Charles Flanagan (Laois, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I listened with great interest to Senator McDowell. The House will recall that when the matter was before us earlier, the Government accepted the merits of the underlying principle of the Bill and agreed not to oppose it on Second Stage. Since then, Senator McDowell and the other promoters of the Bill will be aware of the engagement and consultation with the Office of the Attorney General, advising caution on the basis that some of the provisions of the Bill would disrupt and displace relevant case law of the superior courts, and indeed the rules of court, designed as they are to achieve a just result.

However, the amendment before us is one that I can accept. Between now and any future enactment of the legislation it will be necessary for further consultations with the Office of the Attorney General. It could well be that future refinements may be necessary but if that is the case I undertake to consult with Senator McDowell, who makes something of a reasonable point. I could not help contemplating during the course of his recent speech on this matter that the nub of the issue is the costs, and of course costs are issues that are in the gift of lawyers because they are legal costs for the most part. The basis of the Bill centres on legal costs in the matter of the administration of estates in probate. Some of these costs are quite excessive. I invite Senator McDowell to agree that in many respects-----