Ireland has far fewer judges, but many more lawyers than other European countries

The Council of Europe report shows that the number of judges, as a proportion of the population, has not increased in the last 10 years, while the figure for lawyers rose from 239 per 100,000 people to 282. File picture

Ireland has only a sixth of the judges that the typical European country has – but has twice as many lawyers, according to a report.

The Council of Europe (CoE), which incorporates 44 countries from across the continent, estimates that the starting salary of judges in Ireland is almost three times that of the typical salary across member states.

The findings, contained in the CoE's Efficiency of Justice report, shows Ireland is spending less per inhabitant on the courts system than the typical member state – at €31 per 100,000 people here, compared to almost €44 per person.

This is reflected in the monies allocated to the prosecution service here (€9 per person compared to €14 elsewhere). The report notes that while Ireland has significantly increased the amount of money it is spending on court ICT, it is still below the median figure for all 44 states (€4 per person, compared to €6.50).

The report again documents the relative under-supply of judges in Ireland, with three judges per 100,000 inhabitants, compared to the European median of almost 18 judges. It said, “conversely”, Ireland has 282 lawyers per 100,000 people, compared to 135 across most of Europe.

The report shows that the number of judges, as a proportion of the population, has not increased in the last 10 years, while the figure for lawyers rose from 239 per 100,000 people to 282.

While the representation of women in the judiciary has grown here over the last decade – from 26% to 39% - it still lags well behind the median of 62%. But Ireland does better in terms of court presidents, with 40% female, just about the European average.

Among lawyers, half are female, compared to 36% for the European median.

Salaries

On pay, Irish judges score high, with a starting salary of almost €130,000 in 2020, compared to a European median of €46,000. It said this means that Irish judges start on three times the average annual gross salary in the country, compared to twice in Europe generally.

By the end of their career, judges in Ireland earned €209,000 in 2020 (European median of €90,000). The picture is not replicated for prosecutors in Ireland, who have a starting salary of about €33,000 (compared to €37,000).

The CoE is an international organisation that was set up after WWII to uphold human rights and the rule of law. Solicitors and opposition politicians in Ireland have raised the issue of the lack of judges, particularly in district courts.

Last March, Justice Minister Helen McEntee said a process was underway to examine judicial numbers and said the Government needed to ensure there were enough judges and that they were trained.

In May, Minister of State at the Department of Justice, James Browne, said the Judicial Planning Working Group was expected to produce its report this autumn.