Cork solicitors to meet amid warning that ongoing legal aid dispute poses 'grave public risk'

Solicitors are warning that the ongoing criminal legal aid dispute will pose a “grave public risk” when the courts resume on Tuesday.

Members of the Southern Law Association are due to meet in Cork on Monday morning to discuss how they will continue their opposition to the flat fee criminal legal aid scheme implemented since July 1 by justice minister Jim O’Callaghan.

Criminal defence solicitors in the Dublin region voted unanimously on Thursday to continue their withdrawal of services into September, and a similar move is expected to be considered by solicitors attending Monday's meeting.

The dispute relates to the rollout of a new system in July under which a flat fee of €520 is paid regardless of the number of District Court appearances in a case. Under the previous model, solicitors received approximately €240 for a first appearance and €60 for each subsequent appearance.

The Department of Justice says that more than 600 solicitors remain on the criminal legal aid panel and that over 625 new criminal legal aid certificates have been issued since July 1.

However, legal sources say the number of certificates is a small fraction of the number typically issued prior to July 1.

Backlog of cases

Cork solicitor Shane McCarthy, chair of the Law Society’s criminal law committee, warned that the backlog of cases building during the dispute will have a heavy impact on the system when they eventually conclude.

He said: “The backlog of cases will undoubtedly create a situation where people who, when their cases are heard, will not have a prison space for them to be sent to if they are convicted, as the prisons will not simply be able to hold the volumes of people who would normally be going because of the number of cases that will be heard at the same time. 

"That will represent yet a further risk to the public which will be ongoing in nature.” 

Mr McCarthy said a letter received by the Law Society in recent days from Mr O'Callaghan "did not take cognisance" of the concerns of solicitors working in criminal legal aid. The letter was sent in response to two representations made by Law Society president Rosemarie Loftus.

“They cannot go back to work to a system that will not function,” said Mr McCarthy. 

Solicitor resigns from panel

Another Cork solicitor, Tom Coughlan, said he resigned from the criminal legal aid panel in July, following the introduction of the new system.

He said there were 86 solicitors on the panel in Cork before July 1. "About 50 were in active practice in the area. All either resigned the panel or withdrew services," he said. 

"That has remained the case in July and August. A small number did rejoin the panel to process a small number of custody and juvenile cases at the Circuit Criminal Court sessions in July in ease of the court and clients in custody and juveniles. 

"That was not an endorsement of the minister’s new scheme.” 

A Department of Justice spokesperson said officials had been "ongoing engagement" with the Law Society and the Bar Council on changes to the criminal legal aid fee structure since October 2025. The spokesperson said Mr O'Callaghan had also been involved in the talks.

“Minister O’Callaghan is committed to improving efficiencies for court users, legal practitioners, and the Irish taxpayer. The new district court criminal legal aid scheme will allow for those efficiencies,” they said.

The department spokesperson said Mr O'Callaghan met the Law Society in July and at the Law Society's request, agreed that two-thirds of the new €520 fee would be paid at the outset of a case, with the balance payable either when the case concludes or after 12 months, whichever comes first.

The department said the €520 payment was equivalent to the fee previously payable for five court appearances, adjusted to reverse the outstanding 8% FEMPI-related reduction.