Solicitors in Several Counties Withdraw Legal Aid Work Over Planned €455 Flat Fee

Overview

• Solicitors in Wicklow, Wexford, Cork and Louth expanded targeted withdrawals of criminal legal aid services on Monday, June 22, after initial rollouts of limited action the previous week.
• The dispute centres on a Department of Justice proposal to replace per-appearance payments with a flat €455 fee per client, replacing current rates of €239.38 for a first appearance and €59.86 for later hearings.
• The withdrawals have forced thousands of adjournments and prevented juries from being empanelled in some sittings, with district and circuit court business disrupted across the country.
• The Law Society says it engaged but criticises the department's review as relying on 'anecdote and inference', while Justice Minister Jim O'Callaghan defends the reform as a way to reduce adjournments and speed cases; Garda Commissioner Drew Harris is seeking legal advice on operational impacts.
• If the flat fee is introduced on 1 July, solicitors warn smaller and rural practices may stop taking legal aid work long term, which could shrink local access to defence lawyers and widen delays in the criminal court system.