A MID talk in the Law Library, and no better place, that applications for judicial appointment have fallen below expectations, the president of the Law Society, Andy Smyth, has written to all solicitors urging them to apply, before April 12th, for the seven vacancies on the Circuit Court for which they are now eligible. He points out they could make history by being the first solicitors to hold such posts.
The letter will probably further annoy the Bar Council, which broke off diplomatic relations with its sister organisation before Christmas over the solicitors' lobbying for the breaking of the monopoly. Now the director general of the Law Society, Ken Murphy, wants the Minister for Justice, Nora Owen, to give the majority of the seven posts to solicitors to redress the historic imbalance".
And why is there a dearth of applications for these plum jobs? Because many of those suitable are earning too much already, and many who would like the elevation to the bench are afraid to apply for fear failure would become known and damage their careers and reputations. As one lawyer told Quidnunc, the worst scenario is for it to be falsely circulated that one applied, in which case there's damage without opportunity.
The Minister made the senior appointments this week and is now understood to have dropped the suggestion in the Act that the Judicial Appointments Advisory Board must submit seven names for each vacancy. That would be mean 49 applications. No wonder the Law Society sees an opportunity for its members.