1,700 solicitors from England and Wales admitted to Irish roll so far this year, Law Society reveal

The ongoing uncertainties surrounding Brexit has seen a massive surge in the number of British solicitors seeking to gain membership of Ireland’s legal roll.

Almost 1,700 English and Welsh solicitors have been admitted to the roll of solicitors in Ireland by the Law Society, the legal profession’s governing body, thus far in 2019.

On foot of this trend almost 3,800 such applicants have been admitted to the roll since January 2016, six months prior to the seismic vote which saw the UK elect to leave the European Union.

That figure represents almost a fifth of all solicitors on the roll.

The figures, which are included in the Law Society’s annual report for 2018/2019, should not be misinterpreted however, the report warns.

“Although the current volume of applications is at a record level, it is important to understand that the vast majority of these solicitors are merely enrolling - not arriving to practice - in Ireland,” Ken Murphy, the society’s director general, said.

As with the trend seen in financial circles of companies establishing a foothold in the Irish market to smooth the transition necessitated by whatever form Brexit takes, the hike in British solicitors acquiring permission to practice here is most likely attributable to a desire to head off any wrangles resulting from the split with EU law at the pass.

“Only a handful have actually moved to this jurisdiction to practice and be regulated here,” Mr Murphy said.

The rest remain at their desks in London, Brussels and other international legal centres.

“Most, if not all, major international law firms have large numbers of solicitors who have undertaken this process,” he added.

Just under 800 Irish practising certificates have been issued by the society since the Brexit referendum in June 2016, while 15 British law firms have established a branch office in Ireland in that time.

There are now over 20,000 names on the Irish solicitors roll, a figure first surpassed in 2019.

In terms of practising solicitors, the society had 12,689 members as of September 2019, split relatively evenly along gender lines between 51% women and 49% men.