Concerns have been raised after accused persons were said to have cross-examined injured parties during recent bail applications in domestic violence cases, in circumstances where no solicitor was available to act. Our criminal defence solicitors act for clients in the District Court, Circuit Court and Central Criminal Court, much of it under the criminal legal aid scheme.
A situation without precedent
Cross-examination in such applications would ordinarily be carried out by a lawyer. The situation, understood to be without precedent, arose because of the continuing withdrawal of services by criminal defence solicitors in the dispute over District Court criminal legal aid fees.
The matter was raised by Sinn Féin TD Matt Carthy, chairman of the Oireachtas Committee on Justice, who said two cases had been brought to his attention in which complainants were cross-examined by the persons accused of abusing them, because of the absence of legal representation.
Safe Ireland "shocked" by what emerged
Safe Ireland, a State-funded charity working to prevent and combat domestic violence, said it was shocked by what had emerged. Its interim chief executive, Christine Lodge, said the situation is unusual and highly problematic, and that a victim survivor of domestic abuse who has had the courage to seek help and support through the courts has had their trauma compounded by a cross-examination conducted without professional advice and guidance.
Ms Lodge urged all parties to work towards a solution to the dispute, and said the rights of victim survivors in domestic, sexual and gender-based violence cases, and in all other crimes, must be prioritised.
Why Tony Collier says it is not a surprise
Speaking at the Justice Committee hearing, Tony Collier of Ferrys Solicitors said he was aware of one of the cases referred to by Mr Carthy and was not aware of anything similar having happened before.
"There would have been no necessity for an accused person to cross-examine an injured party in a domestic violence case before this dispute started," he said. "There would always have been solicitors representing an accused person in these situations."
Mr Collier said that while the development might sound shocking, it was not a surprising one. He explained that, given the unavailability of solicitors to represent accused persons in domestic violence cases, an accused person remains entitled to make their own application for bail, and that part of that process may involve cross-examining the complainant, who is brought to court as a witness in support of an objection to bail.
How the dispute arose
Most criminal defence solicitors in the State have withdrawn services in protest at the flat-fee model introduced for criminal legal aid work in the District Court. Under the reforms, which came into effect on July 1, solicitors receive €520 per case irrespective of the number of hearings involved.
The Minister for Justice, Jim O'Callaghan, has said the previous model, under which solicitors were paid per appearance, incentivised adjournments and was open to abuse. That position is disputed by solicitors. The Minister has rejected calls for mediation and has declined to make the changes sought by practitioners.
Where the dispute stands
Thousands of cases have been adjourned as a result of the withdrawal of services, and it appears likely that many trials and sentencing hearings will also have to be adjourned next month, as the withdrawal is set to continue into the new legal year.
The committee is to ask the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission for its view on the withdrawal of services, amid concerns raised at the hearing that it may engage competition law. A spokesperson for the Commission said that, as an enforcement body, it would be unable to comment on whether it is considering investigating a specific company, organisation or practice.
Read the full original report here: Irish Independent