Facts about the Profession

For the year ended 31 December 2023.

Practising Certificate holders

Practising Certificate holders by location

A map of Ireland showing geographical distribution of practising solicitors around the country. The county with the largest number of solicitors is Dublin, with 7,923 of the 11,871 total solicitors

Age profile of Practising Certificate Holders

A graph showing the age range of practising solicitors. 684 solicitors are aged under 30, 3,318 are aged 30-39, 3,894 from 40-49, 2,199 from 50-59, 1,299 from 60-69, 363 from 70-79, 36 from 80-89, and 4 90 years or more. 74 are not specified

Firms by number of practising solicitors

A graph showing the number of firms in Ireland by Practising Certificate Holders. Of 3,139 firms, 120 have between 11 and 400 solicitors, 499 have 4-10 solicitors, and 2,520 have 1-3 solicitors

3,239 solicitors were noted in 2023 as working in-house. Of these, 2,688 were holding a practising certificate at 31 December 2023. 476 solicitors on the Roll are classified as being in the full-time service of the state in 2023.

Practising Certificate holders by gender

A graph showing 6,321 practising certificate holders are female, 5,513 are male and 37 unidentified.

Practising certificate holders by position

A graph showing practising certificate holder by position. 6,915 are classed as assistants, 3,058 are partners, 908 are sole practitioners, 561 are principals, 416 are consultants, 8 are locums and 5 are not defined.

Law Society members 

Law Society members by location

An image showing geographical distribution of Law Society members. 12,428 members are based in Ireland, with 236 based outside the jurisdiction

Law Society members by gender

A graph showing that 5,820 (46%) of Law Society members are male, 6,801 (54%) are female and 43 are unidentified

Law Society members by practising status

A graph showing 11,144 (88%) Law Society members are practising and 1,520 (12%) are not practising.

Law Society members by age range

A graph showing the age range of practising solicitors. 531 solicitors are aged under 30, 3,239 are aged 30-39, 4,224 from 40-49, 2,532 from 50-59, 1,479 from 60-69, 468 from 70-79, 57 from 80-89, and 5 90 years or more. 129 are not specified