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JUSTICE MINISTER JIM O’Callaghan has agreed to make changes to the rollout of the new criminal legal aid payment system following talks with solicitors, but has insisted that the controversial €520 flat-fee model will remain in place.

The minister met representatives of the Law Society on Monday after weeks of disruption in the District Court, where thousands of cases have been adjourned following work stoppages by criminal defence solicitors protesting the changes.

In correspondence issued to the Law Society today, O’Callaghan confirmed that the flat fee of €520 for District Court criminal legal aid cases will remain.

However, he has agreed to split the payment so that two-thirds of the fee will be paid at the commencement of a case, with the remaining third paid either when the case concludes or after 12 months, whichever comes first.

The Department of Justice said the change would have no additional cost implications for the criminal legal aid scheme.

The minister also confirmed that a new legal aid certificate can issue where an accused person faces charges that are distinct and separate from any previous court appearance.

In addition, O’Callaghan said officials will keep the operation of the new scheme under review in the Children’s Court and in cases requiring more than 20 court appearances over the next six months to determine whether further changes are needed in those limited circumstances.

He also said any criminal legal aid solicitor who resigned from the legal aid panel during the dispute but now wishes to return can be reinstated without delay by applying through the Courts Service.

“The Minister is committed to improving the efficiencies for court users, legal practitioners and the Irish public,” a statement from the Department of Justice said this afternoon.

“The new District Court Criminal Legal Aid Scheme will allow for those efficiencies.”

The changes follow a meeting between O’Callaghan and representatives of the Law Society on Monday, which both sides described as constructive.

The dispute centres on reforms introduced on 1 July, which replaced the previous payment structure for District Court criminal legal aid cases with a flat-fee model.

Under the previous system, solicitors received around €240 for a client’s first appearance and about €60 for each subsequent sitting. Under the new arrangements, they receive a single payment of €520 regardless of the number of court appearances.

The minister has argued the reforms will encourage cases to be dealt with more efficiently, saying the previous system incentivised repeated adjournments because solicitors were paid for each additional court appearance.

However, criminal defence solicitors say the changes are unworkable in practice, particularly in complex cases requiring numerous appearances, and have staged a series of work stoppages that have caused significant delays across the District Court system.

In a statement this afternoon, Law Society President Rosemarie Loftus said the organisation had received the minister’s correspondence and circulated it to criminal law solicitors.

“The Chair of the Criminal Law Committee will be calling a meeting of practitioners to discuss the contents,” Loftus said.

“The Law Society is seeking clarification from the Department of Justice on a number of matters in advance of that meeting.”

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