Minister of State at the Department of Justice, James Browne TD, this morning launched the new Legal Practitioners Disciplinary Tribunal (LPDT) at the National Gallery in Dublin.
The LPDT was established under Section 74 of the Legal Services Regulation Act 2015 and its role is to consider complaints of misconduct against solicitors and barristers referred to it from the Legal Services Regulatory Authority’s (LSRA) Complaints Committee or the Law Society of Ireland. It is a successor body to the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal and the Barristers Professional Conduct Tribunal.
Minister Browne joined Chairperson of the Tribunal Tom Coughlan and President of the High Court Mary Irvine at the launch.
Following the event, Minister Browne said,
“Today is a very significant for the legal profession in Ireland. The Legal Practitioners Disciplinary Tribunal have a crucial role to play in supporting the proper and effective administration of justice and in ensuring that our legal system is independent, strong and effective.
I am delighted to attend this morning’s launch and I look forward to working closely with bodies such as the Tribunal so that we can continue to deliver further improvements and innovations in the Justice sector, as set out in the Justice Plan 2022.”
The commencement of the LPDT’s operations was initially delayed due to the Covid-19 pandemic but it was brought into effect in November 2020 when President of the High Court Mary Irvine appointed the Tribunal’s 33 members. The majority of members are non-legal professionals along with solicitor and barrister members. Under the Legal Services Regulation Act 2015, the Tribunal must be comprised of at least 40% men and at least 40% women.