7 NW law firms rake in £14m in legal aid

The firms were amongst the top 30 legal aid earners in Northern Ireland and between them brought in a grand total of £14,206,152.

In the 2010/11 financial year one Londonderry firm, Quigley Grant and Kyle, earned close to a million pounds in legal aid payouts (£928,724).

And of 23 payments made to North West firms over the past five years the vast majority (18) involved payments of between £500k and £1m.

Justice Minister David Ford outlined the legal aid bill in response to an Assembly Question and said the figure includes “details of disbursements and payments made to counsel as these are paid via the solicitors’ firm.”

Local firms received £2,823,130 in 2006/7; £2,328,750 in 2007/8; £3,052,716 in 2008/9; £2,499,256 in 2009/10; and £3,502,300 in 2010/11.

Today the Sentinel can reveal details of the individual payments received by seven private solicitors based in the North West.

In 2006/7 the payments were as follows: Hilary Carmichael (£620,322); John Fahy and Co. (£609,881); Caldwell and Robinson (£439,579); Desmond J. Doherty (£411,579); MacDermott, McGurk and Partners (£384,591); and Gibson and Quigley (£357,178).

In 2007/8 the payments were: Hilary Carmichael (£811,619); John Fahy and Co. (£592,886); MacDermott, McGurk and Partners (£517,483); and Caldwell and Robinson (£406,762).

In 2008/8 the payments were: Gibson and Quigley (£760,497); Hilary Carmichael (£634,252); MacDermott, McGurk and Partners (£599,068); John Fahy and Co. (£557,788); and Caldwell and Robinson (£501,111).

In 2009/10 the payments were: Hilary Carmichael (£717,381); John Fahy and Co. (£677,155); Caldwell and Robinson (£559,152); and MacDermott, McGurk and Partners (£545,568).

And in 2010/11 the payments were Quigley Grant and Kyle (£928,724); Hilary Carmichael (£897,312); MacDermott, McGurk and Partners (£886,007); and John Fahy and Co. (£790,257).

£3,502,300

Two weeks ago the Sentinel reported how convicted criminals received £129,962 in legal aid to mount appeals in Londonderry over the past three years.

Justice Minister David Ford revealed Londonderry had one of the lowest legal aid totals between 2009 and 2012.

But the figure did increase from £30,730 in 2009/10 to £47,144 in 2010/11 to £52,088 in 2011/12.

And two years ago the paper reported how top barrister and former County Derry GAA footballer Joe Brolly - paid £750k in publicly funded legal fees over 2008-2010 - felt counsellors were paid far too much under the system.

The legal aid bill for the 100 top paid barristers in Northern Ireland over the same period was a staggering £51,562,263, whilst the total bill for all barristers was £60.5million.