Top ten achievements of 2023/24
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Five year strategy
The Law Society launched its 2024- 2028 strategy after extensive research and consultations with the profession and other stakeholders. Ensuring excellence in the solicitors’ profession and shaping a justice system that works for all are central to achieving this new strategic direction.
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Speeding up property sales
A new guide was developed by the Law Society and the Society of Chartered Surveyors Ireland to help consumers avoid delays when selling a property in Ireland. When launched on 1 July, director general Mark Garrett noted that the “Law Society has long called for systemic reform of the conveyancing system. Through this guide, we want to support people to understand the complexity of the current process and, armed with this information, plan ahead to avoid delays where that is possible.”
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Increasing access
The Hybrid Professional Practice Course has resulted in increased diversity in terms of location, gender, and age. Of trainees who registered in December 2023 for the PPC Hybrid, 60% are located outside of Dublin, compared to 8% of the full-time PPC. Over a third of the trainees on the PPC Hybrid are aged 30 or older, and 70% are female.
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Enduring Power of Attorney
The system put in place by the Decision Support Service for creating an enduring power of attorney is causing excessive delays and extreme frustration to the public and the profession. The Law Society has made significant recommendations for improvements and will continue to engage intensively with the DSS and Government on what is needed to make the process more accessible and efficient.
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Highest number of PCs ever
On 30 May, the Law Society approved its 12,000th practising certificate for the practice year 2024. This represents the first time that 12,000 practising certificates have been approved for issue in one practice year, and is more than twice the number of practising certificates approved in the practice year 2000.
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Well Within the Law
Ten years after the Law School introduced a counselling service that has provided support for 2,722 trainees from 385 legal workplaces, Law Society Psychological Services embarked on a first-of-its-kind partnership with RDJ LLP to reimagine the legal industry’s approach to workplace culture in 2024. This is the first step in setting new international standards for healthy culture, policies, and practices across a range of legal workplaces.
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Justice and law reform expertise
The Environmental and Planning Law Conference in November 2023, the Family and Care Referendum discussion in February, campaigns on legal aid fees and the Family Law Courts Bill, and Oireachtas appearances on the Garda Recording Devices Bill and on housing are just some of the examples of how the Law Society has been using its expertise to facilitate discussion and to work with Government and policymakers to strengthen reform on priority access-to-justice issues.
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Thousands in legal education
There were over 22,000 attendances by solicitors at 169 courses and events provided by the Law Society’s Skillnet, Professional Training, and Diploma teams in 2023. Over 3,500 students from a recording-breaking 78 countries took part in the 2024 MOOC (massive open online course). In 2023, a total of 3,174 candidates undertook the FE1s, including 413 undergraduates through the accelerated access programme who are in the process of getting their degree.
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Services for solicitors
There are many Law Society services to support solicitors at work and in their professional lives. However, many practitioners may not be aware of the extent of what’s available and how to access them. A campaign was launched in June, using a video to highlight the range and value and usage of services. So far, the video has received over 19,000 views on LinkedIn alone. The campaign is ongoing and includes a presence for the Solicitor Services team at more Law Society events countrywide to receive feedback and assist with any queries.
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eVoting
Both nominations and voting for the Law Society’s Council in 2023/24 were fully electronic for the first time, allowing for a more secure, efficient, and accessible system. 22 candidates were nominated for the general election and two for the Munster provincial election. In all, 2,992 votes were cast, a turnout of 23.73% for the 2023/24 Council.
