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Law Society Complaints Mechanisms

Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 28 November 2018

Wednesday, 28 November 2018

Questions (174)

Denis Naughten

Question:

174. Deputy Denis Naughten asked the Minister for Justice and Equality the person or body responsible and accountable for advice provided by the Law Society prior to the Ombudsman obtaining legal authority to examine complaints in May 2013; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [49783/18]

View answer

Written answers

I am assuming from the overall context of the Deputy's Question that it relates to matters dealt with by the Law Society in relation to complaints about alleged professional misconduct by solicitors. Under the current regulatory regime the Law Society, the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal and the Office of the Independent Adjudicator are the independent statutory bodies charged with investigating or resolving complaints against solicitors under the Solicitors Acts 1954-2015 and their attendant regulations.

The Office of the Independent Adjudicator provides an independent forum to which members of the public may apply if they are dissatisfied with the manner in which the Law Society has dealt with any complaint made by or on behalf of any client against their solicitor. The role of the Independent Adjudicator is:

(a) to ensure that complaints about the conduct of a solicitor are dealt with fairly and impartially by the Law Society;

(b) to review complaints about any decision by the Law Society concerning an application for a grant from the Law Society’s Compensation Fund;

(c) to recommend any changes in the Law Society’s complaints procedures which are, in the Independent Adjudicator’s view, necessary to maintain the highest standards.

The holder of the Office cannot be a practising solicitor, a member of the Law Society or a practising barrister and shall be independent in the exercise of his or her functions. The Office of the Independent Adjudicator has been providing its services since 1997 having been established by Statutory Instrument No.406 of 1997 – Solicitors (Adjudicator) Regulations, 1997, as augmented by Statutory Instrument No.720 of 2005 – Solicitors (Adjudicator) (Amendment) Regulations, 2005. At the same time, it is important to note that the Adjudicator’s role is to investigate the handling of the complaint by the Law Society and not to investigate the substance of the complaint itself.

The Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal deals with complaints of serious misconduct and such complaints are either referred to it by the Law Society or made directly to the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal by members of the public. The Tribunal members are appointed by the President of the High Court and act independently of the Law Society. I would point out that, subject to the relevant provisions of the Solicitors' Acts, it is open to any person who has made a complaint to the Solicitors' Disciplinary Tribunal to make an appeal to the High Court where the Tribunal has not made a finding of misconduct in respect of the solicitor against whom that complaint has been made.

In addition to the remedies available under the statutory complaints handling framework that I have just outlined, it is important to be aware that aggrieved clients of solicitors may also choose to seek redress through the courts. This typically arises in cases of alleged negligence on the part of a solicitor which have had serious negative consequences for the client concerned. As with any court proceedings, it is considered prudent that persons considering taking such legal action seek independent legal advice on the strength or otherwise of their case, any limitations that may apply in relation to the passing of time and its possible legal costs implications. It will then be a matter for the aggrieved client concerned to decide which course of action might be best suited to the circumstances of their particular case.

The Deputy will also wish to be aware that, under the Legal Services Regulation Act 2015, a new regulatory framework is about to be introduced to deal with complaints about professional misconduct independent of the legal professional bodies along with a new Legal Practitioners’ Disciplinary Tribunal that will deal with allegations of serious misconduct by both solicitors and barristers. Members of the public who wish to make complaints will, therefore, no longer do so through the Law Society or the Bar of Ireland as they do at present, but through the new and independent Legal Services Regulatory Authority which was established on 1 October 2016. Under the Authority's Strategic Plan 2018-2020 these new measures, for which extensive preparations are being made, are due to come into operation in Quarter 2 of 2019.

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