Written answers
Tuesday, 25 February 2025
Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine
Departmental Consultations
Aidan Farrelly (Kildare North, Social Democrats)
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703. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he will provide a schedule of all external legal consultation that he engaged in, in 2023, 2024 and to date in 2025; the general nature of the engagement; if the external consultation resulted in a report and or recommendations; and the cost of each consultant and or company engaged. in tabular form. [7428/25]
Martin Heydon (Kildare South, Fine Gael)
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The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine generally avails of the legal services of the Chief State Solicitor's Office and its own Legal Services Division. However, occasionally it engages private Solicitor Firms and Junior and Senior Counsel for external legal advice.
I wish to inform the Deputy that all external legal consultation that my Department engaged in, in 2023, 2024 as set out in the attached table. To date in 2025 there has been no engagement with private Solicitors Firms.
2023
| Name of Company/ Consultant | Nature of Engagement | Report or Recommendation | Cost € |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jack Hazlett | Professional fees in respect of legal drafting services | N/A | 8,600 |
2024
| Name of Company/ Consultant | Nature of Engagement | Report or Recommendation | Cost € |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dr. David Pritchard | External legal consultation on Judicial Review brought by Ethical Farming Ireland against the Minister for Agriculture, Food and Marine | 2 Reports | 19,077 |
| Jack Hazlett | Professional fees in respect of legal drafting services | N/A | 1,400 |
| Sean Ormonde Solicitors | Solicitor’s fees for WRC case | N/A | 30,000 |
| State Claims Agency | Agency solicitor’s fees | N/A | 22,700 |
2025 to date
| Name of Company/ Consultant | Nature of Engagement | Report or Recommendation | Cost € |
|---|---|---|---|
| No Engagement to date |
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