Studying for the Bar is an onerous undertaking at the best of times. It involves thousands of euros in course fees and hours of study. Even then, a junior barrister faces years of financial insecurity before they can make real money.
These obstacles have not deterred sisters Emma Walls (47), Carol Walls (48) and Aoife McCann (49) from Dublin from being called to the Bar together.
They did a BL (Bachelor of Law) diploma for two years and took a BL full-time to qualify for the Bar. They were called to the Bar at a ceremony on Wednesday in the Supreme Court by Chief Justice Donal O’Donnell.
The idea to study for the Bar came from Emma. “I didn’t have to do much persuading for my two sisters. They were very interested as well. The three of us thought it would be something good for us to do,” she said.
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Both Emma and Aoife work for the food company Glenisk. Carol works in pensions for Irish Life.
Between them they have 10 children – Carol and Aoife have four each and Emma two, ranging in age from 12 to 33.
“We have demanding families,” said Emma. “Finding the time was the most difficult thing. The course itself was interesting and engaging. As hard as it was, it was a great three years.”
None of the sisters intend to practise as barristers, as none are in the position to take the gamble that comes with it. “We all have mortgages and obligations and responsibility. There is not a lot of money in being a junior barrister,” she explained.
So why take the qualification? “You think you know the law and you make certain assumptions that turn out not to be true. It would be a useful thing to have.
“Both of our parents have had dementia. My father died with dementia, my mother suffers from it now. We listened to a neurologist talking about things we could do. Hopefully dementia is a long way off, but that was part of the motivation as well.”
