Mr. Stuart Gilhooly:

No. I am not sure whether the Chair was here earlier when I said that if there is one question that solicitors have to consider, it is whether an offer is the right one. It does not matter if it is the first offer or the tenth offer. It is a question of whether it is the right offer. The right offer might come after two months or six years. My professional obligation is to make that call. The question of whether a barrister is getting a gig, as the Chair put it, is neither here nor there. The only question that arises is whether I think an award represents the right sum of money for the claimant in the context of the injury suffered by him or her. If the right sum of money happens to be an Injuries Board award, I will advise him or her to take the money all day long. If I think the proposed award is inappropriate in the context of the injury he or she has suffered - if I think it does not represent proper compensation - I will advise him or her not to take it. Clients do not always take my advice, by the way. Sometimes they take the money anyway. Sometimes I advise them to take the money but they decide not to do so. That is just the way it is. I cannot make them do it either way. All I do is advise. It is not about a gig. It is all about the work we do. It does not make any difference to me when the case is settled. In a way, I prefer to get it settled quickly. If I have a settled case, that means I have a happy client and a closed file and I will be paid. There is nothing in it for me to go further. If I have to go further, I will have to do more work, for which I will hope to be paid.