Notice of the making of this Statutory Instrument was published in

"Iris Oifigiúil" of 27th December, 2011.

The Law Society of Ireland, in exercise of the powers conferred on them by the European Communities (Lawyers' Establishment) Regulations 2003 ( S.I. No.732 of 2003 , S.I. No.752 of 2004 and S.I. No.96 of 2008 ) HEREBY MAKE the following Regulations:

Citation and commencement

1. (a) These Regulations may be cited as The European Communities (Lawyers' Establishment) Regulations 2003 (Qualifying Certificate 2012) Regulations, 2011.

(b) These Regulations are intended to give effect to the Lawyers' Establishment Directive as provided for in the 2003 Regulations.

(c) These Regulations shall come into operation on the 1st day of January 2012.

Definitions

2. (a) In these Regulations, unless the context otherwise requires:

"Act of 1954" means the Solicitors Act 1954 [No.36 of 1954];

"Act of 1960" means the Solicitors (Amendment) Act 1960 [No.37 of 1960];

"Act of 1994" means the Solicitors (Amendment) Act 1994 [No.27 of 1994];

"applicant registered lawyer" means the registered lawyer the subject matter of an application;

"application" means the application delivered to the Registrar by an applicant registered lawyer for a qualifying certificate for the practice year, pursuant to Regulation 3 of these Regulations;

"Compensation Fund" means the fund maintained by the Society pursuant to sections 21 and 22 (as substituted, respectively, by sections 29 and 30 of the Act of 1994) of the Act of 1960;

"Regulation of Practice Committee" means the committee to whom functions of the Society pursuant to Part V of the Act of 1954, as amended and extended by Part VI of the Act of 1994, have been delegated by the Council of the Society;

"lawyer" means any person who is an Irish citizen or a national of a member state and who is authorised to pursue his or her professional activities in a member state under any of the professional titles specified in the Schedule to the 2003 Regulations.

"Lawyers' Establishment Directive" means Directive 98/5/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 February 1998 to facilitate practice of the profession of lawyer on a permanent basis in a member state other than that in which the qualification was obtained and includes-

(i) a measure which is in force by virtue of the Agreement between the European Community and its member states, of the one part, and the Swiss Confederation, of the other, on the free movement of persons done at Luxembourg on 21 June 1999; and

(ii) the Decision of the EEA Joint Committee No 85/2002 of 25 June 2002 amending Annex VII (Mutual Recognition of Professional Qualifications) to the EEA Agreement and having an effect corresponding to that of the Directive;

"member state" means:

(i) a contracting party (other than the State) to the EEA Agreement [being the Agreement on the European Economic Area signed in Oporto on 2 May 2002, as adjusted by the Protocol to that Agreement done at Brussels on 17 March 1993] or,

(ii) the Swiss Confederation,

and, where appropriate, means more than one member state;

"practice year" means the calendar year ending on the 31st day of December 2012;

"qualifying certificate" means a certificate issued by the Registrar to a lawyer in accordance with Regulation 8 of the 2003/2004 Regulations certifying that the lawyer is qualified to pursue the professional activities of a solicitor;

"Register of Registered Lawyers" means the register established under Regulation 7 of the 2003 Regulations;

"registered lawyer" means a lawyer in respect of whom a registration certificate is in force;

"Registrar" means the registrar of solicitors for the time being appointed pursuant to Section 8 of the Act of 1954;

"registration certificate" means a certificate issued by the Society to a lawyer in accordance with Regulation 6 of the 2003 Regulations;

"Registration Fee" means the fee payable by a registered lawyer admitted to the Register of Registered Lawyers for three years or more on the 1st day of January 2012 or the fee payable by a registered lawyer admitted to the Register of Registered Lawyers for less than three years on the 1st day of January 2012;

"Society" means the Law Society of Ireland, as the competent authority provided for in Regulation 4 of the 2003 Regulations;

"2003 Regulations" means the European Communities (Lawyers' Establishment) Regulations 2003 ( S.I. No.732 of 2003 ) as amended by the European Communities (Lawyers' Establishment) (Amendment) Regulations 2004 ( S.I. No.752 of 2004 and S.I. No.96 of 2008 ).

