Statement from Labour Leader Ivana Bacik TD
Statement from Labour Leader Ivana Bacik TD - The Labour Party
Deputy Bacik said:
“As a public representative who practised as a barrister over many years, including years when I was also serving as a Senator for Dublin University, I am outraged at the emergence yesterday of an attack video by Fine Gael focusing on purported areas of practice engaged in by Independent Presidential candidate Catherine Connolly when she was working as a barrister.
“Fine Gael should know better. This attack video is not only a new political low – a new level of ‘nasty’ in this presidential campaign. It also represents a craven and dangerous attack on a fundamental principle of the rule of law in our democratic system.
“The Bar Council has already made clear in a statement dated 9th October 2025 that it is the professional duty of barristers to accept instructions in any case in their area of practice. This is sometimes referred to as the ‘cab-rank rule’. The Bar Council also pointed out that ‘barristers should not be identified with their clients or their clients’ causes or suffer adverse consequences as a result of being so identified. This fundamental principle arises from the Code of Conduct of The Bar of Ireland and is recognised in the United Nations Basic Principles on the Role of Lawyers and in the Council of Europe Convention for the Protection of the Profession of Lawyer.’
“The duty of barristers to accept instructions and the right of clients to be legally represented are cornerstones of our constitutional order. To chip away at these principles is dangerous.
“In addition, professional codes also require that barristers do not speak publicly about their clients or the cases that they take. After a case has concluded, it is typically the solicitor who will speak outside court on behalf of the client. Rule 3.7 of the Bar Council Code of Conduct states that
‘Barristers must maintain the confidentiality of each client’s affairs, and.. are under a duty not to communicate to any third party, information entrusted to them by or on behalf of their clients, and not to use such information to their client’s detriment or to their own or another client’s advantage. This duty continues at all times after the relation of Barrister and client has ceased, and after the death of the client.’
“In accordance with the ‘cab-rank rule’, during my time in practice as a barrister I represented clients in many criminal and non-criminal cases before the Special Criminal Court and before other criminal and civil courts at every level. Of course, in no individual case did the fact that I took instructions or represented a particular client mean that I shared the views of those whom I represented. Indeed, it is well-known that the current Justice Minister Jim O’Callaghan, who also maintained a professional practice while serving as an Oireachtas member, also represented clients whose views and values he patently did not share.
“It is utterly wrong and misconceived of Fine Gael to mount this sustained nasty attack upon Catherine Connolly merely because she practised as a barrister, represented clients professionally and does not speak publicly about those clients.”