Delegates at the Legal Aid Board annual conference in the National Gallery in Dublin on 27 September 2018 heard from members of the judiciary that they saw many unrepresented clients.

Mr Justice Gerard Furlong of the District Court said he saw many unrepresented clients who seemed to be entitled to legal aid but could not afford the contribution they were being asked to pay.

He also spoke about the resourcing difficulties in getting reports that demonstrate the voice of the child in court cases. 

Judge Kathryn Hutton told the conference that cases were being held up by delays in legal aid, sometimes for up to three to six months.

She said that access to justice is a fundamental right and she sees a failure to vindicate this right “on a daily basis” in the shape of “impecunious unrepresented litigants”.

“We are not here to serve the judges, we are not here to serve the lawyers, we are here to serve the people who use the system,” Mr Justice Michael White told the conference.

He said that family law venues Dolphin House and Phoenix House are “not fit for purpose”.

Scheduling

Mr Justice White said that many family law cases are settled just prior to the hearing date and there were scheduling difficulties in courts outside Dublin. Some ‘high conflict’ cases take a disproportionate amount of time, he said.

He also accepted that many judges did not care for family law as it requires a particular temperament. Continuity in the role is a key issue, he said, and he recommended a minimum three-year rotation.

Senior counsel Nuala Jackson asked whether pleadings were absolutely necessary in family law cases and if a simple form could suffice instead.

The reform of the family law system in terms of streamlining and simplification was a central topic at the conference.

Emily Sherlock from Cavan Law Centre said greater online access could ease pressure on courts and made suggestions for easing access to the divorce courts, in line with the FLAC submission to the Courts Service Strategy.

Speakers included members of the judiciary, family lawyer Keith Walsh, chair of the child and family law committee at the Law Society, senior civil servants, solicitors and mediators.

Keith Walsh observed that in family law we see a “Rolls Royce system of justice with a Honda 50 system of funding.”

Ahead of the conference Legal Aid Board chair Philip O’Leary said he was looking forward to a shared space for practitioners and stakeholders in the family justice system to examine the key priorities and opportunities for change.

“The Legal Aid Board fully recognises that policy in the area of family justice is a matter for Government. However, it is beneficial to enable the experiences of those who administer and work in the family justice system to be shared so as to guide reform for the benefit of its customers and society,” he said.

An attendance of 170 in total spent the day examining the key issues in the family justice sector.