(b) Other words and phrases in these Regulations shall have the meanings assigned to them by the Solicitors Acts 1954 to 2008 or the Lawyers' Establishment Directive or the 2003 Regulations.

(c) The Interpretation Act 2005 applies to the interpretation of these Regulations as it applies to the interpretation of an Act of the Oireachtas.

Application for qualifying certificate

3. (a) An applicant registered lawyer shall deliver or cause to be delivered to the Registrar at the Society's premises at George's Court, George's Lane, Dublin 7 on or before the 1st day of February 2012 an application which:

(i) shall be in the form as set out in the First Schedule to these Regulations;

and

(ii) shall be duly completed and shall be signed by the applicant registered lawyer personally.

(b) The Registrar shall, on receipt of an application pursuant to clause (a) of this Regulation and on the Registrar being of opinion that there is or are no appropriate and reasonable ground or grounds for not doing so, cause to be issued to the applicant registered lawyer concerned a qualifying certificate which shall be dated either-

(i) the 1st day of January 2012, where issued during the period beginning on the 1st day of January 2012 and ending on the 1st day of February 2012, or

(ii) the date on which it is issued, where issued after the 1st day of February 2012.

(c) An application pursuant to clause (a) of this Regulation shall be deemed to have effect subject to and having regard to the terms of the guidance notes as set out in the Third Schedule to these regulations.

Where confirmation required of content of an application

4. (a) The Registrar, at any time following delivery to the Registrar by an applicant registered lawyer of an application (whether or not a qualifying certificate has been issued by the Registrar to the applicant registered lawyer pursuant to Regulation 3(b) of this Regulation), may, where the Registrar deems it appropriate and reasonable so to do, require the applicant registered lawyer to confirm in writing to the Society the accuracy of all or any specified part or parts of the application.

(b) Where, on receipt by the Society of a confirmation in writing from an applicant registered lawyer required by the Registrar pursuant to clause (a) of this Regulation, the Registrar deems it appropriate and reasonable so to do, the Registrar may require the applicant registered lawyer to attend before a meeting of the Regulation of Practice Committee to further confirm the accuracy of all or any specified part or parts of the application.

Misconduct of knowingly furnishing false and misleading information

5. An applicant registered lawyer who in an application delivered to the Registrar knowingly furnishes information that is false or misleading in a material respect shall be guilty of misconduct.

Registration Fee and contribution to Compensation Fund

6. As and from the coming into operation of these Regulations, the Registration Fee together with the contribution to the Compensation Fund as specified in the Second Schedule to these Regulations shall be paid to the Society by an applicant registered lawyer on delivery to the Registrar of his or her application.

Fee for copy of entry on File A or File B

7. The fee payable to the Society by a person who applies to the Registrar, pursuant to Section 17 of the Act of 1960, for a copy of an entry on File A or File B shall be as specified in the Second Schedule to these Regulations.

Issue of duplicate qualifying certificate

8. Where a registered lawyer to whom a qualifying certificate for the practice year has been issued pursuant to Regulation 3(b) of these Regulations certifies to the Registrar that his or her qualifying certificate has been inadvertently destroyed, lost or mislaid, such registered lawyer may apply to the Society for a duplicate original of such qualifying certificate on duly discharging the fee specified in the Second Schedule to these Regulations and duly undertaking to the Registrar that in the event of the qualifying certificate as originally issued being subsequently found in the course of the practice year that same would forthwith be returned to the Registrar.

Where conditions attached to qualifying certificate

9. (a) Where a qualifying certificate for the practice year is caused to be issued by the Registrar to a registered lawyer subject to a specified condition or conditions, the qualifying certificate shall be endorsed with the words (adapted as appropriate): "Issued subject to [a] specified condition[s] as annexed" and the Registrar at the same time shall cause to be issued to the solicitor concerned a separate document (deemed to be part of the qualifying certificate) headed with the Society's crest and title and also headed (adapted as appropriate): "Annexe to qualifying certificate of [name of registered lawyer] of [a] specified condition[s] attached thereto and applicable as and from [date of commencement of applicability of the specified condition or conditions]" and setting out the text of each specified condition.

