The Gazette 1978

GAZETTE

JULY-AUGUST

1978

Association dealing with Law Office Management and Technology, with a view to establishing, when the time is ripe, an Irish Society for Computers and Law or an ad hoc Committee of the Society dealing with these topics. The organisation of our Courts Having said that I believe that there is much that can be done to improve the internal organisation of our own offices, I think I am entitled to say, also, that there is very much that can be done to modernise and improve the organisation of our courts and accordingly make the administration of justice more efficient and cheaper from the point of view of the general public. In 1962, the then Minister for Justice, Mr. Charles J. Haughey, T.D., appointed a Committee on Court Practice and Procedure, under the Chairmanship of The Honorable Mr. Justice Brian Walsh, with the following terms of reference: "(a) To enquire into the operation of the Courts to consider whether the cost of litigation could be reduced, and the convenience of the public and the efficient dispatch of civil and criminal business, more effectively secured by amending the law in relation to the jurisdiction of the various courts, and by making change, by legislation or otherwise in practise and procedure, (b) To consider whether, and if so to what extent, the existing right to jury trial in civil cases should be abolished or modified, (c) To make interim reports on any matter or matters, arising out of the Committee's terms of reference, as may from time to time appear to the Committee to merit immediate attention or to warrant separate treatment." Between March, 1963, and May, 1972, the Committee made 18 interim reports to successive Ministers for Justice. Many of-these reports have been implemented, either in whole or in part by changes in court rules and in some cases by legislation. However, it is notable that some of the more radical reforms which were advocated by the Committee and in particular some of the recom- mendations contained in chapter six of the 12th Interim Report, under the title, Courts Organisation, have not been implemented, and that also certain of the reforms which were implemented, in particular, those related to increases in jurisdiction have been overtaken by inflation in the meantime. The Minister for Justice, Mr. Collins, in response to questions put to him in Dáil Éireann, in recent months, has indicated that he intends to reconstitute the Committee on Court Practice and Procedure, and to ask it to consider certain specific matters related to court organisation and I understand that the committee has now been reconstituted. In preparing this address, I have studied various interim reports issued by the committee, while being struck by the very excellent work which was done by the committee, I would respectfully suggest, to the Minister, that to reconstitute the committee without taking certain preliminary decisions, which would enable their deliberations to be effective, will result in what can only really be described as tinkering with existing systems where a radical overhaul is required. A committee consisting of judges and practising ' barristers and solicitors with the help of a number of interested and well informed lay-men, while clearly being in a position to offer helpful guidance to the Minister, are not equipped either in terms of time or of research staff, to

would also have the beneficial side effect of providing job opportunities, albeit, on a short term basis for younger members of the profession, and indeed the creation of such an opportunity might be made one of the pre- conditions for the granting of the allowance. Legal Practice: Profession or Business? This brings me to what I am sure most of my colleagues on the Council, have probably now identified correctly, as my personal hobby horse, or at least I thought it was my personal hobby horse, until I attended recently, at a seminar organised by the International Bar Association on the topic of professional ethics, at which I discovered that, no less a person than John Bracken, the Secretary General of the International Bar Association, had jumped on the back of my steed, and was rapidly riding off into the sunset, apparently with the entire American Supreme Court, similarly mounted, in hot pursuit. Put in its simplest terms, the U.S. Supreme Court have come to the conclusion, that the attitude which led lawyers to look down on trade is an anchronism and with that sentiment, I heartily, and respectfully, concur. It seems to me, entirely illogical, that a profession, which espouses the idea, and in my view, very properly, that the solicitor is "a man of affairs", should not be in the fore- front, when it comes to implementing changes in the organisation of professional practice, which would serve to bring the organisation of our offices, up to the highest possible standards, within the limits of our resources. How can we expect the public to take seriously our advice to them in regard to the organisation of their business affairs, if they can observe, for themselves, that we failed to apply our minds to organising our own affairs properly? In the past, this aspect of the education of solicitors has been sadly neglected, but I am satisfied that the new curriculum will go a very long way towards remedying this lack. This, however, does not cope with the problem of encouraging existing members of the pro- fession to adapt themselves, more rapidly, to modern office techniques, and to the use of modern aids to greater efficiency. It is in this field, that I see an immediate oppor- tunity for continuing legal education under the auspices of the Society, and I have laid the ground work for a number of workshops on management accouhting for solicitors, which I hope will take place in the Autumn. As all our office expenditures increases, and to be aware, in good time of the effect that these will have on the profitability of our practices. The techniques for doing this, are by no means complicated, and are as applicable to the small provincial practice as they are to the largest urban practice. Again, the very rapid reduction in the capital cost of word processing equipment and computers has over a very short space of time, produced a radically different picture, in regard to the application of computer based techniques to the smaller professional practice. I hope that many of you will take the opportunity during the course of this conference, to watch the demonstrations of the equipment which has been laid on here, and discuss with your colleagues, the possible application of these techniques to your own office procedures. I full accept, that in many cases you will conclude that this is something for the future, but for the very near future. With this end in view, I intend to participate and to encourage other members of the Council to participate in the work of the Society for Computers in Law and also in the work of the Committee of the International Bar

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