The Gazette 1992

MARCH 1992

GAZETTE

W B

by Eamonn G. Hall, Solicitor

small towns across the country, where costs were lower.

would accelerate the "up-or-out" process with associates, but there would be more lifetime senior associate positions offered. Partnerships would be at two levels - voting privileges with risk-taking and non-voting with indemnification. In law departments of corporate undertakings, the focus of legal practice may shift away from reactive advice-giving towards more active involvement in the planning of business activities to prevent incurring significant legal liability, to be more helpful and to be part of the management team. The New York lawyers considered that more and more law-school graduates and admitted lawyers would go into business positions; the glut of lawyers would drive them in this direction. Firms would continue to expand their overseas practices, probably through affiliations with existing foreign firms. There was likely to be even more litigation as a result of the ever increasing amount of governmental regulation in an increasingly complex society. The New York lawyers considered that litigation would increase - perhaps not in the tort and malpractice areas where legislative restraints may be imposed, but certainly in the administrative and regulatory arenas. The panellists agreed that environmental law compliance, intellectual property associated with computers and software systems, health care and international commercial transactions would be growing areas of legal practice. Unfriendly mergers and buy-outs would diminish, but friendly mergers and acquisitions may well increase. Also the availability of rapid telecommunications for voice, data and video-conferencing would allow law firms to practise successfully in

The Future of Legal Practice

The lawyers concluded that the boom years of rapid growth in law firms and in-house legal departments were over, but the need for legal advice and work would remain strong. Lawyers in the future would be less detached legal oracles and more involved participants in the business decisions of their clients. This may create a challenge to the practising lawyer to maintain one's professional objectivity and integrity, but would provide exciting opportunities for personal growth and satisfaction in providing legal services of high quality and value to the client. The first meeting of the Barristers' Professional Conduct Tribunal was held on 30 January, 1992. The Tribunal, which has lay members nominated by the Federation of Irish Employers and the Irish Congress of Trade Unions, will deal with complaints from the public, solicitors and others concerning the professional conduct of barristers. The members of the Tribunal are Diarmuib O'Donovan SC (Chairman), Gerard Dempsey (FIE), Kevin Duffy (ICTU), Peter KellySC, Kevin Feeney SC, Harvey KennyBL and Peter Somers BL. The setting up of this new Tribunal follows the adoption of a new Code of Conduct, Constitution and Disciplinary Code by the Bar last year. Where either party to a complaint is dissatisfied with the Tribunal's decision an appeal may be made to an Appeals Board chaired by the former President of the Circuit Court, The Hon. Mr. Justice Peter O'Malley. New Barristers' Complaints Body

The future of legal practice was considered at the Corporate Counsel 1991 Fall meeting of the New York Bar State Association. Lawyers gazed into their crystal balls, found some elements of the future both murky and mysterious on some trends, but crystal clear on others. Mr. John S. Luckstone, the Vice Chairperson of the Corporate Counsel Section and General Attorney of Bell Communications Research, Inc., summarised the issues in the newsletter of the Corporate Counsel Section of the New York State Bar Association in January, 1992. The New York lawyers started with the grim economic realities of the present day - the decline in legal business after the boom years of the 1980s. They confronted such matters as the future size and structure of law firms and legal departments, the structure of the firms and the relationship between inside and outside lawyers, the relative importance of the profit motive in outside practice, the use of paralegals and part-time professionals, the litigious nature of our society and possible legislative backlashes to it and growth and decline areas of legal practice. Many of the issues discussed are relevant to lawyers in Ireland. The panellists agreed that there would be belt-tightening both in firms and in-house law departments. Big firms would pull back, and there would be a trend towards more small "boutique" firms that would specialise in particular areas of the law such as computers and environmental control. Corporate law departments would remain at almost their present size, and there would still be substantial work given to outside lawyers. The bigger law firms

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