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The Spanish parliament has approved legislation which will see Spain join a growing number of European countries in moving to a self-declaration model of gender recognition. The new law, which yesterday cleared the upper house of the Spanish parliament by 191–60 with 91 abstentions, will scrap

The Irish and UK governments have been urged by Europe's human rights commissioner to make "swift progress" on plans to ban so-called conversion therapy for LGBT+ people. Dunja Mijatović, the Council of Europe commissioner for human rights, said the "insidious nature" of conversion therapies can ha

A review by England's Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) shows that some law firms need to do more to guard against the risk of strategic lawsuits against public participation (SLAPPs) and other types of abusive litigation. Since the invasion of Ukraine, there has been significant public concern

A man dubbed "the Easter bunny" has admitted stealing almost 200,000 Creme Eggs. Joby Pool, 32, is facing jail after pleading guilty to criminal damage and two counts of theft at Shrewsbury Magistrates' Court on Tuesday.

International law firm Allen & Overy (A&O) has announced the roll-out of a new AI tool that will assist staff with the likes of contract analysis, due diligence, litigation and regulatory compliance. The firm, with offices in Dublin and Belfast, said it is integrating Harvey, an AI platform

Mercy Law Resource Centre (MLRC) has called for changes to law and practice to tackle barriers that people with mental health difficulties face in accessing social housing and emergency accommodation. Mary Butler, the minister of state for mental health and older people, formally launched the law ce

An event co-hosted by Philip Lee has explored how Ireland and France can work together to achieve sustainability targets through "smart cities". Last week's working session at the RDS was co-hosted by the law firm with the French Embassy in Ireland and Business France Ireland.

Ireland must take further action to prevent corruption among senior state officials — including government ministers, law officers and judges — and in An Garda Síochána, a major European anti-corruption body has said. The Council of Europe's Group of States against Corrupti

Just under 900 people have to date obtained a gender recognition certificate (GRC) under Ireland's 2015 gender recognition law, new figures reveal. The Gender Recognition Act 2015 made it possible for transgender people in Ireland to obtain legal recognition of their gender identity for the first ti

Property professionals want the new An Coimisiún Pleanála to be required to determine planning appeals within 16 weeks, according to a new survey by Mason Hayes & Curran LLP. The business law firm polled more than 250 agents, developers and property managers at its recent real esta

Northern Ireland personal injury firm JMK Solicitors has named PIPS Suicide Prevention Ireland as its chosen charity partner for 2023. The law firm, in conjunction with accident management company CRASH Services, will fundraise for the charity over the course of the year.

Northern Ireland has seen the UK's greatest increase in women applying to study law over the last three years, according to new figures. Over the last three years, female applications to all law courses in the UK have risen by 13 per cent. Last year, female applications reached triple figures for th

The remaining members of the Inland Fisheries Ireland (IFI) board have been removed on a no-fault basis after the State agency struggled to function in the wake of a number of resignations.

Ireland should enshrine economic, social and cultural (ESC) rights in its Constitution, the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission has said in a new report. In a policy statement published yesterday, the rights body recommends that a joint Oireachtas committee on a constitutional amendment for E

A chocolate factory has been fined after workers fell into a vat of chocolate and became trapped in it. The Mars Wrigley factory in Pennsylvania was fined $14,500 by the US Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) over the "serious" incident, CBS reports.