Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 11 July 2018
245. Deputy Jim O'Callaghan asked the Minister for Justice and Equality the average waiting times persons are experiencing in receiving free legal aid broken down by category, such as, family law, repossessions and so on; the actions he will take to address this issue; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31108/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe provision of civil legal aid in the State is delivered by the Legal Aid Board pursuant to the Civil Legal Aid Act 1995 and the Civil Legal Aid Regulations 1996 to 2017.
There are significant demands on the Board and I am conscious that this gives rise to waiting times for certain services at most of the Board's law centres. However, waiting times have been reduced over the last number of years due to measures introduced by the Board and the Deputy will be glad to know that the Board's budget was increased to €40.275m in 2018.
The Board is extremely conscious that delays in service can lead to difficulties not just for the client but also for the wider community, as well as the courts system. In this regard, certain matters are dealt with as priority matters which means they receive the next available appointment at the law centre. Such matters include domestic violence, child abduction, child care, and asylum and related matters. In addition, the Board refers the vast majority of applications relating to private District Court remedies, for example maintenance, custody, access and guardianship, to private solicitors on its panels.
In instances where an insolvent person is seeking legal advice in relation to repossession proceedings under the Abhaile scheme, there are designated solicitors for this work in addition to a “Duty Solicitor” service being available at repossession lists at county registrars’ courts. There is no waiting list for this service.
All other applications are placed on the waiting list. I can advise the Deputy that details of the waiting times in each law centre are published on a regular basis by the Board on their website https://www.legalaidboard.ie/en/Our-Services/Legal-Aid-Services/Waiting-times/. The Board does not maintain separate waiting lists for each category of case.
