Families could lose their homes and people who beat their partners may go unpunished without free legal aid, the Chief Executive of Free Legal Advice Centres has warned.

The use of strict confidentiality clauses in the settlement of proceedings against the State has been criticised by the independent legal aid body, Free Legal Advice Centres (Flac).

There may be an element of people trafficking in the case where a 32-year-old Vietnamese woman is charged with cultivating cannabis at luxury lakeside home, Tinarana House.

The Supreme Court has upheld a decision setting aside the awarding of a contract for supply of interpreters for the State's immigration service and Legal Aid Board.

An Environmental NGO has brought a High Court challenge over a refusal by the Legal Aid Board to consider its application for legal aid in its action against the government plan known as 'Project Ireland 2040'.

The Oireachtas Justice Committee will tomorrow be asked to consider establishing a specialist division of courts as part of family law reform.

David Byrne, Denis McCullough, Vivian Lavan and Ian Candy are not, collectively, household names in Ireland, but they should be.

More than 3,300 households in serious mortgage arrears have been spared the loss of their homes with the help of the Abhaile scheme.

The judge directed bona fide members of the press may attend and report such applications but, before the court sits to hear such cases, they must make themselves known to the court registrar and produce satisfactory identification such as a National Union of Journalists card.

The Legal Aid Board was so cash-strapped last year it reallocated funds earmarked for the Abhaile Scheme which helps people who are insolvent and in mortgage arrears.

The country’s creaking family law court system is coming under increasing strain from expanding case loads, unacceptable delays and inadequate facilities, the body for solicitors has said.

A homeless mother who successfully fought an attempt to take her newborn baby into care is entitled to her legal costs after her lawyers had to work for her for free because the State's legal aid system had reached its quota in the month she applied.

The Government’s “failure” to provide sufficient funding to abolish civil legal aid fees for victims of domestic violence, has been criticised.

Victims of domestic violence should not have to pay legal fees, as it is preventing those in desperate situations from seeking help.

Almost 26,000 people received free legal advice from FLAC last year but some are waiting up to six months for a first consultation in a Legal Aid Board office.

Senior barristers have demanded the Legal Aid Board immediately reverse a decision that would impact on family law cases, including the possibility of adding to already lengthy waiting lists.

A mother has accused Tusla of not conducting a thorough investigation, after her son claimed his foster father hurt him.

Banks are committing to spending up to €1bn in “putting people out of family homes”, it has been claimed.

The numbers of potential victims of human trafficking provided with legal services by the Legal Aid Board more than doubled in 2015.

New figures show there has been a 70% increase in the number of asylum-related applications for free legal aid.

Funding to boost staffing levels in An Garda Síochána and the Courts Service and to bring forward the construction of a new forensic science laboratory are contained in the Budget 2017 allocation to the Department of Justice.

Josephine Feehily marked our cards from the outset.

A county councillor has told a court he is facing bankruptcy as a result of failed business dealings.

A judge has warned a politician who featured in an RTÉ Investigates programme to appear in court next month or face arrest over a long-running failure to pay compensation to a woman injured on a building site.

Justice Minister Frances Fitzgerald has said the board members of the new Policing Authority were of the “highest calibre”, after claims they were political appointees.

The 2014 annual report from the Legal Aid Board shows 902 people sought asylum-related legal services, an increase of 27% on 2013.

A couple’s occupation of a house in Co Kildare is holding up the proposed €5.6m sale of the property by AIB-appointed receivers, the Commercial Court has heard.

A DNA database — promised more than eight years ago —will be up and running in the coming weeks, Justice Minister Frances Fitzgerald has said.

Little has been done to increase the level of support available to people as they seek to restructure mortgage debt, writes Noeline Blackwell.

The State’s spend providing criminal legal aid to defend the accused in criminal courts across the country last year topped almost €50m.

Welcome to your Tuesday morning briefing. Let us ensure you’re up to speed on what’s happening and are prepared for the day ahead.

Applicants for civil legal aid are waiting almost two years to secure the services of a solicitor as the Legal Aid Board struggles to deal with a 70% increase in demand in seven years.

The Garda Inspectorate should be replaced by a Criminal Justice Inspectorate, which would supervise the entire criminal justice system, according to an Oireachtas report.

At least two children a week were abducted by parents taking them in or out of Ireland last year.

A judge has refused to jail pensioners Martin and Violet Coyne, who faced prison for contempt of court by defying a judge’s order to have left their home by midnight on Tuesday.

The number of people inquiring about free legal advice increased last year, with family law issues and credit and debt problems prompting most of the contacts.

An overarching watchdog is being proposed to oversee the entire justice apparatus, including the job of policing the Garda Ombudsman.

Low earners are having to wait more than a year to see a solicitor in some parts of the country because demand for free legal aid has almost doubled in recent years.

The Legal Aid Board has said 2012 was a significantly challenging year in its annual report.