THE GOVERNMENT dedicated almost as much funding last year to preparations for the 2027 Ryder Cup in Adare as it did nationally on financing legal advice for people who can’t afford it.
That’s according to FLAC (Free Legal Advice Centres) Chief Executive, Eilis Barry, who appeared before the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Home Affairs, and Migration recently as part of the Committee’s examination of civil legal aid in Ireland.
The State spent €58million in respect of the Ryder Cup last year, just €1m less than the Legal Aid Board’s entire 2024 budget.
In her statement to the Justice Committee, Ms Barry emphasised that Ireland’s “system of civil legal aid delivered by the Legal Aid Board (LAB) is in crisis”.
Ms Barry said Ireland is failing to meet huge amounts of legal need, particularly amongst groups who experience disadvantage and discrimination.
“Ireland’s system of civil legal aid may go from crisis to collapse altogether during 2026 (because of the huge increase in the LAB’s workload arising from the implementation of the EU Migration Pact) if urgent action is not taken,” she said
Underfunded and under-resourced
Ms Barry said that “the Legal Aid Board is chronically underfunded and under-resourced”.
She said that in 2025, it had a budget of €64.122m. In context, the horse and greyhound industries received €100m million in this and last year’s Budgets.
She pointed out that private education is also subsidised by around €100m each year.
“Under-resourcing leads to huge delays for a first consultation with a solicitor, with waiting times of up to 64 weeks in parts of the country,” Ms Barry said.
“The outdated legal aid means test has not been updated since 2006 and means that people with a disposable income of more than €18,000 cannot access to civil legal aid.”
Exemptions to the scheme of civil legal aid mean that people with cases before tribunals in important areas such as social welfare, employment, discrimination, and landlord/tenant law have no access to legal representation from the Legal Aid Board, Ms Barry told the committee, “regardless of the complexity of the cases or the vulnerability of the applicants”.
Crisis solving needs funds and reforms
The FLAC chief executive told the Committee that resolving the civil legal aid crisis requires proper resourcing of civil legal aid and reforms including the provision of early and targeted legal services (such as information, community education, advice, and advocacy services).
The recent civil legal aid minority report sets out “doable, practical, and cost effective” recommendations for a “legal aid system which prevents and resolves the legal problems individuals and communities experience as early (and efficiently) as possible”.
In her concluding statement, Ms Barry said: “We need to reject the entrenched cliché that legal aid is just ‘more money for lawyers’.”
“It is vital to stress that there is research into whole different range of legal aid systems which shows that for every euro spent on access to justice there will be savings and benefits for individuals, communities, the courts and society.”
She said that “access to justice is, and has to be regarded as, an investment, and a vital public service akin to healthcare and education”.
“Given the imminent risk of collapse of legal aid services, it is alarming that the Minister and his Department have not yet provided any timeline for when they will respond fully to the Civil Legal Aid Review or introduce reforms in this area.”
The Role of FLAC
FLAC is an independent legal, human rights, and equality organisation, which works in a number of different ways to promote equal access to justice.
In 2024, their telephone information and referral line responded to 11,435 queries. FLAC also provides phone legal advice clinics.
Their independent law centre provides targeted legal services for the Traveller and Roma communities and also undertakes public interest litigation (i.e. cases which may have an impact beyond the individual).
FLAC also operates PILA, which facilitates NGOs to obtain legal assistance from private lawyers via its pro bono referral scheme.
– Court Reporting Scheme