Results 7,841-7,860 of 20,459 for speaker:Frances Fitzgerald

Seanad: Legal Services Regulation Bill 2011: Report Stage (Resumed) (1 Dec 2015)

Frances Fitzgerald: I will go into the details. Amendment No. 122 is a drafting amendment to eliminate repetition of qualifications for lay membership of the disciplinary tribunal. The purpose of the amendment is to replace subsection (1) of section 66, which was inserted on Seanad Committee Stage by amendment No. 76. The subsection (1) which was inserted includes subparagraphs (a) and (b). Subparagraph (a)...

Seanad: Legal Services Regulation Bill 2011: Report Stage (Resumed) (1 Dec 2015)

Frances Fitzgerald: There is a history in terms of how issues have been dealt with by the Law Society or the Bar Council and various approaches have been taken. In the Bill we are introducing some new models of dealing with complaints. For example, there will be a new disciplinary tribunal. We are also making sure that the LRSA has an oversight role. In section 135 we are moving from reprimand and advice,...

Seanad: Legal Services Regulation Bill 2011: Report Stage (Resumed) (1 Dec 2015)

Frances Fitzgerald: Traditional terminology.

Seanad: Legal Services Regulation Bill 2011: Report Stage (Resumed) (1 Dec 2015)

Frances Fitzgerald: The legal advice I have is that this is the highest amount that can be imposed outside a court setting. If the various issues we are discussing here are dealt with in court, there is the potential for different amounts, but this is the highest amount outside that setting that can be put into the legislation in regard to the tribunal.

Seanad: Legal Services Regulation Bill 2011: Report Stage (Resumed) (1 Dec 2015)

Frances Fitzgerald: Parts are divided into Chapters when they are very long in the Bill.

Seanad: Legal Services Regulation Bill 2011: Report Stage (Resumed) (1 Dec 2015)

Frances Fitzgerald: Amendment No. 140a, from the third additional list, fixes an error that went into the Bill on Committee Stage in the Seanad in the new section 73(2). The amendment is of no policy consequence at all but rectifies an error in wording.

Seanad: Legal Services Regulation Bill 2011: Report Stage (Resumed) (1 Dec 2015)

Frances Fitzgerald: A number of words were missing, namely, "that the act or omission concerned constitutes misconduct and deals with the issue of sanction under section 72". It goes on to state "an appeal may be brought to the High Court". This amendment inserts those words.

Seanad: Legal Services Regulation Bill 2011: Report Stage (Resumed) (1 Dec 2015)

Frances Fitzgerald: The amendment should have read "issue" so it was a simple typo that was made at a point along the way. As I say, it is substituted now, and I have read my note into the record. Under section 71(9), the act or omission concerned constitutes misconduct and deals with the issue of sanction under section 72. The Senator is right when he said that it did not make sense. It was a typo.

Seanad: Legal Services Regulation Bill 2011: Report Stage (Resumed) (1 Dec 2015)

Frances Fitzgerald: Amendment No. 141 is being tabled by the Government to correct a wrong word used in subsection (1) of the section 75 that we agreed to insert into the Bill under amendment No. 85. The word "consideration" was used when in fact the word "recommendation" should have been used and that is being rectified. There are a number of references in these amendments to legal practitioners who are to be...

Seanad: Legal Services Regulation Bill 2011: Report Stage (Resumed) (1 Dec 2015)

Frances Fitzgerald: Great care has been taken by everyone in the Office of the Parliamentary Counsel, OPC, and my Department involved in working on the Bill. It is complex and detailed legislation. It was necessary for the drafters to take an overview of the Bill. The new and, in some instances, composite sections have led to quite a few of the changes that I am outlining now. It is important that we...

Seanad: Legal Services Regulation Bill 2011: Report Stage (Resumed) (1 Dec 2015)

Frances Fitzgerald: Yes.

Seanad: Legal Services Regulation Bill 2011: Report Stage (Resumed) (1 Dec 2015)

Frances Fitzgerald: And "the Chief Justice". That is right. The purpose of amendment No. 155 is to replace the reference to a determination by the tribunal in that subsection with a reference to a direction, determination or order. This is to ensure the power of the new authority to apply to the High Court to enforce compliance by a legal practitioner with a direction, determination or order of the authority....

Seanad: Legal Services Regulation Bill 2011: Report Stage (Resumed) (1 Dec 2015)

Frances Fitzgerald: Regarding Senator Norris's point on amendment No. 150, the reference is inserted in the top line, or chapeau, of the subsection rather than elsewhere. Therefore, it does not have to be repeated in each paragraph.

Seanad: Legal Services Regulation Bill 2011: Report Stage (Resumed) (1 Dec 2015)

Frances Fitzgerald: Obviously, I have no intention of making the Bill worse and neither does any of the drafting amendments that I am introducing. They will improve the Bill, clarify it or allow for greater consistency.

Seanad: Legal Services Regulation Bill 2011: Report Stage (Resumed) (1 Dec 2015)

Frances Fitzgerald: My understanding is that they will. The reference is made in the chapeauof the subsection so that it will not be repeated three times.

Seanad: Legal Services Regulation Bill 2011: Report Stage (Resumed) (1 Dec 2015)

Frances Fitzgerald: It will now read:Where the High Court makes a decision under--(a) section 74(3)(b), (b) section74(4)... (c) section 75... The first line is followed by a list of the sections. That reads as perfectly straightforward.

Seanad: Legal Services Regulation Bill 2011: Report Stage (Resumed) (1 Dec 2015)

Frances Fitzgerald: I do not understand what the Senator finds difficult about this. It continues, "the Authority shall arrange for the publication of" the nature of the decision, the nature of the misconduct, etc. This is straightforward.

Seanad: Legal Services Regulation Bill 2011: Report Stage (Resumed) (1 Dec 2015)

Frances Fitzgerald: No. We are inserting "a decision under". Where the High Court-----

Seanad: Legal Services Regulation Bill 2011: Report Stage (Resumed) (1 Dec 2015)

Frances Fitzgerald: No. I am leaving it as "Where the High Court makes a decision under". The words "a decision under" will replace "an order" before listing the sections.

Seanad: Legal Services Regulation Bill 2011: Report Stage (Resumed) (1 Dec 2015)

Frances Fitzgerald: It now refers to where the High Court makes "a decision under" the various sections.