(b) Where the Society give a direction pursuant to Section 59 of the Act of 1994 that the qualifying certificate already issued to a solicitor for the practice year should, from a date that is 21 days after the date of receipt by the registered lawyer concerned of notification in writing by the Society of the giving of such direction, have effect subject to a specified condition or conditions, the registered lawyer shall (subject to the provisions of the said section 59 of the Act of 1994 as to the registered lawyer's right of appeal to the High Court), within such period of 21 days, surrender his or her current qualifying certificate, and the Society shall, as soon as possible, reissue it endorsed with the words (adapted as appropriate): "Issued subject to [a] specified condition[s] as annexed" and the Registrar at the same time shall cause to be issued to the registered lawyer concerned a separate document (deemed to be part of the qualifying certificate) headed with the Society's crest and title and also headed (adapted as appropriate): "Annexe to qualifying certificate of [name of registered lawyer] of [a] specified condition[s] attached thereto and applicable as and from [date of commencement of applicability of the specified condition or conditions]" and setting out the text of each specified condition.

(c) Where a qualifying certificate issued or reissued to a registered lawyer for the practice year is subject to a specified condition or conditions as referred to in clause (a) or (b) of this Regulation:

(i) the registered lawyer concerned shall comply with the specified condition or each of the specified conditions, as the case may be, and shall ensure that he or she does not provide legal services to any client of the registered lawyer in breach of such specified condition or conditions, whether or not any such client is made aware of such specified condition or conditions, and

(ii) the registered lawyer concerned, in any display by him or her of his or her qualifying certificate, shall display with equal prominence adjacent thereto the annexe thereto setting out the specified condition or conditions to which his or her qualifying certificate is subject.

Dated this 19th day of December 2011

Signed on behalf of the Law Society of Ireland pursuant to Section 79 of the Solicitors Act, 1954 .

DONALD PATRICK BINCHY,

President of the Law Society of Ireland.

FIRST SCHEDULE

within referred to

FORM OF APPLICATION FOR QUALIFYING CERTIFICATE FOR PRACTICE YEAR ENDING 31ST DECEMBER 2012

SECOND SCHEDULE

within referred to

THIRD SCHEDULE

within referred to

Law Society of Ireland

Qualifying Certificate Application

for the practice year ending 31 December 2012

GUIDANCE NOTES

General

Why you need a qualifying certificate

It is misconduct and a criminal offence for a registered lawyer (other than a registered lawyer in the full-time service of the State) to practise without a qualifying certificate. Any registered lawyer found to be practising without a qualifying certificate is liable to be referred to the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal.

When you must apply

A qualifying certificate must be applied for on or before 1 February in each year in order to be dated 1 January of that year and thereby operate as a qualification to practise from the commencement of the year. It is therefore a legal requirement for a practising registered lawyer to deliver or cause to be delivered to the Registrar of Solicitors on or before 1 February 2012 an application in the prescribed form duly completed and signed by the applicant registered lawyer personally together with the appropriate fee. The onus is on each registered lawyer to ensure that his or her application form and fee is delivered by 1 February 2012. Applications should be delivered to: Regulation Department, Law Society of Ireland, George's Court, George's Lane, Dublin 7; DX 1025 Four Courts.

What happens if you apply late

Any application for a qualifying certificate which is received after 1 February 2012 will result in the qualifying certificate being dated the date of actual receipt by the Registrar of Solicitors, rather than 1 January 2012. There is no legal power to allow any period of grace under any circumstances whatsoever.

Please note that during 2010 a number of solicitors went to the trouble and expense of making an application to the High Court for an order that their practising certificate be backdated to 1 January to ensure continuity in their years of entitlement to practise, because their practising certificate application was received after 1 February and their practising certificate in consequence was dated after 1 February.

