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Justice Minister Helen McEntee says she did not know a lawyer she appointed to the Circuit Court once he worked for her predecessor, Charlie Flanagan.
In a statement, McEntee also said that he never discussed Mary Morrissey’s appointment with Flanagan.
Ms. Morrissey worked for Mr. Flanagan’s Laois Law Firm prior to establishing her own practice. His appointment was approved by the Cabinet on the same day that former Attorney General Séamus Woulfe was controversially appointed to the Supreme Court.
Yesterday, Ms. McEntee finally bowed to pressure from the opposition and agreed to appear before the Dáil and answer questions about the appointment of Mr. Judge Woulfe. McEntee and Taoiseach Micheál Martin spoke before he announced that she would appear before the Dáil.
A source from Fianna Fáil said the Taoiseach asked Ms McEntee to answer questions in the Dáil. However, a Fine Gael source said that Mr. Martin and the minister “spoke and agreed” that she would appear before the Dáil.
The embattled minister’s U-turn came after the Dáil’s Business Committee nearly dissolved.
Sinn Féin withdrew from the committee and insisted that it would not offer government TD pairs for votes. Other opposition parties said they would boycott the committee over the minister’s refusal to answer questions about the appointment.
The Oireachtas Justice Committee also weighed in on the debacle and dismissed suggestions that Ms. McEntee addressed the Séamus Woulfe issue when she appeared before them.
The controversy over the appointments took an even bigger turn when it emerged that the other judge appointed on the same day that Judge Woulfe was working for former Justice Minister Charlie Flanagan.
Yesterday, the Justice Department said that Flanagan wrote to the Judicial Appointments Advisory Board (JAAB) on May 29, 2020 to request a list of suitable candidates to fill two vacancies on Circuit Court stemming from the death of Judge John Hannan. and the retirement of Judge Gerald Keyes.
the Irish independent understands that the JAAB met on June 17 to consider applications for the positions and to recommend various names to the government. The new government was appointed on June 27 and Mr. Flanagan was replaced in the Justice Department by Ms. McEntee.
After her appointment, her officers informed Ms. McEntee of the vacancies to be filled in Circuit Court.
A Justice spokesman said McEntee recommended Morrissey “in consultation” with the Taoiseach, the Tánaiste, Green Party leader Eamon Ryan and Attorney General Paul Gallagher. On July 15, the cabinet agreed to the appointment of Ms. Morrissey and Mr. Woulfe.
At the Dáil, Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald asked if the Taoiseach knew that Ms. Morrissey “had a prior professional relationship with former Fine Gael Minister of Justice Charlie Flanagan.”
“I don’t get into people’s relationships with any former incumbent or congressmen,” Martin said.
At a press conference, Tánaiste Leo Varadkar initially said that McEntee told him that Morrissey worked for Flanagan. However, an hour later, his advisor called reporters to tell them that Varadkar was wrong.
Last night, a spokesperson said: “La Tánaiste does not know Mary Morrissey and was not aware of her previous employment status prior to her appointment.”
Ryan could not be reached for comment despite multiple attempts to reach him through his team of eight taxpayer-funded advisers.
Irish independent
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