Leitrim criminal cases expected to be delayed as legal aid dispute continues

The dispute between solicitors and the Minister for Justice over changes to the Criminal Legal Aid payment system continues.

With District Court sittings set to resume in Carrick-on-Shannon next week, there is no sign that criminal cases will be heard in the near future.

The dispute centres on the Minister for Justice, Jim O'Callaghan TD, imposing a flat fee of €520 to be paid to solicitors for all representations for a client in the District Court, under the Criminal Legal Aid Scheme.

A Carrick-on-Shannon based solicitor has told the Observer that the Minister for Justice has refused to engage with the Law Society in relation to the dispute.

“The Law Society wrote to the Minister on July 31st, setting out grounds to put in place measures that could be put in place on an interim basis while the overall review is ongoing,” Martin Burke explained.

“Solicitors suggested reasonable changes. However, no reply was received from the Minister,” he added.

Martin Burke went on to say that the “court system is in chaos and the implications are huge” in relation to the ongoing dispute.

“A number of Article 40 cases have been brought to the High Court. These are challenges in relation to the legitimacy of people being detained,” he explained.

“Some applicants have won these challenges and are now out of detention. The legal costs that the applicant incurred in their challenge is being reimbursed out of the public purse,” Martin added.

“A woman was arrested for being in possession of firearms and was given bail, so that person is now out and about,” Martin continued.

Whatever about the legal implications of the ongoing dispute, people's lives and access to justice are also being affected.

“I have had cases in the higher courts that couldn't go ahead because of the dispute. A person accused of a crime is anxious that their case goes ahead, while injured parties are also affected. The result is that neither party is having their rights vindicated,” Martin explained.

All solicitors working in this region have withdrawn their services, in common with colleagues nationwide.

“Solicitors want to be at work. They want this dispute to be resolved,” he stated.

“There are financial implications for solicitors with this dispute. We have to take the pain,” Martin added.

There will be a District Court sitting on September 7th in Carrick, but in Martin's view, “it is inevitable that criminal cases will be adjourned despite the best efforts of solicitors.”

The Law Society issued a statement last week. In this, they stated that what they term “the two core issues” with the Criminal Legal Aid Scheme have not been resolved.

The first of these is “the unjustifiable treatment of separate and distinct criminal cases as a single matter where they happen, for efficiency, to come before the court on the same day”.

The second issue identified by The Law Society is “the absence of any practical mechanism to address cases of extended duration involving exceptionally high numbers of court appearances. Typically, these cases involve children, people with mental health issues, and people remanded in custody by judges.”

The statement also went on to say, “In a further letter sent to the Minister for Justice, on August 24th, the Law Society sought an update on proposals to resolve these two outstanding issues with the Criminal Legal Aid Scheme.

“Both letters also reiterated that the Law Society remains available to meet with the Minister and Department officials to discuss practical solutions. The Law Society's commitment to constructive engagement has remained consistent throughout this process.”