Legal aid dispute continues as solicitors extend boycott

The dispute between Minister for Justice and criminal defence solicitors regarding a new legal aid payment scheme is expected to persist into September. Following a meeting of over a hundred Dublin-based solicitors, they decided to continue their withdrawal of services, which began last month. The disagreement centers around changes to the legal aid payment system announced in July that introduced a flat-fee payment of €520 per client in the district court.

Solicitors argue that this flat fee is unworkable, as the old system paid solicitors based on each court appearance, ranging from €239 for the first appearance to nearly €60 for each subsequent hearing. Minister O Callaghan contends that the old system incentivized multiple adjournments, making cases paid for by legal aid take longer to complete.

However, solicitors claim that many adjournments in legal aid cases were requested by the prosecution, and complex cases involving children and vulnerable clients take longer. Despite talks with the Law Society and a subsequent change to allow staged payments, the dispute remains unresolved. Solicitor Tony Collier expressed his desire to return to court and represent clients, but the Minister for Justice has not engaged meaningfully with them.

As District Court sittings resume in September, the withdrawal of services by over 100 Dublin-based criminal defence solicitors means they will not be available to represent clients on the legal aid scheme or at Garda Stations. This decision, along with the resignation of many solicitors from legal aid panels, has led to thousands of cases being adjourned, with some accused denied bail while not legally represented.

Some were later granted bail by the High Court, which ruled their detention unlawful and found their fundamental rights had been denied. The High Court will rule in October on a judicial review taken by solicitor John Quinn against the new payment scheme, which he argues is extraneous as it prevents district judges from making their own decisions on issuing separate legal aid certificates for multiple criminal charges.