Mr. Justice Alan Mahon:

Actually, it does. The senior counsel was only asked about the Ombudsman for the Defence Forces, so whether this applies to other ombudsmen I do not know. Certainly, however, the particular section in the 2022 Act which caused that concern and led me to look for this external opinion specifically refers to complaints to my office. I would say they are clearly distinguished from court proceedings. Whether the same applies to complaints made to other ombudsmen I do not know.