Written answer
Legal Aid
The minister said criminal legal aid panels are national, so county-by-county payment data for solicitors and barristers is not recorded. A table of total fees paid in May-August 2025 and 2026 was provided, excluding expenses, which cannot be attributed solely to either profession.
398. Deputy Aidan Farrelly asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration to provide a county by county breakdown of the payments made to barristers in criminal legal aid payments for the individual months of May, June, July and August this year; and the amount paid out in criminal legal aid payments by county to barristers for the corresponding four months in 2025, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [67895/26]
Comment on this
403. Deputy Aidan Farrelly asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration to provide a county by county breakdown of the payments made to solicitors in criminal legal aid payments for the individual months of May, June, July and August this year; and the amount paid out in criminal legal aid payments by county to solicitors for the corresponding four months in 2025, in tabular form; and if will make a statement on the matter. [67891/26]
Comment on this
404. Deputy Aidan Farrelly asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration the total amounts that have been paid out to barristers in criminal legal aid payments for the individual months of May, June, July and August this year; and the amount paid out in criminal legal aid payments to barristers for the corresponding four months in 2025, in tabular form; and if can make a statement on the matter. [67889/26]
Comment on this
405. Deputy Aidan Farrelly asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration the total amounts that have been paid out to solicitors in criminal legal aid payments for the individual months of May, June, July and August this year; and the amount paid out in criminal legal aid payments to solicitors for the corresponding four months in 2025, in tabular form; and if will make a statement on the matter. [67886/26]
Comment on this
I propose to take Questions Nos. 398, 403, 404 and 405 together.
My Department significantly simplified the procedures for Criminal Legal Aid panel membership both for solicitors and barristers last year by waiving the requirement to apply yearly to be retained on panels, with the commencement on 26 November 2025 of S.I. 539 of 2025.
Solicitors may apply to the Court Service to be placed on the Criminal Legal Aid panel for any county using a single application form, which is processed by a centralised courts office in Castlebar, Co. Mayo. This system, introduced in 2021, replaced the previous requirement to apply separately to individual local court offices. In order to be added to the Barristers panel, a barrister will advise the Bar Council of their willingness to accept instructions and the Bar Council in turn informs my Department.
As the Criminal Legal Aid panel is considered national, the information requested by the Deputy is not recorded by my Department in a manner that provides for a ‘by county’ breakdown.
The below table outlines the fees paid to Solicitors and to Barristers under the Criminal Legal Aid Scheme for the months May, June, June and August for the years 2025 and 2026. Payments related to expenses are not included. Under the Criminal Legal Aid Scheme, claims for payment for expenses including and not limited to, mileage, travel, parking, accommodation etc. are received from any number of individuals associated with a case including, solicitors, barristers, interpreters, translators and witnesses. Therefore, the information is not available in such a way to include payments related to expenses by one type of profession only.