The Regulation of Practice Committee is the committee of the Society which has responsibility for supervising compliance with qualifying certificate requirements. A special meeting of this Committee will be held on a date after 1 February 2012, to be decided, to consider any late or unresolved applications for qualifying certificates. At this meeting, any practising registered lawyer who has not applied by then for a qualifying certificate will be considered for referral forthwith to the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal and will be informed that the Society reserves the right to take proceedings for an order under section 18 of the Solicitors (Amendment) Act 2002 to prohibit them from practising illegally.

If you are an employed registered lawyer

Registered lawyers who are employed should note that it is the statutory obligation of every registered lawyer who requires a qualifying certificate to ensure that he or she has a qualifying certificate in force. Employed registered lawyers cannot absolve themselves from this responsibility by relying on their employers to procure their qualifying certificates. However, it is the Society's recommendation that all employers should pay for the qualifying certificate of each registered lawyer employed by them.

Law Directory 2012

It is intended that the Law Directory 2012 will note all registered lawyers who have been issued with a qualifying certificate by 10 February 2012 (not those who have applied by 10 February 2012). Therefore, in order to ensure that your qualifying certificate issues by 10 February 2012 you should ensure that the application form you return to the Society is completed correctly. If it is not completed correctly, it will be necessary to return the form, which may result in delaying the issue of your qualifying certificate, despite the fact that you had applied for it prior to 10 February 2012.

What can you access on the website (www.lawsociety.ie)

A blank application form for obtaining a qualifying certificate is downloadable from the Becoming a solicitor/Overseas Section of the Society's website. In addition, you may request a form to be emailed to you by emailing [email protected].

If you are ceasing practice

If you have recently ceased practice or are intending to cease practice in the coming year, please notify the Society accordingly.

Acknowledgement of application forms

Please note that it is not the Society's policy to acknowledge receipt of application forms as received.

Duplicate practising certificate

A fee of €50 will be payable in respect of each duplicate qualifying certificate issued for any purpose.

Section A - Personal Details

If any details in this section are incorrect, please either amend the form or enclose an explanatory letter with the form.

Section B - Status

Please complete this Section as indicated on the application form.

Notes in relation to particular parts of this Section.

1(h) For the purposes of this option "independent law centre" has the meaning provided for in The Solicitors Acts 1954 to 2002 (Independent Law Centres) Regulations 2006 ( S.I. No. 103 of 2006 ), as amended.

1(f) A registered lawyer to whom this option applies is not required to hold a qualifying certificate, but should complete the form as if applying for a qualifying certificate. No fee will be charged for a qualifying certificate and no qualifying certificate will be issued.

1(g) A registered lawyer to whom this option applies is not required to hold a qualifying certificate, but should complete the form as if applying for a qualifying certificate. No fee will be charged for a qualifying certificate and no qualifying certificate will be issued.

5. The questions of the Registrar of Solicitors are to be answered by each applicant, including a registered lawyer in the full-time service of the State and a conveyancing-only registered lawyer employed by a non-solicitor/registered lawyer.

Section C - Investment Business Services or Investment Advice

This Section is required to comply with The Solicitors Acts 1954 to 1994 (Investment Business and Investor Compensation) Regulations 1998 ( S.I. No. 439 of 1998 ) as amended. Part I of this Section applies to a registered lawyer who is an investment business firm or an investment firm within the terms of Section 47(1)(a) or (b) of the Investor Compensation Act 1998 . Part II of this Section applies to all other registered lawyers.

Text of Investor Compensation Act 1998 Section 47(1)(a) and (b)

(a) A solicitor in respect of whom a practising certificate (within the meaning of the Solicitors Acts 1954 to [1994]) is in force shall be an investment business firm-

(i) where the solicitor provides investment business services or investment advice in a manner which is not incidental to the provision of legal services, or

(ii) where the solicitor holds himself or herself out as being an investment business firm, or

(iii) where, when acting as an investment product intermediary in a manner incidental to the provision of legal services, the solicitor holds an appointment in writing other than from-

(I) an investment firm authorised in accordance with the Investment Services Directive by a competent authority of another Member State, or an authorised investment business firm (not being a restricted activity investment product intermediary or a certified person), or a member firm within the meaning of the Stock Exchange Act 1995 , or

(II) a credit institution authorised in accordance with Directives 77/780/EEC of 12 December 1977 and 89/646/EEC of 15 December 1989, or

(III) a manager of a collective investment undertaking authorised to market units in collective investments to the public,

which is situate in the State or the relevant branch of which is situate in the State,

and shall be required to be authorised as an authorised investment business firm pursuant to the provisions of the [Investment Intermediaries Act] 1995.

