High Court directs 'disgraceful' Cork solicitor to refund fee

Ann O'Loughlin

The President of the High Court has branded as “disgraceful” the attitude of a Cork solicitor who, in correspondence with a regulatory authority, said he had no intention of complying with directions, including the return of a fee to former clients.

Mr Justice David Barniville said it was disgraceful conduct and he had no hesitation in granting orders sought by the Legal Services Regulatory Authority (LSRA) against John Paul Hennessy, who previously practised as Hennessy & Co solicitors, Wolfe Tone Square, Bantry, Co Cork.

The judge ordered that Mr Hennessy, who has since retired, comply with directions of the LSRA and pay back €1,639 in fees to a couple, along with a further €2,085, which is to be transferred to another solicitor's firm dealing with the estate of a woman, the couple’s neighbour who died.

Mr Justice Barniville said there was no substantive defence to the LSRA case brought and he had no hesitation in granting the orders sought.

Opening the application by the LSRA in the High Court, Claire Hogan BL said the couple were clients of Mr Hennessy for a period of time in relation to issues concerning the land of the deceased neighbour. The couple had rented and farmed the land.

The complaint made in February 2022 related to several alleged instances of delayed or no communication from the solicitor in relation to correspondence he had received from the solicitors acting for the administrators of the estate of the deceased neighbour.

Counsel told the court that one allegation related to the forwarding of a letter to the couple regarding the ongoing rental of the land at a time when it was too late for them to accept a proposed time-bound agreement.

Another aspect of the complaint related to €2085, which Counsel said the couple were given by the deceased and which they entrusted to the solicitor. It was claimed in court documents that Mr Hennessy allegedly misrepresented the couple’s position to the estate and allegedly sought to claim it was a deathbed gift to them.

Counsel said the couple were due a bequest of €10,000 from their neighbour, but they could not get it because of the alleged situation with the €2,085.

The LSRA Divisional Complaints Committee in January this year determined that the complaint against Mr Hennessy was upheld. It said he had failed to comprehensively respond to specific issues raised by it in correspondence regarding a complaint of inadequate legal services incurring financial and other costs to the complainants and the ongoing and practical reasons for the alleged retention of the €2,085, which had been entrusted by the couple to the solicitor in August 2019.

The Committee considered the service provided to the couple to have been inadequate and directed Mr Hennessy to refund the €1,639 in fees and transfer the €2085 to another firm of solicitors.

Mr Justice Barniville said correspondence “of the most unedifying kind “ followed, which went on for an excessive length of time.

The judge referred to one letter from Mr Hennessy to the regulatory authority in May 2025, where Mr Hennessy indicated he was not willing to comply with the directions of the complaints committee.

He said the attitude of a legal practitioner who said he had no intention of complying with the LSRA directions is disgraceful.