Irish legal system ‘broken’ warns retired High Court judge

Ms Justice Murphy was appointed to the High Court in 2014 and retired in March 2023. She previously practised as a barrister, calling to the Bar in 1979 and becoming a senior counsel in 1999.

She told The Irish Times that access to justice is “becoming more limited as the bigger firms are taking over”, warning that this domination of a small number of large firms, including recent newcomers, is “changing the face of our legal system”.

Echoing similar comments from the Law Society, she said smaller law firms are struggling with regulatory obligations which are putting them “under pressure, and that means they don’t have the time or means to take the kind of challenges they used to take”.

Ms Justice Murphy added that there are “far too many barristers” who are used to being “cut-throat” in order to compete for work.

“If you’re scrabbling to survive, you’re not going to be very collegiate and, perhaps, if you get a case from the State, you could drag it out longer than it warrants,” she said.

The retired judge suggested regulatory reform and the State’s adoption of an Australian-style model litigant obligation (MLO) policy could help to address the issue.

She said: “The big firms have cornered the State market. Everything is being funnelled to them and at the same time the pressure on the smaller, regional firms is being increased by swingeing regulation…

“A fair and equitable distribution of State work will make the system better because work will be distributed among those capable of doing it and not just the favourites of particular people.”