Matt Carthy (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein)

As the Minister may recall, my interest in this matter comes from several different angles but particularly as a result of work I have done with women, predominantly, who have sought protection or barring orders and have tried to secure legal representation under the civil legal aid entitlements but cannot get legal representation. The Minister told me this would be considered in the context of this review. While increasing access to legal aid is absolutely laudable at the centre of this particular crisis, I am told by both women and legal practitioners that the problem is the legal aid fees paid to solicitors on the District Court panel of family law solicitors. That is what is deterring solicitors from taking on cases. Part of the problem for this particular type of court is that there are many adjournments, and this can make it unsustainable.

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