News

Greater harmonisation of domestic abuse laws north and south of the border would help to prevent abusers evading accountability, a Northern Ireland solicitor has said. Claire Edgar, partner in Belfast firm Francis Hanna & Co Solicitors, recently participated in a panel discussion hosted by the N

The Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (CCPC) is to carry out a full Phase 2 investigation into the proposed purchase of OCL Laundry Services by Elis. Elis SA and OCL Laundry Services Limited are both active in the outsourced supply of flat linen rental and maintenance services in the St

A citizens' assembly should be held on AI policy and ethics, an Oireachtas committee has recommended. The recommendation is one of 85 included in the first interim report of the joint committee on artificial intelligence, which was published yesterday.

Human rights campaigners have expressed disappointment after the UK Supreme Court ruled that the disclosure of evidence in a Troubles-related inquest could be blocked on national security grounds. Judges today handed down their unanimous judgment in a case concerning a decision by a coroner to discl

Ireland's agri-food regulator is to gain new powers to assist its work on price and market analysis. An Rialálaí Agraibhia has a statutory mandate to carry out price and market analysis to improve transparency and equity throughout the agri-food supply chain.

The UK government has accepted the recommendations of an independent review of the post-Brexit Windsor Framework. Lord Murphy of Torfaen was commissioned by the government in January to lead an independent review of the deal, which was published in September.

The Irish government has set out plans to legislate to assist the UK public inquiry into the Omagh bombing. The inquiry, which began in July 2024, is examining the preventability of the 1998 bombing, which was orchestrated by the Real IRA and led to the deaths of 29 people and two unborn children as

Ms Justice Mary Ellen Ring is to retire from the High Court bench this week. The US-born judge called to the bar in 1985 and took silk in 2002, before being appointed as a Circuit Court judge in 2012 and then to the High Court in 2015.

RDJ LLP managing partner Jamie Olden has been appointed as a lay member to the governing body of the Royal College of Physicians of Ireland (RCPI). The RCPI Council sets the College’s mission, vision, and strategic direction, approves general policies, and ensures accountability by monitoring

Byrne Wallace Shields LLP has recruited Kevin Harnett as partner in the firm's construction law practice. Mr Harnett has 20 years’ experience advising on all aspects of construction law, encompassing both transactional and contentious matters.

A lawyer is suing US tax authorities for refusing to recognise her dog as a dependent like a child. Amanda Reynolds, who specialises in civil litigation insurance defence, has filed a lawsuit in the Eastern District of New York — naming her eight-year-old golden retriever, Finnegan Mary Reynol

An Garda Síochána is at risk of missing performance targets due to resource issues, training needs and delays in required legislation, according to a new report. The Policing and Community Safety Authority (PCSA) has published its assessment of the force's policing performance througho

A pair of aspiring lawyers have been awarded the Gateley Legal Northern Ireland prize by Queen’s University Belfast’s School of Law. Students Robin Clarke and Tara McFeely split this year’s award, which is given to the student from the Masters in Law course who scored the highest o

A legally comprehensive study of Lord MacDermott, former law lord and Lord Chief Justice of Northern Ireland, has been published for the first time. Lord MacDermott was first appointed to the bench in 1944 and retired from Northern Ireland's top judicial post in 1971, though continued to sit in vari

Taylor Wessing's Dublin office is to form part of a new transatlantic law firm called Winston Taylor under a merger deal announced yesterday. The UK-led business of Taylor Wessing, which includes the Irish office opened in 2021, is set to merge with US firm Winston & Strawn in May 2026.