The Gazette 1987

GAZETTE

SEPTEMBER 1987

Doing Business in Ireland

operations based in Ireland over many years. Day Two, introduced by the Senior Vice-President Tom Shaw in the absence of the President, was devoted to solid law with qualified lawyers from the E.E.C. and private practices in Brussels covering broad policy and specific practice in competition, licensing, distri- bution and franchising within the Community. The legal framework for import/export trade and invest- ment was covered by Damien McCarthy of Price Waterhouse; Laurence Shields gave his second paper, this time on protection of trademarks and technology and Eugene Fanning, calling on his many years in the New York office of Arthur Cox & Co., contrasted the practice of law in the United States and in Ireland and pointed to the need for something comparable to the Uniform Financial Com- mercial Code as a solution to the complexities of doing business in Europe. At lunch that day Ernie Margetson, listed as third speaker, professed dismay at having to follow two brilliant contributions by the Honourable John Simonett of the Minnesota Supreme Court and Mr. Justice Liam Hamilton, President of the High Court, but matched them flawlessly in wit, style and anecdote. The afternoon of that day was devoted to a tour of the Four Courts led by Professor Richard Woulfe and, for the hardier souls in the party, a visit to the Whiskey Corner in Irish Distillers. Mr. Des Peelo developed, managed and chaired Day Three. Des Peelo is the Society's Consultant on the Advanced Course on financial affairs and is already a contributor to the Society's C.L.E. programme. Originally planned as focussing on finance, the day developed into what became a solidly professional exercise in reassurance with Senator Brian Hilary covering Industrial Relations; Senator Maurice Manning the Political Environment; Dr. Declan Glynn, Chief Executive of the National Board for Science and Technology on High Tech in Irish Business; Dr. Michael Casey, Manager, Banking

A C.L.E. programme with a difference, "Doing Business in Ireland", ran for four days from the 5th to the 8th October, 1987. Based in the Berkeley Court Hotel and the Law Society, it attracted twenty-three U.S. business executives and business lawyers — and a small but perceptive group of Irish commercial lawyers.

So what was it? It was an attempt to replicate in Ireland a similar and highly successful venture "Doing Business in Japan" run in mid-1984 by Minnesota Con- tinuing Legal Education in con- junction wi th JETRO (Japan External Trade Organisation) which generated many millions of dollars in increased trade on both sides of the Pacific. Planned over a period of two years from July 1985, the proposal was first mooted by the writer in Washington to Frank Harris, the Executive Director of Minnesota Continuing Legal Education who pioneered the Japanese venture. Accepted by Minnesota C.L.E. and adopted shortly thereafter by the C.L.E. sub-Committee under John Buckley (who in fact opened the Conference) and the Education Committee under its then Chair- man, Laurence Shields (who contributed two papers to the Conference), it had three objec- tives: 1. To highlight to U.S. lawyers and businessmen and, in particular, the many Minnesota lawyers with an Irish ethnic background the attractions of Ireland as a place in which to set up in business. (Maximum taxation of 10%, guaranteed up to the year 2,000; a young, highly educat- ed, computer-literate popula- tion, hungry for jobs, avail- ability of sophisticated tele- communication services and a stable democratically structured society); 2. To explore the scope for joint ventures between Irish and American businesses; 3. To provide the opportunity to establish professional and personal relationships between Irish and American lawyers and, perhaps, to encourage Irish

lawyers to begin to match the level of penetration into the business affairs of their clients that is commonplace among U.S. lawyers. How successful was it? Too early to say, of course, although there are positive indicators. Of that more later. But the programme was unquestionably a success, with contributions from no fewer than thirty-two speakers, many of them pre-eminent in their respec-

by Professor L. G. Sweeney Director of Training

tive fields. The U.S. Ambassador, Margaret Heckler, herself a lawyer, who gave the opening address and the Minister for Industry and Com- merce Mr. Albert Reynolds (who, although supplied with a script, spoke extempore and to good effect for 20 minutes) set the tone on the first day, devoted to Ireland's attractions as a business base. A major presentation by Kieran McGowan, Executive Director of the I.D.A. was followed by an excellent and wide ranging luncheon address on Ireland's economy by Liam Connellan, Director General of the Con- federation of Irish Industry whose talk generated a broad spread of questions, ably dealt with. Papers on the forms of doing business in Ireland by Laurence Shields and on tax considerations, particularly tax incentives and abatement programmes, by Patrick McDonald of Stokes Kennedy Crowley (Peat Marwick in Ireland) were followed by Case Histories presented by I.B.M. and Wescan, U.S. businesses w i th U.S.

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