Putting Boot In

NZ Truth, Issue 1195, 25 October 1928, Page 5

Putting Boot In

to the trouble of , making discreet inquiries at the registry office to see Jf their deeds are registered. There is, of course, no guarantee that defaulting solicitors, such as Batchelor, Would not have been crooks m any other walk of life. It is merely unfortunate for the legal profession that they were attracted to it. So far as the methods of Batchelor are concerned, the profession has the opportunity of obviating to a great degree similar dishonesty on .the part of solicitors by adopting the' English method of having their clients present at the settlement— -rto see for themselves that the documents are completed and; handed over for expeditious registration.

In the absence of any statement

by the Lato Society on the matter, clients are left; very. much .m the

dark and there, is an obvious ele-

ment of mistrust existing which does harm to honest members of

the. profession. Defaulting solicitors are not only ruining their own careers and robbing their > clients, but they are driving people with money for investment into safer channels, • where there is some form of security over the firm handling the business. And until the law societies m Christchurch and" elsewhere make some move: m the matter, these conditions must continue. * .

Further, there is ground for believing that the attention of the Christchurch society was drawn m the past to Batchelor's unsatisfactory business methods.

"Truth" challenges Neave— or any member of the Law Society to deny that Batchelor was before them on a previous occasion within the last two years. This paper asks Neave if ' it is not a fact that Batchelor induced a senior North Island counsel to speak for him and that his attitude was one of: "Why pick on me?" Is it not a fact that on this occasion Batchelor's defence v was that a clerk m his employ had been responsible for the deficiencies; also, that the only action taken by the society was to put m auditors approved by the society and express the fervent hope that as Batchelor was a young marij he would benefit by the lesson? "Truth" invites any member of the Law Society to deny that his unsatisfactory business, methods were not known to every solicitor practising m Christchurch.

This paper has been informed— and there is no reason to doubt the source of information— that when Batchelor appeared before the society some eighteen months ago, he threatened "to. put the. boot m" concerning other firms which he alleged had been before the society and had received lenient treatment. If this is so, the natural conclusion is that the society was' bluffed into extending- leniency m his case..'.- .--.•- •t.-r : ' '"■''^"''^:j;;-. There is little hope- that the.pedple Batchelor haß- swindled will get much m return. The thorough investigation of his affairs, which is. now proceeding, may prove that many, of his clients, are, m some measure, secured, but it is definitely certain that some of them are not. They can hope to receive little from the wreckagel