MINUTES OF ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING 2013

Transcription

1 MINUTES OF ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING 2013 Minutes of the Annual General Meeting of the members of the Law Society held at the Society s Hall on Thursday 11 July 2013, at 2.30 pm. The President, Lucy Scott- Moncrieff, was in the chair. Quorum The President stated that there were more than 50 members of the Society present and declared a quorum. Notice of meeting The notice of the meeting was taken as read. Minutes of previous Annual General Meeting The minutes of the Annual General Meeting held on 5 July 2012 were taken as read and confirmed. Election of Council members The President said that there were vacancies to be filled in 26 constituencies. In 16 constituencies the number of candidates did not exceed the number of vacancies, and the President therefore declared the following members duly elected for those constituencies - Constituency No 2 - The City of London: Paul Barnes Constituency No 3 - Holborn: Alexander Fraser Whitehead Constituency No 8 - The City of Westminster: Jeffrey Allan Forrest Constituency No 16 - Hampshire and the Isle of Wight: Andrew Howard Arthur Caplen Constituency No 23 - Coventry and Warwickshire: Colin John Witherall Constituency No 26 - Merseyside and District: Richard Anthony Barnett Constituency No 29 - Central Lancashire and Northern Greater Manchester: Joseph Bernard Egan Constituency No 31 - Yorkshire: Keith Hardington Constituency No 33 - Nottinghamshire: Alan Joseph Henson Radford Page 1 of 6

2 Constituency No 36 - Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire: Michael Elwyn Williams Constituency No 39 - Suffolk and North Essex: Roger Buston Constituency No 42 - Bristol: Ian Christopher Pearce Kelcey EU Matters: Davina Garrod Government Legal Service: Simon Timothy Harker International Practice: David Michael Greene Voluntary Sector: Sara Jean Mary Chandler The President said that in ten constituencies contests had been necessary and voting papers had been sent to all members in the constituencies concerned. Internet voting had also been available. Electoral Reform Services (ERS) had acted as scrutineer for these elections and its reports on the elections had been published on the website. Copies were also available at the meeting. The President then declared the successful candidates in the elections to have been duly elected for the following constituencies - Constituency No 37 - Hertfordshire: Paul Bernard Davies Child Care Law: Denise Lester Civil Litigation: Keith Etherington Crown Prosecution Service: Emma Garnett Ethnic Minorities (three vacancies): Sundeep Singh Bhatia, Nwabueze Nwokolo and Philip Do Youn Kim Housing Law: Timothy James Crook Immigration Law: Laura Devine Junior Lawyers' Division (Solicitor Member): Beth Forrester Junior Lawyers' Division (Trainee Solicitors/LPC Students): Catherine Elizabeth Melis Residential Conveyancing: Nicholas Charles Arthur Gurney-Champion The President said that in three constituencies no candidate had been validly nominated by the due date and so, in accordance with the Bye-Laws, nomination committees had been convened in those constituencies to nominate a candidate who would then be deemed to be duly elected. The constituencies concerned, and the respective members who had been nominated, were - Constituency No 12 - Inner Sussex: Patrick Wilfred Richards Constituency No 27 - Manchester, Salford, Stockport and District: Steve Kuncewicz Constituency No 32 - Derbyshire and East Staffordshire: Anthony Russell Page 2 of 6

3 The President said that a number of non-geographical seats which were intended to represent particular organisations had been filled by nomination from the organisation concerned. These organisations, and the members nominated by them, were as follows - Association of Personal Injury Lawyers: John Spencer Black Solicitors' Network: Yvonne Brown Commerce and Industry Group: Clare Belcher and John Bleasdale Criminal Defence (Nominated jointly by the Criminal Law Solicitors Association and the London Criminal Courts Solicitors Association): Joy Merriam Employment Lawyers Association: Clive Dobbin Forum of Insurance Lawyers: Nichola Evans Junior Lawyers Division (Solicitor-member): Katherine Gibson Law Management Section: Paul Widdup Lawyers in Local Government: Beverley Cullen and Maria Memoli Lawyers with Disabilities Division: David Merkel Legal Aid Practitioners' Group: Nicola Mackintosh Private Client Section: Helen Clarke Solicitor Sole Practitioner Group: Ian Lithman and Lubna Shuja Women Lawyers Division: Sarah Austin, Christina Blacklaws and Stephanie Boyce The President offered her congratulations to all the newly (re-) elected or (re-) nominated members and her commiserations to those who stood unsuccessfully in the elections. Retiring Council members On behalf of the meeting, the President paid tribute to the work done for the profession by a number of Council members who were retiring at the conclusion of the meeting, whose names, constituencies and number of years of service were as follows Kevin Martin, who had represented the Coventry and Warwickshire constituency since 1996, and who had been President in John Wotton, who been one of the Council members for the City of London constituency since 2007 and who had been President in Sue Carter, who had been one of the Council members representing the Solicitors Sole Practitioners' Group since John Calladine, who had represented the Derbyshire and East Staffordshire constituency since Andrew Tucker, who had been one of the Council members representing the Yorkshire constituency since Page 3 of 6

