Duties of legal practitioners A legal practitioner shall not charge amounts in respect of legal costs in relation to contentious business specified as a percentage of the proportion of damage or other moneys that may be payable to his client, other than in debt collection matter. He may not purport to set legal costs to be charged by junior counsel as a percentage or proportion […]
Officers of Court Solicitors are officers of the court. They are directly subject to High Court control and jurisdiction in the context of enforcement of obligation. They owe duties to the court as well as to their client. In order to practice as a solicitor, a person must be qualified as such and being entered on the rolls of solicitors. In addition, he must have […]
Regulation Barristers are regulated by the Bar Council of Ireland. Legal education is administered and provided by the Honourable Society of Kings Inns. Members of the Bar are usually members of the Law Library. The Honourable Society of Kings Inns operates as a society and is controlled by the benchers of the Honourable Society of Kings Inns. The Benchers comprise a number of Judges and […]
Instructions & Fees A barrister must hold himself out as willing to appear in court on behalf of and give advice and other services to any client. He is bound to accept instructions in the field in which he professes at a proper professional fee. In special circumstances, he may be justified in refusing papers. Papers delivered to a barrister remain the client’s property. The client […]
The Four Courts The Benchers of the Honourable Society of King’s Inns was an unincorporated body that dated from 1539. In 1542, it was granted land of a dissolved monastery to the west of Dublin castle on the north side of the Liffey. By the late 18th Century, the older courts at Christchurch Lane had become cramped and decrepit. The government established a number of […]
Authority in Court The courts will not generally inquire into the authority of counsel to appear, where he purports to represent a party. Where more than one counsel appears, appropriate inquiries will be made. Entry into f a retainer does not give counsel authority. In order to take steps, a brief must be delivered. Counsel is entitled to have control of the case and conduct […]
Background The Inns of Courts are ancient societies. They appear, originally to have been associations of apprentices in 13th century England. In the 14th century, apprentices commonly lived in certain inns or hostels near the City of London. The four principal four inns still remain namely, Lincoln’s Inns, Inner Temple, Middle Temple and Greys Inn. The four English inns educated apprentices under a semi-collegiate regime. […]
Independence Barristers must not enter into a professional partnership or any other form of association to seek to practise the profession through a corporate entity. They must not enter into any profession, partnership or relationship, including the sharing of briefs with another barrister. Barristers do not breach the Code of Conduct by sharing facilities, premises, or costs of practice including capital or operating costs with […]
Basic Principles The Bar adopted a new Code of Conduct in 2014. It sets out the rules and practices of the Bar together with rulings from time to time made by the Bar Council in relation to certain matters of conduct, etiquette and relationships with others. Barristers are obliged to uphold the integrity of the Bar and Code at all times. It is their duty […]
Council The Bar Council of Ireland was established in 1897 and consists of 25 members. Four are co-opted, 20 are elected. The Head of the Council is the Attorney General. 20 elected members are elected by the members of the Law Library being effective members of the bar. The Bar Council of Ireland is primarily representative in nature. It acts as a regulatory authority as […]
Background The Legal Services Regulation Act followed almost directly from the terms of IMF/EU/ECB Memorandum of Understanding, November 2010. This is effectively the bailout agreement by which Ireland was granted access to funds by the troika after it was frozen out of the normal lending markets. There had been a decade of reports urging reform of various aspects of legal services, including: 2001 OECD report, […]
Appointment of Senior Counsel The Authority shall establish an Advisory Committee on the grounds of Patents of Precedence at the Bar. A Patent in this context is a Patent of Precedence at the Bar which entitles a barrister to be called to the Inner Bar and use the title “Senior Counsel”. In relation to a solicitor, a Patent of Precedence at the Bar is a […]
Liability for Negligence For over 200 years, it was accepted that advocates, including in particular barristers, were immune from suit in respect of the conduct and management of cases in court. This is extended to pre-trial work which was intimately connected with the conduct of the case in court, that it can fairly be said to be a preliminary decision affecting the way in which […]
Overview Barristers usually specialise in advising on and bringing cases before the higher Courts. Barristers will usually appear to represent clients in the High Court, Circuit Court and Supreme Court. Barristers frequently appear in the District Court. However, most District Court cases will be pleaded and dealt with by solicitors. Barristers must operate as sole traders. They may not enter partnerships with other barristers nor […]