(b) A solicitor, in respect of whom a practising certificate (within the meaning of the Solicitors Acts 1954 to[1994]) is in force, who is an insurance intermediary or who holds himself [or herself] out to be an insurance intermediary shall be an investment firm for the purposes of this Act and shall inform the [Irish Financial Services Regulatory Authority] and [The Investor Compensation Company Limited] that he or she is an investment firm for the purposes of this Act.

Part I

The terms of the description referred to in Part I of this Section and the terms of the evidence in writing referred to in Part I of this Section are as follows:

1. I am a registered lawyer who------

(a) provides investment business services (including acting as an insurance intermediary) or investment advice in a manner which is not incidental to the provision of legal services, or

(b) holds himself/herself out as being an investment business firm, or

(c) when acting as an investment product intermediary in a manner incidental to the provision of legal services, holds an appointment in writing other than from

(i) an investment firm authorised in accordance with the Investment Services Directive by a competent authority of another Member State, or an authorised investment business firm (not being a restricted activity investment product intermediary or a certified person), or a member firm within the meaning of the Stock Exchange Act 1995 , or

(ii) a credit institution authorised in accordance with Directives 77/780/EEC of 12 December 1977 and 89/646/EEC of 15 December 1989, or

(iii) a manager of a collective investment undertaking authorised to market units in collective investments to the public,

which is situate in the State or the relevant branch of which is situate in the State,

and am therefore an investment business firm required to be authorised as an authorised investment business firm pursuant to the provisions of the Investment Intermediaries Act 1995 (as amended by the Investor Compensation Act 1998 ), or am an insurance intermediary and/or have held myself out as an insurance intermediary who is required to inform the Central Bank of Ireland and The Investor Compensation Company Limited of that fact.

2. I attach to my application form evidence in writing:

(a) either-

(i) of having been authorised by the Central Bank of Ireland as an authorised investment business firm; or

(ii) of having informed the Central Bank of Ireland and The Investor Compensation Company Limited that I am an insurance intermediary and/or that I have held myself out as an insurance intermediary;

(b) of the fact of the payment by me (or on my behalf) of such contribution to the fund established and maintained pursuant to section 19 of the Investor Compensation Act 1998 as may be required by The Investor Compensation Company Limited under section 21 of that Act;

(c) of having in place, valid and irrevocable for at least the duration of the practice year ending on 31 December 2011, a bond or bank guarantee and a policy of insurance, each acceptable to the Society, by way of providing indemnity against losses that may be suffered by a client in respect of default (whether arising from dishonesty or from breach of contract, negligence or other civil wrong) on my part, or any employee, agent or independent contractor engaged by me, as shall, in the opinion of the Society (taking into account the maximum amount of compensation for default that would be payable to a client secured by reason of the payment made by me referred to in (b) above), be equivalent to the indemnity against losses that would be provided to a client of a solicitor (in respect of whom a practising certificate is in force) in the provision of legal services by means of-

(i) the Compensation Fund as provided for in accordance with section 21 (as substituted by section 29 of the Solicitors (Amendment Act 1994) of the Solicitors (Amendment) Act 1960 , and

(ii) the minimum level of cover as provided for in accordance with The Solicitors Acts 1954 to 2002 (Professional Indemnity Insurance) Regulations 2007 ( S.I. No. 617 of 2007 ), as amended.

