Tips for Lawyers

Whilst this page is aimed at lawyers it is also useful for anyone submitting an application to the Redress Board. It follows a meeting with the RIRB on 3rd April 2003. We will try to update it as new points arise. We cannot guarantee however that it is completely up to date particularly as the board is developing its practises all the time

[The following must not be taken as advice upon any matter connected with the RIRB. Any applicant must rely on his own skill and judgement, or seek help from either the RIRB, lawyer or other advice agency, . The author of this site can accept no responsibility for any advice given upon any matter whatsoever.]

• An Institution is not in the Schedule to the Act - the Board say that the government are intending to enlarge the Schedule to include new institutions. This they will do by Regulation. If the Institution is not included do not write to the Board as they have no power to add new Institutions. Write to the Department of Education and Science, Marlborough Street, Dublin 1. The keys to inclusions are
  
  Is it a residential institution?
  Did the Government play a managerial or inspectoral role?
  
  In other words normal day schools are excluded, but the fact that the institution was not run by the state is not important.
  
  Do not send in an application or incur medical report fees if the institution is outside the schedule. To view the Schedule and the Act go to our documents page
  
• Confidentiality  - it is a criminal offence to disclose anything about an application to the Redress Board or its award.
  
  Certain parts of the application when it is received by the Board will be sent to the alleged abuser and institution for comment. Upon receipt of their replies it will be decided whether or not to hold a hearing. The board alone will have the discretion which they are unlikely to exercise in favour of a hearing unless it is necessary for whatever reason.
  
• The Application Form - as only certain parts of the application form will be sent to the institution and alleged abuser, make sure that the information is split into the relevant parts according to the application form - see documents page for a copy of the form. In other words if you are sending one long statement make sure it is split up by heading into the relevant parts so that the Board can split it up and send only certain parts to the relevant parties
  
• Proof of Identity and Residence (see the RIRB newsletter of March 2003 &  June 2003) - the Board will require any photocopy documents of identity (eg. passport) to be certified by the solicitor as being true copies of the original.
  To prove residence at the institution in most cases it is only necessary to send a 1 page form obtainable from the database of the Residential Institutions’ Redress Unit, Department of Education & Science, Cornamaddy, Athlone, Co Westmeath, Ireland. If you ask for the full file under the Freedom of Information Act the backlog is currently about 18 months or thereabouts. In other cases more evidence may be required
  Because of the backlog Barnados have set up a service called Origins which is helping with the function of records tracing. To read about more details go to http://www.barnardos.ie/origins-service.htm There are branches in Dublin, Cork, Galway, and Wexford.
  
• Burden of Proof  - the board are likely accept the word of the applicant. There is definitely a bias in favour of the applicant such that the burden of proof in most cases is less than the lowest court standard of "the balance of probabilities". It is not necessary to produce evidence from corroborative witnesses that the abuse took place. In disputed cases however the Board may ask for additional evidence and the burden of proof may be higher.
  
• Medical Evidence (mention of the policy for these is made in the RIRB June 2003 newsletter)- the Board want a medical report from a psychiatrist not a psychologist. They will however accept psychological evidence in additional support if necessary, for example, to describe necessary treatment or perhaps in educational cases. Additional evidence will not usually be asked for. It is hoped that the psychiatrist will be able to cover all areas. In some cases however additional evidence may be requested.
  
  Upon receipt of the application form, which must include a medical report, the Board will send it out to its own medical expert for comment. This will usually take about 8 weeks. Any comments made by the Board medical expert will be sent out to the applicant. The expert is not intended to adopt an adversarial position but will comment if necessary.
  
  Cost of Medical Report  - once an application has been accepted (ie the form is complete and all necessary document to accompany have arrived) the Board will issue a payment to either the solicitor or applicant if acting in person, to assist with the cost of the medical report. At this stage the Board will not have considered whether the application is a suitable one for settlement. 
  If the application is unsuccessful the payment will not be refundable in the absence of fraud, and under no circumstances will the Board attempt any recovery from the solicitor.
  
  Solicitors from the Republic of Ireland €400
  UK Solicitors - €725
  
• The Settlement Process - Once the Board has collected together all the evidence it requires from the Application Form, the Medical Report, documents to prove identity, other evidence submitted, and the Board medical adviser's comments, 2 board members consider the application and decide whether it is suitable for settlement or hearing.
  
• Settlement (for a full description see the March 2003 Newsletter on the RIRB site)
  
  The Board members will score the application in accordance with the scheme weighting factors, and submit all the evidence to the applicant. This will include the score sheet, any comments from the institution or abuser, and the board medical adviser.
  
  The applicant will then be invited to a settlement meeting. The format has not finally been decided for UK applicants. It is likely to be a face to face meeting involving the applicant's solicitor, and the board members who considered the application. This might take place in Dublin or the UK, depending upon the appropriate venue in the circumstances. If agreement can be reached after discussion a settlement will be offered in a sum which the Board genuinely believes reasonably reflects the value of the case. The Board will not adopt a negotiating position to save money but will offer what it thinks the case is worth even if that figure is higher than the applicant's own valuation. After discussion a figure will be offered for the applicant to consider. If attended by the representing solicitor a suitable period will be allowed to take instructions. 
  
  The applicant will the have several options
  
  a) Accept the settlement. If so he/she will forfeit any right to a hearing
  b) Reject the process and proceed through the courts
  c) Request a review through the review process.
  
  In addition to any settlement in accordance with the Act reasonable solicitor's costs expenses will be paid. If not agreed they will be assessed by the Taxing Master of the High Court in Dublin.
  
  If no settlement can be agreed at the settlement meeting then the matter has to be referred to a hearing. If so different Board members must sit.
  
• Hearing - (for a full explanation see the Hearings Guide)
  
  It is meant to be informal/simple. The applicant will be sworn/affirm. There will be no medical evidence called unless it is in dispute. The Board legal representative will not play an adversarial role and will simply provide assistance or information as required. It is anticipated that the hearing will not last longer than one and half hours.
  
• Interim Payments (mention of the policy for these is made in the RIRB  March 2003 & June 2003 newsletter)
  
  The board want to avoid interim payments in that they would prefer to move straight to a complete and final settlement once they have all the evidence. However if a substantial backlog arises they accept that they may have to revisit the interim payment provisions in the Act which are simply designed to deal with old applicants.
  
  Generally interim payments will be considered for any applicant over 75 years of age, or under 75 and close to death.
  
• Fund Limits
  
  Contrary to rumour there is no official limit to the governmental fund set aside to meet Redress Board payments. The government are committed to providing sufficient funds to meet any accepted application for redress under the scheme. 

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