News

The average legal costs in personal injury cases settled through litigation was over €23,000 between 2015 and 2019, according to new figures published by the Central Bank of Ireland. The figures are revealed in the second annual private motor insurance report of the National Claims Information

JMK Solicitors has urged Justice Minister Naomi Long to progress legislation to require courts to approve legal settlements of financial cases involving minors. The personal injury and road traffic accident specialist firm has been calling since 2016 for action to ensure children's rights are f

Two prominent lawyers and politicians have promised to bring forward legislation allowing for adults accused of killing children to be named. The Court of Appeal last week held that the Children Act 2001 prevents the identification of a deceased child in criminal proceedings for an offence against t

The UK has missed its first deadline to respond to infringement proceedings brought by the European Commission for breaching its obligations under the Brexit deal. A letter of formal notice was sent to the UK at the start of October for a response by the end of the month, but the UK has not responde

Tougher penalties for breaches of Covid-19 restrictions have not been brought into force in Northern Ireland due to delays in printing enforcement notices, Justice Minister Naomi Long has said. The Northern Ireland Executive agreed nearly a month ago to increase the minimum fine to £200 and al

The Standards in Public Office Commission (SIPO) has been asked to investigate whether Tánaiste Leo Varadkar breached codes of conduct by leaking a confidential document. Paul Murphy, socialist TD for Dublin South-West, wrote to SIPO yesterday in the wake of a political scandal concerning con

Three kangaroos have been seized by police during a raid on an illegal cannabis farm in Canada. As part of a major operation across southern Ontario, police recovered nearly €100 million in cannabis, guns, crossbows and "several exotic animals".

The Court of Appeal has reiterated that allegations of professional negligence must be grounded in professional expert evidence. Background

International law firm DAC Beachcroft has announced the appointment of Ronan McLoughlin as a real estate parter in Dublin. The appointment, the first at a partner level this year, brings the firm's partner count in Dublin to 11, following three partner appointments in its 10th anniversary year in 20

Barrister David Scoffield QC and Judge David McFarland have been appointed as judges of the High Court. The pair were sworn in before Sir Declan Morgan, the Lord Chief Justice of Northern Ireland, this morning.

The Bar Council of Ireland has raised concerns with the Courts Service about devils missing out on courtroom experience due to Covid-19 restrictions, according to reports. Despite early assurances, devils are being routinely denied entry to courtrooms due to strict restrictions on the number of peop

Ireland's data protection watchdog is set to bear a "very heavy financial burden" after a judge ruled that it should pay costs in the landmark case brought by privacy campaigner Max Schrems which led to the striking down of the US-EU Privacy Shield agreement. In her ruling on costs on Friday, Ms Jus

The LLB will not be required to qualify as a lawyer from next September after regulators approved a new apprenticeship scheme, The Times reports. The changes, under which people will be able to join law firms as apprentices after leaving school, marks the biggest reform to legal education in a gener

Parents whose children are subject of access orders should "try to agree what access can happen safely", the president of the District Court has said. In a statement issued on Saturday, Judge Colin Daly acknowledged that some parents "may be concerned that they cannot fulfil the terms of these order

Celebrity actor Johnny Depp has lost a high-profile libel case against the publisher of The Sun after the newspaper described him as a "wife beater". The Queen's Bench Division of the High Court handed down judgment this morning in what has been dubbed the "libel trial of the century" by some commen