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Spring forward

Spring is finally upon us, and we can already see the difference that the additional minutes of daylight are bringing, writes Law Society President Eamon Harrington

In February, I hosted two parchment ceremonies to welcome over 100 solicitors to the Roll and took the opportunity to encourage them to get involved with the Law Society and to remind them that it is a resource that can support them throughout their career as practising solicitors.

One example of the valuable work being done to represent practitioners is the Law Society’s ongoing engagements with the Land Registry (Tailte Éireann) to address issues with the registration process.

As many of you are well aware, the changes in registration practice implemented since late 2023 have been a source of growing frustration for solicitors and their clients.

We have been communicating those frustrations to Tailte Éireann and, on behalf of the Law Society, I want to thank solicitors from around the country who have provided practical examples of some of the ways that the current system is impeding the timely registration of properties at a time of a crisis in housing.

Tailte Éireann has taken on board some of the criticisms and concerns that we have shared and has made some changes – for example, now agreeing to provide more information on why an application is rejected, that it will notify us of changes in published processes and internal documents, and will begin issuing certain registration queries via email.

However, we know more needs to be done. Be assured that the Law Society is engaging proactively and meeting Tailte Éireann regularly, and I invite you to continue to share any issues you have with our Conveyancing Committee by emailing conveyancing@lawsociety.ie.

Look out for further updates and guidance on the Law Society website.

More power to you

Another concern many of you have shared with me as I travel around the country is the enduring-power-of-attorney process.

In my President’s Bulletin sent by email a few weeks ago, I provided a link to a survey on the effectiveness of the Decision Support Service (DSS), as part of a review by the Mental Health Commission.

It offered a welcome opportunity for the legal profession to share individual insights in respect of interactions with the DSS. The hope is that our collective feedback can help inform recommendations for improvements.

In the meantime, we will continue to press for changes to be introduced so that any person who wants to put an enduring power of attorney in place can do so without unreasonable obstacles being placed in their way.

As well as finding resolutions to the challenges we can encounter as lawyers, it’s also important to have support at whatever stage we are at in our career.

Having the support of our family and friends and a safe working environment, where we can all share our opinions and challenge perspectives without fear of negative consequences, helps us to be better lawyers.

So I was delighted last month to welcome human-resources representatives and colleagues from legal workplaces across Ireland at the launch of a new toolkit on psychological safety, another step towards building a culture where every voice is valued.

This toolkit offers insights into making changes and improvements that can have a positive impact on performance and your bottom line. It’s available now on the Law Society website: I encourage you to have a look and see what changes you might be able to make in your own work for the better.

Eamon Harrington is President of the Law Society