Judge informed of Mayo solicitors' resignation decision due to ongoing row

MAYO solicitors have resigned from the criminal legal aid panel, Castlebar District Court was told as the row over reform of the scheme entered another week.

Gary Mulchrone, president of the Mayo Solicitors' Bar Association, told Judge Michael Connellan that solicitors in the county had, with regret, decided to withdraw their services and had now resigned from the panel.

He said the new statutory instrument had gone ahead as planned, and that a situation had now arisen where people appearing before the court would struggle to find legal representation.

Solicitor Cathy McDarby confirmed she was likewise withdrawing her services. Solicitors Aileen Feely and Brendan Donnelly also informed the court that they would be withdrawing their services.

Judge Connellan noted the ongoing issues around legal aid meant there was little the court could deal with as a result.

The move follows weeks of escalating action by criminal defence solicitors nationwide in protest at the Department of Justice's move to a flat-fee payment model, which came into effect on July 1.

Under the new system, solicitors are to be paid a single fee of €520 for a case regardless of how many court appearances it requires, replacing a system under which solicitors were paid around €240 for a first appearance and about €60 gross for each subsequent sitting.

Mr. Mulchrone has previously told this newspaper that the changes could hit rural areas particularly hard, as cases in areas like Mayo are often adjourned for reasons well beyond the four or five appearances the department has factored into its model.

Solicitors have pointed to delays awaiting DPP directions, forensic testing, victim impact statements and psychiatric reports as common reasons for adjournments that fall outside the department's assumptions.

Minister for Justice Jim O'Callaghan has defended the reform, describing the new fee as very generous and arguing the changes will remove inefficiencies in a system where legal aid spending has risen sharply in recent years.

The Law Society has strongly disputed this characterisation, with president Rosemary Loftus warning that solicitors across the country are resigning from criminal legal aid panels and cautioning that the fallout will fall hardest on vulnerable defendants and victims awaiting trials.

The dispute has already led to widespread adjournments in courts around the country, with cases in Mayo among those affected as solicitors decline to come on record for clients under the new arrangements.

One source stated that this dispute is likely to continue for the remainder of the month and with no court sittings in August, the consequences will be a major backlog in October with the majority of cases sent back to dates later in the year.

* Funded by the Courts Reporting Scheme.