the Solicitor-General, on behalf of the Attorney-General of the Commonwealth of Australia. There followed a challenging ddress from The Governor General of Australia, Sir Zelman Cowen. •Expressions of thanks were extended by the President of the IBA, Dr. Werner Deuchler, and by representatives of five continents, from Canada, Denmark, India, New Zealand and Zambia. Although there was a full and interesting social programme for members and their guests, the opening of the Conference began immediately after the Opening Session. There were four main Conference Topics: 1. The International Aspects of the Protection of Consumers and the Protection of Producers. (Presented by the International Federation of Women Lawyers and the Section on Business Law of the IBA). 2. The Practical use of Computer Technology in the Law Office. (Presented by the Section on General Practice of the IBA). 3. Provision, Operation and Accessibility of Legal Aid. (Presented by the International Legal Aid Association). 4. Government regulation of the Practice of Law as it affects the scope of Professional Conduct and Practice of Lawyers. (Presented by the American Bar Association and the Law Society in England and Wales). All these Topic Sessions were well attended and provoked full discussion. There was a moving ceremony associated with Topic No. 3, when Dr. Tai-Young Lee of Korea was presented by the International Legal Aid Association with the Association's Award for 1978. Meetings were held of the Council of the Section on Business Law, and there were also several sessions of the 21 Committees of the Section, covering such varied subjects as Aeronautical Law, Anti-Trust Law and Monopolies, Commercial Banking and Insurance, Investment Companies Funds and Trusts, Patents Trademarks and Copyrights, Taxes, Energy and Natural

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