Shine a light
It is my honour and my privilege to serve as President of the Law Society for the coming year, writes Rosemarie Loftus.
I am looking forward to working together with you all, to make progress for the benefit of the public and all solicitors across the country.
I hail from Ballina, Co Mayo (born and raised), and qualified as a solicitor in 1991. I have worked for my family practice since the outset, namely Bourke, Carrigg and Loftus.
The saying that ‘the law runs through your veins’ probably has some degree of truth to it, for four out of our family of six children qualified as solicitors – that is now stretching to the fourth generation, with my nephew receiving his parchment recently.
Legacy comes in many guises and, when it comes to Mayo, we have made our mark here in the Law Society over 60 years. A rural county, miles from the ‘Big Smoke’, we have made our voice heard and have fought to protect rural practices for the betterment of our members.
So I now have the great honour to become the seventh President of the Law Society from Mayo, the first female solicitor from the county, and an even greater honour to become the seventh female solicitor to grace this role.
Access to justice
During my year, I will seek to shine a light on rural practices and the trials and tribulations that they face, given the changing legal landscape on this island.
In particular, there must be a greater focus on ‘legal deserts’ – a fast-approaching reality in so many of our rural communities.
With the difficulties of an ever-growing decline in legal services, the stagnation of trainees in rural areas, staff shortages, rising costs, and the lack of effective mergers or succession in practice, the consequences are the failure and decline of access to justice in rural Ireland.
These issues are becoming more acute, so we must strive to achieve change for our members. We must have our role as solicitors heard within our strategic aims and continue to be the beating heart and voice in our communities.
The Law Society’s Strategic Plan 2024-2028 has defined the purpose, ambition, and vision for our profession.
While the Law Society has made significant inroads in its implementation, there is more to be done.
Enhancing the services that the Law Society provides to solicitors is another area I will be focusing on to achieve greater alignment between the Council and our membership.
Voice of change
Being forward-thinking in our ambition and vision, our already enhanced engagement with chief stakeholders must continue to be strengthened and fostered.
We must strive to be the voice of change, particularly in the evolution and advancement of policy changes, especially at Government level.
This is so essential for our membership, especially those practising in larger firms, so that Ireland continues to be a centre for investment and a magnet for international attraction.
Funding for courts infrastructure and judicial appointments, greater digitisation of the courts and conveyancing systems, focused leadership on AI and its monitoring, and the promotion of more efficient alternative-dispute-resolution mechanisms are just some of the projects that require our focus.
They underpin a more efficient legal system that bolsters our profession’s reputation and positions us as a leader in promoting investment and inward international trade.
I look forward to working with all stakeholders to effect an ever-growing market for solicitors.
Dream team
I am fortunate to be joined by a ‘dream team’ in senior vice-president Martin Lawlor and junior vice-president Keith Walsh SC. I look forward to working closely with them both, and with our director general Mark Garrett – a Mayo man from Ballina!
A wise lady, Mother Teresa, once said: “Not all of us can do great things. But we can do small things with great love.”
So, as a cohesive team, let’s excel at ‘doing the small things’ and add to the existing scaffolding to build a better future for our noble profession.
Rosemarie J Loftus is President of the Law Society