The Gazette 1978

GAZETTE

DECEMBER 1978

Dublin Solicitors' Bar Association Annual General Meeting

At the recent Annual General Meeting of the Association the following Officers and Council were elected for the year 1978/79: John Buckley, President.

for a house) which do not entitle the purchaser of the house or flat to stamp the purchase deed "exempt frm stamp duty". Worse still,' it was difficult to ascertain from the face of the four forms of C.R.V. issued by the Department of the Environment to indicate which form entitles the Purchaser to exemption from stamp duty and which does not. Representations are being made to the Department of the Environment to have a clear statement as to the stamp duty position added to each form of C.R.V. Members will be notified about the results of this in due course. Rory O'Donnell also referred to an apparently incresing practice in the sale of new houses, the price of which exceeded the certified "reasonable value". It appears that a number of Vendors of houses are charging the "reasonable value" as the stated contract price, and are collecting the excess price under the heading of "extras" — which "extras", in many cases, do not exist. This practice has already been the subject of comment in the Gazette of The Incorporated Law Society which recommended the profession should do everything possible to prevent it. In discussion, it was agreed that there were many genuine cases in which "extras" did indeed justify the price increase and Show Houses, sold with carpets, curtains and fully-fitted kitchens, were cited as a valid example. Noel Reid raised a number of interesting and thought- provoking matters, including a suggestion that the Courts might consider sitting for one more than their present 32 weeks per annum. He argued that the present custom had its origins in the travelling conditions and work-load of the 18th Century and might profitably be revised in the light of today's environment. No reference was made to the possible effect of such a change on the volume of reserved judgments or the speed with which they might issue following an increase in the length of Court terms! Discussion also took place on the Religious Services conducted at the commencement of each Law Term and Maurice Kenny proposed that a recommendation should go forward from the meeting that, instead of separate Religious Services, the possibility of an ecumenical Service should be investigated. The Meeting was clearly in agreement with this suggestion and the President undertook to have it investigated. The President himself mentioned that the next Annual Dinner of the Association would be held, for the first time, at Blackhall Place, on Friday 16th February 1979. He hoped that the setting would be successful and would be the first of many such Dinners.

Moya Quinlan, Vice President. Andrew Smyth, Hon. Secretary. Clare Cusack, Hon. Treasurer.

Council members:

Michael Farrell Elma Lynch

Stephen Maher Vivian Mathews Charles Meredith Herbert Mulligan Rory O'Donnell Colm Price Laurence Shields Rory O'Connor and Peter McMahon were re- elected as the Association's Hon. Auditors. EXTRAORDINARY GENERAL MEETING At an Extraordinary General Meeting of the Association held at Blackhall Place on the 20th of November 1978, Rory O'Donnell proposed on a Notice of Motion, seconded by Herbert Mulligan, that the name of the Association be altered to "Dublin Solicitors Association" Mr. O'Donnell argued that the word "Bar" was no longer appropriate to the activities of the Association, the activities of which had over the years become of a much more general nature. However, after much eloquent argument in the course of which it was pleaded on the one hand that the word "Bar" had acquired a traditional and widely understood meaning in the Profession and, on the other hand, that the word had only one normal and popular connotation (both arguments not necessarily mutually exclusive), the Motion was lost. In the course of the argument it was even suggested that, on the American precedent, the word "Solicitor" was open to misinterpretation and should be dispensed with. "ANY OTHER BUSINESS" Several interesting issues were raised at the Association's Annual General Meeting which it is felt should not pass without wider expression. Rory O'Donnell mentioned recent alterations in the use of Certificates of Reasonable Value and drew the Meeting's attention to the fact that there are now two additional forms of C.R.V. (one for a flat and the other

DETECTIVES (PRIVATE) EIRE International Investigators Solicitors' Enquiry Agents — Process Servers — Commercial Enquiries 294 Merrion Road, Dublin 4. Tel. (01) 691561. Telex 30493. 16 Wellington Park, Belfast 9. Tel. (0232) 663668. Telex 747958. LONDON — also BRIGHTON, SUSSEX — NEW YORK. U.S.A.

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