The Courts Service said it had replaced the “cumbersome process of having to apply separately in each individual county”.

Solicitors are now able to apply to be placed on panels in any county using a single form, which will be processed by the centralised courts office in Castlebar, Co Mayo. Offices will no longer have to set up and maintain the legal aid panels for their county.

The centralised office will generate the legal aid panels for all counties and will provide regular updates to the county registrar in each county. The updated panels will be forwarded to Department of Justice to allow for payments to be processed.

The Courts Service said: “This project is another example of ideas highlighted by staff through our innovation pathway and will ultimately remove some work out of court offices while making it easier for solicitors to register.”

Any queries in relation to the panels should be directed to legalaidpanel@courts.ie.