"The debate around elected representatives and the cases they have taken in the past in the course of their legal work as barristers has led to one very public rebuke from the Bar Council of Ireland, an intervention from the Justice Minister, and has raised further questions about just how much TDs should disclose on the record in the Dáil as politicians."
"Ms Connolly has been accused by the Fine Gael camp and its presidential candidate Ms Humphreys of hypocrisy over her criticism of banks and home repossessions in the Dáil, having previously acted for lenders while practising as a barrister during the economic downturn. Ms Connolly has repeatedly pointed to the cab-rank rule, a duty on barristers to accept, or pick up, cases they are asked to take on."
Fine Gael criticized Catherine Connolly for previously acting for banks as a barrister while later condemning bank repossessions in the Dáil. The Bar Council of Ireland rebuked public attacks and emphasized the cab-rank rule as central to access to justice and public trust. Justice Minister Jim O'Callaghan said criticising lawyers for their clients' actions was unfair. Labour and the Social Democrats defended Connolly and attacked Fine Gael for pursuing the criticism, noting an attack video about her past work. Green Party leader Roderic O'Gorman noted difficulty in qualifying every statement in the Dáil about personal experiences.
Read at Irish Independent
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