The Gazette 1992

GAZETTE

JUNE 1992

N S M

I

Remove Controls on Solicitors' Remuneration

In his address to the half-yearly meeting of the Society on 11 May, Law Society President, Adrian Bourke, said there was no justification for the maintenance of controls on the level of fees that solicitors may charge clients. Legal Costs "The area of legal costs is one that has been occupying my attention very much since I became President. As some of you may know, I re- established a Costs Committee of the Society this year (in recent times costs had been dealt with as part of the functions of the Litigation Committee) and that Committee have been given the remit of examining urgently the whole area of legal costs with a view to ensuring that the remuneration levels of this profession keep pace with the very high cost of practising law nowadays and that solicitors are properly and adequately remunerated for their work. "In the context of the Solicitors (Amendment) Bill, 1991, we have called on the Government to remove all legal controls on solicitors' remuneration. In an age of increasing competitiveness, which has recently witnessed the passing of a Competition Act designed to ensure the elimination of all restrictive practices and barriers and the introduction of open and free competition in trade and industry as well as in the professions, we see no justification for the maintenance of controls on the level of fees that solicitors may charge their clients for their work. The Minister for Industry and Commerce, Mr. O'Malley, in the context of his Competition Act, has expressed a view that it may not be lawful for the Law Society or Bar Associations to recommend levels of fees to their members. He sees such practices as being anti-competitive and, therefore, in restraint of free

competition. In addition, the Solicitors Bill provides that it will not be lawful for the Society to prevent solicitors from charging less than any recommended level of fees for particular areas of legal work. How, therefore, might I ask, can it be maintained by the Government that there should be legal controls on the maximum levels of fees that solicitors can charge for their work? I ask also, in this context, whether, if the Government succeeds in enacting the provisions of the Solicitors Bill which will allow banks and trust corporations to do probate and conveyancing work it is proposed to introduce similar controls on the level of fees that they may charge for this work? I am afraid that the Government cannot have it both ways. We intend to continue to press for an open and free market in relation to solicitors' remuneration. The Fair TVade Commission and Mr. O'Malley are the purveyors of the dogma of competition. We will accept no deviation from that principle in a matter so vital to this profession. Shoddy Work and Overcharging "Before I leave the Solicitors Bill, let me make it very clear - and here I am speaking personally - that I welcome very much the new powers that the Bill will give the Law Society to deal with shoddy work and overcharging in the profession. I make no apology for that. This Society is a Society that has always been concerned with maintaining the highest standards of professional practice and ethical behaviour. We will not countenance poor standards of work or overcharging on the part of anybody and we will take all steps

the position of the Law Society in this regard. It is time that this profession demonstrated clearly to the public that it accepts fully that, in an age of increasing consumerism, it must be accountable - and be seen to be accountable - for what it does. That, to my mind, is a fundamental principle of good professional practice. I know that there are many firms of solicitors who are genuinely concerned about good solicitor/client relationships and genuinely believe in the concept of 'client care'. But we must work harder as a Society to ensure that this message is got across to everyone in the profession and that the public also see that, when the Law Society says that it is concerned about the way in which complaints are dealt with, it means what it says. I intend to devote a considerable amount of my energies, during my presidency, to the promotion of this concept in the profession. I am determined to have it demonstrated clearly that the Law Society is concerned about those who have complaints against solicitors and that, when complaints are made, they will be thoroughly and fairly investigated and, where wrongdoing is evident, this will be put right and, in appropriate cases, compensation offered. In this regard, of course, the maintenance of a compensation fund is very important to the profession but, it must be a fund that operates fairly and that is reasonable both to the public and to the profession. "The appointment of a legal ombudsman, when the Bill is enacted, will, in my view, be a considerable step forward and will help to give much greater acceptability to the work of the Law Society in relation to the handling of complaints. I welcome that. I believe, of course, that it is absurd that we should be expected to bear the cost of this office and the Society will continue to campaign strongly with the Government on this." •

open to us to eradicate such behaviour from the profession.

" I believe that the provisions of sections 8 and 9 of the Solicitors Bill will greatly help and will strengthen

171