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Prison expansion "will not solve" the overcrowding crisis, the Irish Penal Reform Trust (IPRT) has stressed after figures showed the Irish prison population reaching a record high. The Irish Prison Service yesterday revealed that more than 200 prisoners were sleeping on mattresses on cell floors at

Northern Ireland schools have once again been invited to organise virtual Q&A sessions with a UK Supreme Court justice. Ask a Justice returns for the 2025/26 academic year, giving schools across the UK the opportunity to virtually swap their classrooms for courtrooms.

Diamond Heron Solicitors has welcomed Lorraine Keown as a solicitor in the Belfast-based firm's litigation team. Ms Keown, who has 15 years' experience as a solicitor, will work on both plaintiff and defence cases.

A new therapy dog has joined a service helping children and young people as they prepare to attend courts across Northern Ireland. Sebastian, a two-year-old St Bernard x Bernese Mountain Dog and certified therapy dog, supports children and young people as part of the NSPCC Young Witness Service.

The Law Society of Ireland has urged the government to invest in the State's "underfunded and overstretched" justice system in next month's budget. The solicitors' body is calling for greater investment in courts infrastructure, legal aid and family law services to ensure fair and equal access to ju

Hundreds of US military lawyers are set to be made into immigration judges as the Trump administration seeks to fast-track mass deportations. The Department of Defense (DOD) — which is set to be rebranded as the Department of War — is seeking to identify up to 600 attorneys to serve as t

Our weekly round-up of human rights stories from around the world. Jimmy Lai risks dying in jail, legal team warns UN | The Times (paywall)

Anti-pickpocket activists in Venice have found themselves reported to the police for stalking and unauthorised filming of alleged pickpockets. A crime wave in the tourist hotspot has prompted calls for a crackdown by police — as well as the appearance of activist groups who follow and film sus

Widespread misreporting on the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) is fuelling calls for the UK to withdraw from the treaty, researchers have found. A new report from the Bonavero Institute of Human Rights, based in Oxford University’s Faculty of Law, examined how the ECHR is represente

Three leading Palestinian human rights groups have been sanctioned by the Trump administration for having engaged with the International Criminal Court (ICC) as it investigates Israeli war crimes. Al-Haq, which is based in the West Bank, has been targeted alongside the Gaza-based Al Mezan Center for

Governments should not lose sight of their human rights obligations when negotiating deals to transfer asylum, return and border control functions to other countries, the Council of Europe's human rights commissioner has warned. Michael O'Flaherty made the remarks today as he published a new report,

More than 200 prisoners were sleeping on mattresses at the end of 2024 as the State saw its prison population top 5,000, the Irish Prison Service has said. The service's 2024 annual report showcases progress progress in rehabilitation, infrastructure, and staff development, as well as challenges pos

Flynn O'Driscoll LLP has welcomed five new team members, including Terry O'Malley as a partner in its real estate practice and John Fitzgerald as a partner and head of restructuring and insolvency. The appointments come nine months after the firm's merger with Vincent & Beatty LLP, its fifth str

Scottish judge Lady Carmichael is to succeed Lord Justice Singh as president of the UK's Investigatory Powers Tribunal (IPT). Lady Carmichael has been a member of the tribunal since 2019. She was appointed as a judge of the Supreme Courts in Scotland in May 2016 and was elevated to the Inner House i

William Fry LLP has acted for Timber Frame Ireland in its successful defence before the Irish High Court of an application to enforce an adjudicator's award. The significant judgment in MCA Connaughton v Timber Frame Products Ireland [2025] IEHC 469 was secured by a cross-departmental team led by pr