Solicitor accused of taking client’s sex abuse payout

A SOLICITOR told a client he would only get around €5,000 for a sex abuse settlement when the solicitor had already received cheques totalling €35,000 for the case, it has been claimed in the High Court.

Denis McMahon, a partner in McMahon O’Brien solicitors with offices in Limerick and Dublin, is facing charges of misconduct for failing to lodge two cheques — the settlement cheque for €25,000 and another for €10,000 related to legal costs — to the account of a client who sued a religious institution over abuse he suffered as a child.

Paul Anthony McDermott BL, for the Law Society, told the court the matter came to light when the client had a conversation with another solicitor in the McMahon law firm.