The Gazette 1991

GAZETTE

DECEMBER 1991

DSBA Launches CORT Computerised Objections and Requisitions on Title

Society and the cost of this licence will be included in the CORT software licence fee. This fee is an annual licence fee and is pitched at a level which we consider is affordable. The single user system costs £95. A two user system £145 and for each additional user a further £40." David Walley said that he would particularly like to thank Maeve Hayes, Chairperson of the Law Society Conveyancing Committee, and the members of the Committee for their support in the development of the programme. David Walley also thanked all the solicitors who were involved in the pilot study, namely Daire Murphy, Rory O'Donnell, Dominic Dowiing, John Buckley, Justin McKenna, Richard Bennett, Gerry Griffin and Gerry Doherty. How CORT operates The standard form of Requisitions on Title is incorporated into the computer software The operator of the software can only type into the document the usual particulars on the front page e.g. vendor, purchaser, property details etc. The content of the Requisitions cannot be varied from the current edition of the Law Society Requisitions. The vendor's solicitor will assume that the purchaser's solicitor will raise the standard Requisitions on Title (excluding the obvious requisitions which are inapplicable e.g. flats, licensing etc where a second hand house is involved). The vendor solicitor will send these requisitions with replies to the purchaser's solicitor at the time he returns the executed contract to the purchaser. The purchaser's solicitor will then raise whatever other Requisitions on Title that he may wish to raise together with his rejoinders and prepare a list of documents he wants handed over on closing. This will be sent to the purchaser's solicitor, in letter form and replied to by the vendor's solicitors in letter form.

It is thought that the time saved in waiting for the purchaser to raise the standard Requisitions on Title will be as much as seven days. The software enables the user to use standard phrases e.g. agreed, yes, no, not applicable, enquiries being made, etc at the touch of a button without having to type in the specific reply. If a category of requisition does not apply to the transaction, the requisition category is not raised at all. A statement is made to the effect that it does not apply on the Requisitions pn Title side of the document. If however a part of a category of requisition does not apply, the entire category will be raised as a Requisition on Title obliging the vendor to reply to each section arid sub-section of a category individually. This will save on paper and postage costs. • Miscellaneous Solicitors Practice required: Leinster area. Confidentiality assured. Box No: 91. Cooper Estate "Wo u l d any person having knowledge of the Cooper Estate which held property in Knocklong, Co. Limerick, please contact M/S William A. Lee & Son, Solicitors, Kilfinane, Co. Limerick. Reference PE, Phone No: 063-91116." ENGLISH AGENTS: Agency work undertaken for Irish solicitors in both litigation and non-contentious matters - including legal aid. Fearon & Co., Solicitors, 12 the Broadway, Woking, Surrey GU21 5AU. Tel: 03-0483-726272. Fax: 03-0483-725807. 427 Professional Information (Cont'd from page 426)

The Dublin Solicitors Bar As- sociation in association with Noltag Computers Limited has developed a simple computer so f tware package which enables a reply to be made to Requisitions on Title using a PC computer without the need for the use of typewriters and forms. At a reception to mark the launch of CORT, held in the Law Society, the President of the DSBA, David Walley, explained how CORT had come about. "The idea arose almost two years ago when the Law Soc i e t y 's Conveyancing Committee asked for Bar associa- tions' suggestions in this area. The Dublin Solicitors Bar Association Conveyancing Committee in con- junction with Noltag Computer Services Limited played around wi th various suggestions and eventually came up with this software package. "The system operates on a very simple presumption. The vendor presumes that the purchaser will raise the standard requisitions on title and rather than waiting for him to raise them, he raises them himself and replies to them himself at the time that the contracts are exchanged. The purchaser, of course, will then raise whatever other requisitions he has by way of letter and that letter will then, of course be replied to by letter". David Walley said t hat the advantages of the system were:- - simple to use; - can be used on any PC - can be used w i t h any wordprocessing system; - developed by solicitors for solicitors; - cheap; - quick and easy to amend the software to take account of a modification by the Law Society of the Requisitions on Title. David Walley continued "each firm using the system will have a copyright licence from the Law