Case Reports

The former CEO of the Ulster Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (USPCA) has been sentenced to nine months imprisonment, suspended for two years, after he pleaded guilty to fraud earlier this year. The former CEO had taken approximately £40,000 from the charity over a seven-year p

A 21-year-old man who had 33 previous convictions when he was sentenced to three years imprisonment for two burglaries has had his sentence increased after the Director of Public Prosecutions argued that the sentences should be reviewed on grounds of undue leniency. Finding that the overall sentence

Rugby players Paddy Jackson and Stuart Olding, who were acquitted on counts of rape earlier this year, have had their applications for costs of their defence dismissed in Belfast Crown Court. Emphasising that the myriad of conclusions were for the jury to reach rather than the prosecution, Her Honou

A receiver has had his motion claiming possession of a woman’s holiday house in Killarney refused in the High Court. Finding that the receiver had not sufficiently made out the case that he was entitled to possession of the property, Mr Justice Senan Allen pointed to a number of gaps “in

A mother who sought to appeal the decision of the High Court that an interim care order made in respect of her baby without hearing all of the evidence was not a fundamental denial of justice has had her case dismissed in the Court of Appeal. Agreeing with the High Court that there had been no breac

Section 17 of the Scottish Parliament's ‘Brexit Bill’ – which requires Scottish Ministers’ consent to certain subordinate legislation – is ultra vires of the Scotland Act, which it would modify, though the bill is not entirely outwith the devolved legislature's competen

Brothers who alleged "conspiracy, fraud and Masonic influence" in challenging the terms of a settlement agreement and their liability to pay a former partner over €650,000 on foot of the agreement perfected in the High Court in 2008 have been found liable to their former partner for the sum owe

A former school bus driver and youth club leader who was convicted of indecent assault and gross indecency with a child has lost an appeal against his conviction in the Court of Appeal. The victim, who was 11 when the abuse began, died before the case came to trial – however the prosecution re

A pharmacy group which sought to enter into a CPC Agreement with the Health Service Executive in respect of a new pharmacy in Dublin has had its application for judicial review refused in the High Court. Due to inspections carried out at two other pharmacies owned by the group which alleged, inter a

Stating that "the chilling effect on privacy and the rights of free expression and association by actual, feared and mandatory surveillance cannot be underestimated", Mr Justice Tony O’Connor has found that sections of the Communications (Retention of Data) Act 2011 are inconsistent with EU la

Two Athenry residents who object to the planning permission granted by An Bord Pleanála for development of an Apple data centre and associated grid connection have been permitted to argue both for the position adopted in the High Court that there is an obligation to carry out a full EIA on th

A woman who brought a personal injury claim against Dunnes Stores, where she worked as a sales assistant when she fell from the second step of a ladder in 2014, has had her claim dismissed in the High Court. Finding that the woman's testimony was "fundamentally undermined" by CCTV footage shown in C

A convicted murderer who argued that the judge in his trial should have given an accomplice warning to the jury in relation to evidence from one of the key prosecution witnesses has lost his appeal to the Supreme Court. Dismissing the appeal, Mr Justice Peter Charleton said that the decision no

A man who was convicted on several counts of serious offences including rape is entitled to receive €10,000 compensation after the statutory provision which allowed his state pension to be withheld was declared unconstitutional. The Supreme Court said that he was not automatically entitled to d

An application by two retired police officers challenging the Police Ombudsman’s report into the Loughinisland massacre has been dismissed in the High Court. Emphasising the independence of the office of the Police Ombudsman for Northern Ireland and its obligation to investigate, Mrs Justice S