Solicitors from Co. Monaghan have explained the reason they walked out of Monaghan District Court today.
Solicitors withdrew their services from Monaghan District Court today as the Department of Justice is set to implement a new criminal legal aid payment model.
Thousands of criminal cases in courts across the State were unable to proceed from the middle of last week with Monaghan District Court impacted from today.
It followed on from legal practitioners walking out at Cavan District Court on Thursday.
Kevin Hickey from Hickey, Henderson & Co. Solicitors in Clones is the President of the Monaghan Solicitors Association.
Speaking to Northern Sound, Kevin said that solicitors are united in their decision.
Kevin said: "The dispute started last week. This is our first opportunity to express our views in the matter.
"We took a vote of the members, and unanimously agreed that we would withdraw our services. This morning I notified Judge Finnegan that this was our intention.
"We are happy to deal with custody cases, and juvenile cases. We have withdrawn services for ordinary criminal cases, and also services for Garda Station interviews.
"We know this will put pressure on the court service, but little we can do," he added.
Niall Fox is a solicitor at Niall Fox Solicitors Cavan and Monaghan.
Speaking to Northern Sound, he said that solicitors need to be paid a reasonable figure.
"Criminal legal aid isn't just a subsidy that is paid to solicitors to represent clients. It is the mechanism that the State satisfies its obligations to ensure a fair trial and access to justice, for the most socio-economically vulnerable people," he said.
