TALKS AIMED AT ending the solicitors strike are set to take place this week with the Law Society aiming to change the payment model being implemented by Justice Minister Jim O’Callaghan.

Criminal defence solicitors are seeking two changes to the flat-fee model being pursued by O’Callaghan in Wednesday’s talks so that its members can get paid double for certain complex cases that last beyond beyond ten court appearances.

Under the new payment model, a solicitor receives a flat €520 fee when a case concludes with up to five court appearances, compared with €240 per appearance under the old model.

Under the terms being sought by solicitors, the Law Society is seeking a second payment of €520 if there are more than ten appearances by an accused client.

Amanda Connolly, vice chair of the criminal law committee at Law Society, told RTÉ Radio One’s Morning Ireland programme that she did not believe these proposed changes would incentivise solicitors to drag out cases to an 11th appearance.

“They are by their nature complex cases,” Connolly said, adding that it has been “accepted even by the minister that defence solicitors are not responsible for a lot of remands in these cases.”

Connolly argued that complex cases encompass domestic violence, clients with addiction issues, mental health difficulties or intellectual disability, and that these routinely require more appearances.

While the Law Society has welcomed indications by O’Callaghan that an expanded payment model would be used for cases involving children, it has said this will “not solve” other complex cases.

The other change being sought by solicitors is for multiple payments of €520 where a client has multiple charges levelled against them by the state, as solicitors argue these may involve separate gardaí, different witnesses and evidence files.

“They wouldn’t be the norm, they are exceptional cases that a client would come in with that amount of separate charges,” Connolly said on Tuesday morning.

She added that an “awful lot of work” happens in the background on such cases, and that a solicitor is “not just sitting in court waiting for your case to be called”.

“It’s only fair that people are paid for the work that they do,” Connolly said.

She added that these changes were needed “in order to keep solicitors in the profession”, claiming there had been an “exodus” over the years.

“We’ll see tomorrow what attitude the minister has in relation to negotiating and hopefully we can bring about a solution to it,” Connolly said.

Asked if solicitors would suspend the strike, Connolly said they will “absolutely discuss everything” but she said that it’s “up to individual solicitors to make their own decisions” based on what happens tomorrow.

It will be the first meeting between the two sides since 31 July, and comes a week after O’Callaghan claimed that cases involving allegations of rapes had been deliberately affected by the withdrawal of solicitor services, which deepened the row.

Over the weekend, The Journal’s Fact Check team examined the minister’s claim and found that the suggestion that rape cases were specifically singled out for disruption was misleading.