Notice of the making of this Statutory Instrument was published in

"Iris Oifigiúil" of 8th February, 2011.

The Law Society of Ireland in exercise of the powers conferred on them by Part IV (as amended by Part V of the Solicitors (Amendment) Act, 1994 ) of the Solicitors Act, 1954 HEREBY MAKE the following Regulations:

Citation and commencement.

1. (a) These Regulations may be cited as the Solicitors Acts 1954 to 2008 (Apprenticeship and Education) (Training Officer) Regulations 2011.

(b) These Regulations shall be read together with the Solicitors Acts, 1954 to 1994 (Apprenticeship and Education) Regulations, 2001 ( S.I. No. 546 of 2001 ) (hereinafter "the 2001 Regulations") and all amendments thereto, and may be collectively called the Solicitors Acts 1954 to 2008 (Apprenticeship and Education) Regulations 2001 to 2011.

(c) These Regulations shall come into operation on the first day of March 2011.

Definitions.

2. (a) Regulation 2 of the 2001 Regulations is hereby amended by the addition of the following definitions in their respective alphabetical order:

" "firm" means a firm of solicitors comprising two or more partners;

"training officer" means a person in the employment of a firm who is designated by the firm to provide administrative assistance to each training solicitor in the firm in the discharge by each such training solicitor of his or her functions, commencing on the commencement date, relating to and consequential on the service of the period of in-office training by his or her trainee solicitor or by each of his or her trainee solicitors, as the case may be;".

3. Regulation 19 of the 2001 Regulations is hereby amended by the insertion of the following two paragraphs after paragraph (a):

"(aa) A firm may, from time to time, designate a named person in the employment of the firm to be a training officer, provided that the firm shall duly notify the Society in writing of the name of that person within twenty-one days after such person has been so designated and shall similarly notify the Society of any change of the person so designated.

(aaa) A training officer so designated by a firm shall be entitled to liaise with the Society in respect of matters concerning the service of the period of in-office training by a trainee solicitor in the firm and may, as appropriate, complete on behalf of the training solicitor the statutory declaration as to the service by the trainee solicitor of his or her period of in-office training or any other statutory declaration that may be required by the Society in relation to the trainee solicitor's period of in-office training."

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

21 January 2011

JOHN COSTELLO,

President of the Law Society of Ireland.

I concur, to the extent required, pursuant to Section 40 (7) (as inserted by the Solicitors (Amendment) Act, 1994 ) of the Solicitors Act, 1954 , with the making of the within Regulations.

27 January 2011.

BRENDAN SMITH, T.D.,

Minister for Justice and Law Reform.

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Instrument and does not purport to be a legal interpretation.)

The principal purpose of the Instrument is to provide for the designation by a firm of solicitors comprising two or more partners of a person in the employment of the firm as a training officer who would provide administrative assistance to a training solicitor in the firm in relation to or consequential on the service of the period of in-office training by his or her trainee solicitor or by each of his or her trainee solicitors, as the case may be.