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Ireland's playing "hardball"? Get serious. Thousands of solicitors with no real connection to the jurisdiction and no real intention to practise Irish law are taking practising certificates. This is not what the transfer regime was put in place for, and Ireland is right to protect the integrity of its licensing regime.

For a reference point outside the hysteria of Brexit finger-pointing, I can tell you from personal experience that Canadian law societies also frown on people keeping practising certificates without actually practising the law of the jurisdiction. BC expects you will practice Canadian law at least 8 hours per week in order to remain current, and if you don't do that your PC comes under scrutiny.

Anyway, if Ireland doesn't scratch the surface of faux "Irish" PCs, it's probably just a matter of time before the European courts do. And when competition law advice from a solicitor ends up not being covered by LPP, there will be a lot not-quite-Irish solicitors doing a lot of awkward tap-dancing.