Part II

The terms of the undertaking referred in Part II of this Section are as follows:

I hereby undertake that:

(a) I will not provide investment business services (including acting as an insurance intermediary) or investment advice to clients or, if I do so, I will do so only when incidental to the provision of legal services to such clients;

(b) I will not hold myself out as being an investment business firm or an insurance intermediary;

(c) If I provide investment business services or investment advice to clients incidental to the provision of legal services to such clients and when acting as an investment product intermediary, I will not hold an appointment in writing other than from:

(i) an investment firm authorised in accordance with Directive 93/22/EEC of 10 May 1993 by a competent authority of another Member State, or an authorised investment business firm (not being a restricted activity investment product intermediary or a certified person), or a member firm within the meaning of the Stock Exchange Act 1995 , or

(ii) a credit institution authorised in accordance with Directives 77/780/EEC of 12 December 1977 and 89/646/EEC of 15 December 1989, or

(iii) a manager of a collective investment undertaking authorised to market units in collective investments to the public, which is situate in the State or the relevant branch of which is situate in the State; and

(d) if at any time during the course of the practice year ending on 31 December 2012 I propose to become an investment business firm or an investment firm in one or more of the circumstances set forth in Section 47(1)(a) or (b) of the Investor Compensation Act 1998 , I will notify the Society in writing of that fact at least seven days before such proposed event and shall, within fourteen days of such notification, comply with the provisions of Regulation 6 of The Solicitors Acts 1954 to 1994 (Investment Business and Investor Compensation) Regulations 1998 ( S.I. No. 439 of 1998 ), as amended.

Section D - Solicitors Accounts Regulations 2001 to 2006

This Section should completed only by an employed registered lawyer in private practice or by a registered lawyer employed by a non-solicitor/registered lawyer (e.g. financial institution, commercial entity, statutory body), in either case who has not handled clients' moneys during the practice year 2011 other than on behalf of the employer.

Section E - Professional Indemnity Insurance

This Section should be completed only by a registered lawyer who provides legal services for a non-solicitor/registered lawyer (e.g. financial institution, commercial entity, statutory body). If this status applies to you, please complete the Section.

For the purposes of this Section words and phrases which are assigned meanings by The Solicitors Acts 1954 to 2008 (Professional Indemnity Insurance) Regulations 2011 ( S.I No. 409 of 2011 ) shall have the meanings so assigned.

Section F - Continuing Professional Development (CPD)

Completion of Section F of this application is the initial means of verifying compliance with the 2011 minimum CPD requirement. The CPD requirement for 2011 applies to a solicitor who held a practising certificate, and/or a solicitor in the full-time service of the State, and/or a European lawyer registered with the Society holding a qualifying certificate, at any time during 2011. A solicitor who does not fall into any of these categories should tick option (d).

Solicitors who have completed the 2011 minimum CPD requirement in accordance with the Scheme should tick option (a). The 2011 CPD Scheme allows for the minimum CPD requirement to be modified in certain limited circumstances, including for (i) a newly admitted solicitor, (ii) a senior practitioner, (iii) maternity/parental/carers/adoptive leave, (iv) part-year practice, (v) unemployment, (vi) part-time practice. The limited circumstances in which these modifications may be claimed and the method of calculating the modified CPD requirement are set out in the current CPD Scheme booklet. No application to the Education Committee is required to claim such a modification. A solicitor who is entitled to modify his/her minimum CPD requirement under the Scheme and who completed that modified CPD requirement should tick option (a). A solicitor who is entitled to modify his/her minimum CPD requirement under the Scheme but who failed to complete that modified CPD requirement should tick option (c).

A solicitor who was admitted to the Roll of Solicitors on or after 1 December 2010 is exempt from the full 2011 minimum CPD requirement and should tick option (a). A solicitor who was admitted to the Roll of Solicitors between January 2010 and November 2010 is entitled to modify his/her minimum CPD requirement in accordance with the Scheme (see above). Any such solicitor should tick option (a) if they completed that modified CPD requirement or option (c) if they failed to do so.

A solicitor may make an individual application to the Education Committee for special dispensation from the minimum CPD requirement (whether by way of full or partial exemption or for an extension of time to complete the necessary CPD hours) in cases of certified long-term illness or other personal circumstances. Only a solicitor who has made such an application to the Education Committee which has already been granted should tick option (b).

