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Moira Smyth QC is the new chair of the Bar of Northern Ireland, beginning a two-year term ahead of the start of the new legal year next week. Ms Smyth, who succeeds Bernard Brady QC, was called to the Bar in 1996 and took silk in 2014. Most of her work as a barrister is in the field of family law.

Members of Philip Lee's pro bono committee, Sallie Shipsey and Sorcha Brady, took part in an advice clinic organised by the Ukraine Ireland Legal Alliance (UILA) and the Red Cross, providing information on services in Ireland to displaced Ukrainians. UILA is an organisation of individuals working in

A Melbourne resident received a windfall of $10.5 million (£6.2m) when she was accidentally transferred the sum by cryptocurrency trading platform Crypto.com. The error happened as a routine $100 (£59) refund was being processed to her account by the crypto platform, but the company only

Kennedys has confirmed it is raising NQ pay by 60 per cent – from £50,000 to £80,000. The increase, which will take place from tomorrow, brings the firm into line with its competitors and comes amid an ongoing salary war.

Justice Minister Helen McEntee has today announced that the Government has approved the Review of Policy Options for Prison and Penal Reform 2022-2024 together with an associated action plan. Publishing the review, Ms McEntee said: “It is essential that the punishment that people receive match

A new episode of The Bar of Northern Ireland’s Legal History Podcast Series is now available. Turlough Montague QC is joined by Sir Donnell Deeny and renowned local artist Colin Davidson as they provide an insight into how the design of the Bar Library evolved touching on the commissioning of

Belfast law firm Millar McCall Wylie (MMW) has brought four new trainee solicitors on board. Cathy Kerr will join MMW’s banking and finance team from Queens University Belfast; Patrick Boyle joins the firm’s litigation department from Ulster University; the corporate law team welcomes Mo

On 27 July the Law Society hosted a networking and information event for displaced Ukrainian lawyers covering issues including those raised by the Russian invasion, legislative responses, and how Ukrainian lawyers can secure admission to the Irish roll.

Retired Belfast solicitor Peter Ford has passed away, the Law Society of Northern Ireland has said. Mr Ford was admitted to the roll of solicitors in 1970.

More than a dozen people have been appointed to the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) as adjudication officers. Following two open competitions in 2021, a total of 14 individuals were appointed as adjudicators in July 2022, a spokesperson for the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment tol

Irish lawyers are acting on behalf of European judges who are suing the Council of the European Union over a decision to release funds to Poland despite continued concerns over the rule of law. The lawsuit has been filed in the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) by the Association of Euro

Our regular round-up of deals involving Irish law firms. Submit your deals to newsdesk@irishlegal.com. Aedifica NV, a Euronext Brussels-listed REIT, has acquired Bartra Healthcare's Irish assets for €161 million, taking its Irish portfolio to over €500 million.

Scottish academics have called for judges to stop directing juries to take body language into account when assessing the credibility of witnesses. Sixty-four mock juries were set up for research, featuring a total of 863 participants. Half of them were shown a recorded rape trial while the remainder

Police officers in England have reportedly been told to reveal to their bosses the identities of news reporters. The measure, already used by some police forces, follows guidance from the College of Policing and was only discovered by accident, The Guardian reports.

The personal injuries guidelines should be urgently reviewed in light of inflation and the increasing cost of living, a solicitor has said. While inflation in Ireland was at -0.33 per cent when the guidelines were adopted in 2020, it has now risen to 9.1 per cent, the highest level in 38 years, driv