Number of court cases adjourned as criminal defence solicitors withdraw services over legal aid row

Judge adjourned almost 50 cases that appeared before her at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court

The majority of cases were given new dates in the new court term beginning next October with one case, in which a man was due to be sentenced for assault causing harm to a woman, being adjourned to next Monday.

A number of cases have been adjourned in the Criminal Courts of Justice due to criminal defence solicitors withdrawing their services in a dispute over a proposed new legal aid payment model for district courts.

Judge Orla Crowe adjourned almost 50 cases that appeared before her in court 5 in Dublin Circuit Criminal Court. The cases were either first appearances in the circuit court, for mention, for arraignment — in which an accused pleads guilty or elects for trial — or for sentence. The accused people were both on bail and in custody.