Grace Boland (Dublin Fingal West, Fine Gael)
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1750. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the total spend by his Department on external legal services in each of the past three years; the main areas of legal activity for which external advice was sought; if she will provide a breakdown by case or category; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [40842/25]

Grace Boland (Dublin Fingal West, Fine Gael)
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1780. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection if all external legal fees incurred by his Department, and by any bodies under its aegis, are charged at negotiated discounted rates; how fees are monitored for compliance; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [41511/25]

Grace Boland (Dublin Fingal West, Fine Gael)
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1781. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection if his Department conducts regular benchmarking, or market testing, to ensure that the rates paid for legal services, solicitors and barristers, represent value for money for the taxpayer; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [41529/25]

Grace Boland (Dublin Fingal West, Fine Gael)
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1782. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection to detail the procurement processes used when engaging external legal firms and barristers, including whether panels are used; how often these are refreshed; the criteria used for selection and performance review; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [41547/25]

Grace Boland (Dublin Fingal West, Fine Gael)
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1783. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection if his Department has conducted any audits or reviews in the past five years on legal fee spend; if so, to publish the findings or summaries of those reviews; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [41565/25]

Grace Boland (Dublin Fingal West, Fine Gael)
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1784. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the internal oversight that exists within his Department to monitor the scope, duration, and cost escalation of legal services once engaged; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [41583/25]

Grace Boland (Dublin Fingal West, Fine Gael)
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1785. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection if his Department makes use of capped fee arrangements, fixed-fee briefs, success-based fee models or other such arrangements in its legal engagements; if not, the reason such options are not considered; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [41601/25]

Grace Boland (Dublin Fingal West, Fine Gael)
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1786. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection whether any legal engagements have exceeded their initial estimated or approved cost in the past three years; if so, the number of such cases and total overrun; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [41619/25]

Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 1750, 1780, 1781, 1782, 1783, 1784, 1785 and 1786 together.

As the Attorney General is the Government’s legal adviser, my Department does not engage external legal services without the sanction of the Attorney General’s office. The Chief State Solicitor’s Office (CSSO) is a constituent part of the Office of the Attorney General, and the CSSO is responsible for the engagement of and payment for external legal services.

Therefore, these questions are not appropriate for my Department to answer.

Grace Boland (Dublin Fingal West, Fine Gael)
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1751. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the total spend by his Department on external legal services in each of the past three years; the main areas of legal activity for which external advice was sought; if he will provide a breakdown by case or category; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [40857/25]

Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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As the Attorney General is the Government’s legal adviser, my Department does not engage external legal services without the sanction of the Attorney General’s office. The Chief State Solicitor’s Office (CSSO) is a constituent part of the Office of the Attorney General, and the CSSO is responsible for payment for external legal services.

Broad areas where external legal service may have been engaged indirectly (that is, through the CSSO) are employment law, freedom of information, data protection and pensions.

Data on costs broken down by case are held by the CSSO rather than by my Department.