A solicitor who has failed to complete the 2011 minimum CPD requirement (in full or as may be modified under the Scheme) and who has not made an application to the Education Committee for special dispensation should tick option (c). A solicitor to whom option (c) applies and who now wishes to make an application to the Education Committee for special dispensation should separately write to the CPD Scheme Unit.

The current CPD Scheme booklet and S.I. No. 452 of 2009 are available to download from the CPD Scheme section in the Members' Area of the Society's website (www.lawsociety.ie). For further information, contact the CPD Scheme Unit (tel: 01 6724802, post: CPD Scheme Unit, Law Society of Ireland, Blackhall Place, Dublin 7 or email: [email protected]).

An applicant should not return his/her CPD record card with this practising certificate application. The Society may subsequently request sight of an applicant's record card and proof of completion of the CPD during the 2011 CPD cycle as part of the Society's CPD audit review process.

Section G - Data Protection Statement

The examples of the actual or possible uses of personal data relating to a solicitor also apply to registered lawyers and include the following:

-� the provision of data to insurers providing professional indemnity insurance cover and brokers arranging such cover and to the SPF manager;

-� the circulation of the Society's Gazette to a solicitor member of the Society, which may include or be accompanied by commercially-related material;

-� publication in the annual Law Directory;

-� the reference to a solicitor on the Roll of Solicitors and/or on the Register of Practising Solicitors and/or in the records of professional indemnity insurance cover of solicitors maintained by the Society;

-� the reference to a solicitor on the Society's website;

-� the provision by the Society to a solicitor candidate for the Society's annual elections or a solicitor candidate for a Dail or Seanad election of the practice address and/or e-mail address of a solicitor;

-� the furnishing of information relating to the good standing of a solicitor, including information recorded on the Roll of Solicitors and on the Register of Practising Solicitors or in the records of professional indemnity insurance cover maintained by the Society, when requested, to Irish governmental agencies (e.g. Judicial Appointments Advisory Board) or to foreign governmental agencies (including governmental agencies outside the European Union) or to commercial entities or to individual members of the public;

-� the provision by the Society to a specific commercial entity of the practice address and/or e-mail address pursuant to an expressly recorded decision of the Society that it is beneficial to do so for defined marketing or professional or practice development purposes;

-� the provision by the Society of the practice address and/or e-mail address of a solicitor to third party non-commercial entities, e.g. Bar Associations, which provide useful information to the profession.

-� the provision by the Society to a firm of solicitors or another body employing solicitors of information both electronically and in hard copy form, as to the attendance record of individual solicitors within the firm or body relating to Continuing Professional Development.

Declaration

Please sign and date as indicated on the application form.

Membership of the Society

Please tick the box if you wish to be a member of the Society for the year ending 31 December 2012.

Fees

1. The registration fee and the Compensation Fund contribution are required to be paid by each applicant for a qualifying certificate.

2. A registered lawyer registering as a registered lawyer during the practice year commencing 1 January 2012, if applying for his/her first qualifying certificate during the practice year 2012, may calculate the registration fee and the Compensation Fund contribution payable by him/her on the basis of the number of full calendar months remaining in that practice year following the month of his/her registering as a registered lawyer; and the registered lawyer's membership subscription in respect of the year (or part thereof) of his/her registration shall be at the reduced rate of €20.

3. Payment of the annual membership subscription and/or the Solicitors Benevolent Association contribution and/or the Free Legal Advice Centres contribution and/or Community Law Centres contribution is/are not a condition(s) precedent to the issuing to a solicitor of a qualifying certificate. However, unless a registered lawyer pays the annual membership subscription, he/she cannot enjoy the benefits of being a member of the Society as provided for in the Society's Bye-Laws, including the right to vote in annual and provincial elections and the right to receive the Society's Gazette. The voluntary contribution to Community Law Centres will be allocated to the Ballymun Community Law Centre and the Northside Community Law Centre.

Payment Methods

Please pay the fees due by cheque or electronic funds transfer as indicated on the application form.