Legal costs and the payment scheme
The Mother and Baby Institution Payment Scheme has now been open from March 2024. Since then, many applicants have received support from organisations that offer free and confidential advice from specially trained staff.
There are, however, some occasions where an individual may require legal assistance.
This post looks at where and when an applicant should obtain legal support and where there is financial support available.
There is no financial provision for legal assistance when making an application
The length of time that an individual was in an institution is central to all Payment Scheme applications.
When making an application, you will need to give information on the institution where you were resident as well as the dates that you lived there. If you do not know the dates that you were resident in an institution you should give a rough estimation of these dates. The Case Management Team will then use this to trace your records.
Some people may require assistance to complete an application. If this is the case, free confidential support is available. However, there is no need to obtain legal advice from a solicitor at the point of application.
It is important to note that there is no provision to reimburse any payments made to a solicitor in order to submit an application to the Mother and Baby Institution Payment Scheme.
Applications will not be accepted where they are made by a legal firm on behalf of a former resident.
Signing the Legal Waiver
Should you be offered a payment from the Mother and Baby Institutions Payment Scheme, you will need to sign and submit a legal waiver before receiving payment.
The legal waiver states that you will not take legal action against a public body, or you will discontinue any legal action against a public body relating to the circumstances of your application to the Payment Scheme.
You can obtain advice from a legal representative prior to signing a waiver.
Financial support of up to €500 (excluding VAT) is available for this advice. This payment will only be made on receipt of proof of payment or an invoice for a solicitor.
Payment will only be made directly to the applicant and cannot be made to a solicitor or legal firm.
Completing an Affidavit
Once an application is submitted, the Case Management team will look for your records to establish your residency in one of the 44 listed Mother and Baby or County Homes and the length of time that you were resident in an institution.
In the event that records traced are not complete (e.g they record a date of entry but not exit from an institution) or records cannot be traced, the applicant maybe asked to submit an affidavit (we will publish more information on the affidavit shortly).
Where an affidavit is needed, the applicant can obtain legal support of up to €200. Payment will need to be reclaimed from the scheme. The submission of an affidavit should be proof that legal advice has been obtained.
It is important to note that affidavits should only be submitted where the Case Management Team has requested this.
These are the only cases where the Mother and Baby Institutions Payment Scheme will pay for legal costs in connection with an application.
If you have any queries about the contents of this blog please contact Patrick on 07432138682
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