4 Stanley Williams, who had been one of the Council members representing the Commerce and Industry Group since Chris Welton, who had been one of the Council members representing the Manchester, Salford, Stockport and District constituency since Grace Brass, who had represented the Junior Lawyers' Division (Solicitor Member) constituency since Wendy Hewstone, who had represented the Legal Aid Practitioners Group since George Curran, who had been one of the Council members representing Solicitors in Local Government since Angus King, who had represented the Housing Law constituency since Tom Flanagan, who had represented the Employment Lawyers' Association constituency since Michelle Penn, who had represented the Forum of Insurance Lawyers since Sapna Bedi Fitzgerald, who had been one of the Council members representing the Commerce and Industry Group since The President also referred to the following members who had left the Council during the course of the year - Michael Webster, who had represented the Black Solicitors Network from Stuart Kightley, who had represented the Association of Personal Injury Lawyers from Brontie Zouteweille, who had represented the Junior Lawyers' Division (Trainee Solicitors/LPC Students) constituency from The meeting expressed by acclamation its grateful thanks to all these members for their services to the Society and the profession. Resolution 1 (Annual Report) The President moved Resolution 1 on the notice of the meeting, which was That the Annual Report of the Council be received. The Vice-President (Nicholas Fluck) seconded the resolution. Vivien Stern (West London) said it was regrettable that the Annual Report did not mention referral fees. Notwithstanding a large majority in a postal vote supporting the retention of a ban on referral fees, the Council had gone ahead in changing the rules to permit them. The ban should be reinstated. It was resolved, on a show of hands, that the Annual Report of the Council be received. Page 4 of 6

5 Resolution 2 (Accounts) The Treasurer (Tim O'Sullivan) moved Resolution 2 on the notice of the meeting, which was That the Accounts signed by the Auditors be approved. The Treasurer thanked all those who had been involved in the preparation and audit of the Accounts, including Alan Vallance (Chief Operating Officer), Dave Wormald (Interim Head of Finance) and the Finance team, the Audit Committee and the Society's Auditors, PWC. The Treasurer referred to the outturn figure for 2012, a deficit of 22.7 million, as compared to that for 2011, a deficit of 65.7 million, although the latter figure had been artificially inflated by the one-off cost of a buy-out of the Society's liabilities under its defined benefit staff pension scheme. Nevertheless, considerable reductions in expenditure had taken place in 2012, including the bringing together of SRA and Organisational Services staff all together on one site in Birmingham. The Treasurer concluded by saying that these Accounts were the last to be prepared in relation to a calendar year; henceforth the Society's financial year would be aligned to the year used for practising certificates, beginning on 1 November and ending on the following 31 October. The Vice-President seconded the resolution. It was resolved, on a show of hands, that the Accounts signed by the Auditors be approved. Any other business John Wotton (City of London), a Past President and retiring Council member, said it had been a great honour to serve on the Council for the past six years, and he was pleased that the Society was in good hands with the office-holder team. The Society was held in great esteem, not least for its defence of legal aid. Kevin Martin (Stratford-upon-Avon), also a Past President and a retiring Council member, echoed what had been said by John Wotton, and noted in a light-hearted manner some of the changes that had taken place at Chancery Lane during his years on the Council. He stressed that the Society's staff were its greatest asset, and congratulated Des Hudson, the Chief Executive, in particular on all his hard work. Derek French (Birmingham), a Council member, said that not all Council members at the time had agreed with the relaxation of the ban on referral fees, but had been obliged to accept the majority decision. Vote of thanks to the President Shona Perkins, President of the West London Law Society, moved a vote of thanks to the outgoing President, Lucy Scott-Moncrieff, saying that her year of office had been a highly active and successful one. The President had led the Society with great skill as it navigated its way through stormy waters, as it faced the implementation of alternative business structures, the Jackson reforms, proposed changes in legal aid, and many other difficult issues. A notable success had been the President's evidence before the Select Committee. The vote of thanks was carried by acclamation, and Shona Perkins presented the President with a bouquet of flowers as a token of appreciation. Page 5 of 6

6 Response by the President The President then responded to the vote of thanks. The profession was going through a period of great change, but responding to its demands positively and flexibly, with a view to maintaining its usefulness to society. It was the job of the Law Society to help and support all members of the profession, regardless of their area of practice or sector, and provide services available to all, while at the same time remaining within budget and not adding to the burdens of the profession. The President endorsed what Kevin Martin had said about the Society's staff, and also thanked Council members and members of committees for all their hard work, which they carried out as volunteers for the good of the profession. The President concluded her remarks by extending her congratulations and best wishes to the incoming President, Vice President and Deputy Vice President. Presentation of badges of office The President then invested Nicholas Fluck, with the badge of office as President. The new President responded, saying it was an honour and a privilege to be in a position to represent the profession as President over the coming year, and he was delighted that his wife and family, as well as members of his firm, had been able to attend the meeting. He paid tribute to the work of Lucy Scott-Moncrieff as President over the past year; she had been an outstanding leader of the profession and a great champion in defence of legal aid. The new President said that this was a period of change, which affected all in society, and it was important that the profession continued to serve its clients well, and act as the legal conscience of society as a whole, at such a time. A key theme of the coming year would be improving the competitiveness of the profession, and he looked forward to the challenges ahead. The new President then invested Andrew Caplen with his badge of office as Vice President. The new Vice-President responded briefly, and in turn invested Jonathan Smithers with his badge of office as Deputy Vice President. The new Deputy Vice President also responded briefly. The Chief Executive, Desmond Hudson, presented Lucy Scott-Moncrieff with a memento of her year of office, and presented her with a bouquet of flowers on behalf of the staff of the Society. Conclusion The outgoing President declared the meeting closed at 3.30 pm, thanking members for their attendance. Page 6 of 6