Professional Indemnity Insurance

Role of the Committee

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The function of the Committee is to monitor the implementation of the Professional Indemnity Insurance (PII) Regulations, to attend to any queries arising and to deal generally with matters concerning professional indemnity.

All solicitor firms in private practice must have professional indemnity insurance cover in place from a participating insurer. Since 1996, every solicitor has been required to have PII in place in order to be issued with a practising certificate. Solicitors employed within the State who provide legal services to and for their employers only, who are not solicitors, are exempt from having to obtain professional indemnity insurance cover.

The current minimum level of cover is €1.5 million, each and every claim.* All cover is on a claims-made and notified basis. Accordingly, the policy in place at the time of notification or initial ascertainment of a claim is the one under which the insured is indemnified against for that particular claim.

The Committee carries out its functions in accordance with published Rules of Procedure.

* The cover currently provided by the Assigned Risks Pool differs from that provided on the open market, as described under Frequently Asked Questions.


Chair: Bill Holohan SC

Vice-Chair: Sonia McEntee

Members

  • Niall Connors
  • Derek Gately
  • Nuala McAnally
  • Lorna McAuliffe
  • Shane Neville
  • Louise O’Reilly
  • Lorraine Rowland
  • Grace Toher

Lay Member

  • Jim O’Mahoney

Secretary: Sorcha Hayes


Current issues on the Committee's agenda include:

  1. Information on the current professional indemnity insurance (“PII”) provider of firms can be found under Find a Firm.

  2. Further changes will be made to the PII regulations following extensive consultations with insurers by the Society. The amending regulations, and other PII documentation, including the Guide to Renewal (2013/2014) and the common proposal form (2013/2014), can be found on the main PII page - www.lawsociety.ie/PII.

  3. The attention of all firms is drawn to the financial rating of insurers. Information regard the importance of considering the financial rating of your insurer can also be found on www.lawsociety.ie/PII.


Please email any queries to the Committee Secretary, Sorcha Hayes