We are here today to celebrate and to give thanks for the 150 years of service by solicitors since the grant of our Royal Charter in 1845.

Lawyers have existed for many centuries, certainly in Biblical times.

Various unflattering references are recorded in the Gospels.In St Luke's Gospel, chapter 11, Jesus criticises the Pharisees for having no care for justice, and goes on: 'You lawyers, it is no better for you! For you load men with intolerable burdens, and will not put a single finger to the load.' I comfort myself by recalling they were a particular type of ecclesiastical lawyer, but I suspect no one else appreciates the distinction.In this country, for the last three centuries at least, solicitors in conjunction with our colleagues at the Bar, and more recently legal executives, have been fighting for justice on behalf of our clients.

Whether justice is attained is more questionable.

In every law suit there are at least two parties.

It is inevitable that one at least will believe that justice has not been done.

There is the story of the man who had to leave the country before judgment was given in his case.

He won and his solicitor sent him a telegram: 'Justice has been done.' By return, the client telegraphed his solicitor: 'In that case appeal at once!'Of course we must recognise that any system set up by man will fail from time to time.

Only God is just and infallible.

The Gospels remind us that sometimes unconventional means are needed to ensure justice is done.The story of the woman caught in the act of adultery is an example of this.

The Pharisees asked Jesus: 'This woman has been caught in the act of adultery, the law requires she be stoned, what do you say?' 'Let the one who is faultless cast th e first stone.' The crowd melted away.The story of the king and the servant also has a message for those seeking justice.

You will recall that the servant owed the king the equivalent of millions of pounds.

He could not pay and the king released him from his obligation.

The servant then threatened the full majesty of the law against a fellow servant who owed him a few pounds.

When the king heard this he condemned the servant to torture.The threat that we shall be judged by the standards we set in judging others is a frightening worry for judges.

But not just for them.

All of us judge people day by day.

By their clothes, by their colour, by their job.

Lawyers, above all professions, have to be careful not to judge others.

By our training and our ethical code we must not discriminate.

Judge not that ye be not judged.One of the pleasures of being President of the Law Society is to preside at the admission ceremonies.

I am pleased to see some of you invited to this afternoon's ceremony here today.

This is an opportunity to meet and to talk briefly to the newly admitted solicitors.I am always heartened by the number who come into this profession not for the money or the job security, such as it is, but in order to help those less fortunate than themselves.When the Law Society was founded the purpose was to raise standards by training and an ethical code.

This is just as important today.

What differentiates a profession from a trade is that the clients' needs are put before the lawyers'.

The profession also supports its clients if one of our members fails to uphold the high standards put on us by the practice rules.

We have the enforcement of discipline, and the compensation of clients who have suffered a pecuniary loss.

Whether we practise in the smallest firm or the largest we have this common bond.In looking back over the last 150 years we see history repeating itself.

As long ago as 1846 there was a suspicion that the Law Society did not represent provincial solicitors.In the 1890s, The Times described the Law Society as: 'The best organised and most intelligent trade union in the country.' Although our members might not agree, I fancy the same description might be used by the same newspaper today.The Law Society's role as an adviser on law reform issues is another link with the past.

In 1845 the Attorney-General wrote to the Society acknowledging the value of its comments: 'I shall be at all times grateful to the Society for a communication of their views upon any Bill for the alteration of the Law which shall be at any time submitted to Parliament.' We are still offering our advice today, although it does not seem as welcome as in past.So we look to the future.

A future, as in the past, where we shall still be defending the rights of the citizen.

We shall continue to be fearless in defending our clients, we shall continue to be the bulwark for the individual against the might of the state.

We shall continue to search for that elusive concept, justice.Inspire us Lord, through the life and example of our patron saint, Saint Yves, that we may, like him: 'Support the poor and all who need our care; show compassion for the sorrows of our neighbours; learn to defend our rights without harming others; have the heart of a humble man, uncorrupted by the pursuit of riches; above all, be seekers for true justice, reconciliation and peace.'