The Office of the Ombudsman is inviting applications from barristers for admission to its panel of practising barristers for the period from January 2023 to December 2026.

The office incorporates:

• The Ombudsman,
• The Standards of Public Office Commission,
• The Information Commissioner,
• The Commissioner for Environmental Information,
• The Commission for Public Sector Appointments,
• The Referendum Commission, and
• The Office of the Protected Disclosures Commissioner.

The office says that it is seeking barristers at all levels of seniority to provide advice and representation in one or more areas of the law outlined in the application form.

Applications are open from 1 December to 3 January 2023. Applications received after 3 January will not be considered.

Queries

All completed applications should be submitted by email only to legal@ombudsman.ie, and should bear the subject of ‘Counsel Panel Application’, followed by the applicant’s name.

The office says that all queries about the competition process should be directed to legal@ombudsman.ie before close of business on Wednesday 21 December.

“The office will endeavour to publish its responses to any queries received by this date on its website (with personal data removed) as a single document no later than Friday 23 December,” it says.

Its offices will be closed between 24 December and 2 January, inclusive.