Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour)
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The Ombudsman is legally independent and there is no statutory provision for appeals against individual decisions of the Ombudsman. The Ombudsman is, however, legally obliged to report to the Houses of the Oireachtas annually on the performance of his/her functions. In addition, the Ombudsman has a reporting relationship with the Committee on Public Service Oversight and Petitions in accordance with that Committee's terms of reference.

The Office of the Ombudsman operates an internal non-statutory appeal process which is open to any complainant who is not satisfied with the Ombudsman's decision in their case. If an appeal or request for a review is received, it is the practice of that Office to have the matter considered afresh by a caseworker who is in a more senior position and who was not previously involved in the original decision. Complainants are invited by the Office's Appeals Manager to provide further information or argument which would benefit the Office in reviewing their case. The full details of the appeals procedure are available on the Ombudsman's website at .