Bernard Allen
Ceist:89 Mr. Allen asked the Minister for Justice if he will outline the average waiting time for appointments with a solicitor for first time clients for each of the legal aid centres; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
Written Answers. - Legal Aid Centres.
The position with regard to waiting times in the Dublin law centres operated by the Legal Aid Board is unchanged from that which was set out in my reply to a parliamentary question on 6 June 1991.
In so far as the law centres outside of Dublin are concerned, the information requested by the Deputy is set out in the following table.
With the opening of the new law centres which I have already announced and the filling of solicitor vacancies by the board, I expect that the situation with regard to the provision of services under the civil legal aid scheme will improve in the near future.
|
Centre |
Waiting periods for Non-emergency Cases |
|
Cork (North Mall) |
4 to 5 months |
|
Cork (South Mall) |
2 months |
|
Galway |
1 month |
|
Limerick |
9 months |
|
Sligo |
3 to 4 weeks |
|
Waterford |
3 months |
|
Athlone-Tralee |
Currently not receiving any cases of a non-emergency nature |
Note: All law centres with the exception of Cork, North Mall, are capable of dealing with emergency cases immediately. Emergency cases are those cases which, in the opinion of the board, require immediate access to a solicitor.