Climate, energy and environment minister Darragh O’Brien said he expected to hear “strong and divergent views” on the scale of fees, which has been proposed under the Planning and Development Act 2024.

The government insists that its objective is to bring greater predictability and proportionality to the State’s legal costs in environmental judicial reviews and not to limit access to justice or constrain the right of individuals or communities to challenge decisions.

Separate scales of legal fees are proposed for standard, complex and very complex cases, with the presiding judge to determine the level of complexity of the court case.

Mr O’Brien said: “We fully expect the public consultation to attract strong and divergent views, and we welcome input from stakeholders, business and the public alike.

“This is an important discussion, and it is right that it happens in a transparent and inclusive way.”

The consultation opened today and will run until 5.30pm on Thursday 15 January 2026.