The Law Society called for an investigation 14 months ago into the advance "leaking" to the media of a Garda visit last year to the offices of Dublin solicitors, M. E. Hanahoe and Co, and it was a pity it did not take place then, the society's president said in a strongly-worded statement yesterday.
Mr Laurence K. Shields, president of the Law Society, which represents solicitors, said some solicitors viewed what was done to the firm as an officially sanctioned attempt by the gardai to intimidate all firms of solicitors who regularly acted for the accused in criminal matters.
This week it was announced that a senior Garda officer had been appointed to investigate a tip-off to the media of the visit by gardai to the solicitors, who were acting for John and Geraldine Gilligan.
Although welcoming the investigation, Mr Shields in a statement yesterday said: "It is a pity this investigation didn't take place 14 months ago when the society first called for it. Solicitors everywhere were outraged by what was done to this firm. Some viewed it as an officially sanctioned attempt by the gardai to intimidate all firms of solicitors who regularly act for the accused in criminal law matters. The leak was clearly calculated to create a media circus which would severely damage a long-established firm that has the highest reputation."
He added that they would await the outcome of the investigation with interest and hoped that it would receive the same level of publicity as the original incident.
Mr Justice Kinlen in the High Court had recently described the tip-off as a "wilful act done to damage the Hanahoes" and awarded the firm £100,000 in damages.