News

The High Court has ruled that an insolvent debtor was not entitled to a new protective certificate under the Personal Insolvency Acts 2012-2015 after he had benefitted from an invalid protective certificate within the previous 12 months. It was claimed by the debtor that the impugned certificate was

Christine Smith QC has been appointed to chair the public inquiry into the work of a Southern Trust urologist. The "historic appointment" makes Ms Smith the first woman to chair a public inquiry in Northern Ireland, The Bar of Northern Ireland has said.

Proposals to update regulations on accessing environmental information to bring them into line with the Aarhus Convention have gone out to consultation. The Access to Information on the Environment (AIE) Regulations are one of over 60 pieces of legislation used to implement the Aarhus Convention in

Plans to change the way damages are calculated in Northern Ireland could leave people with life-changing injuries under-compensated and relying on the state, personal injury lawyers have warned. The Northern Ireland Assembly is now debating the Damages (Return on Investment) Bill, which follows a pu

Partners of Irish citizens will be able to enter the country and access the job market more quickly under a new preclearance system announced yesterday. The system will enable enable de facto partners of Irish citizens who are nationals of a country from outside the European Economic Area (EEA) to a

Our regular round-up of deals involving Irish law firms. Submit your deals to newsdesk@irishlegal.com. Pinsent Masons has advised Athora Ireland plc on the sale of its €1 billion variable annuity portfolio to Monument Life Insurance DAC.

Any changes to the Human Rights Act 1998 could "significantly undermine Northern Ireland's unique constitutional settlement", The Bar of Northern Ireland has said. In its submission to the UK government's review of the law, the Bar said it "would not support any amendments to the HRA as part of this

The final report of the Mother and Baby Homes Commission of Inquiry contains evidence of serious human rights abuses and its recommendations for reparations are not sufficient to right them, new analysis has said. The Irish Council for Civil Liberties (ICCL) yesterday published its analysis of the r

ByrneWallace has raised concerns about a proposed office development neighbouring its Dublin headquarters which it says "potentially jeopardises the privacy of our clients and our ability to preserve and protect client confidentiality". US property giant Kennedy Wilson has lodged plans for an office

An Italian mafia boss who swapped drug smuggling for the dole queue has been arrested. Police believe Giuseppe Refrigeri, 66, is a leader of the Banda della Marranella, which allegedly has a virtual monopoly on the drugs trade in Rome.

The Court of Appeal has increased the award of damages for a plaintiff who was hit by a car to €372,000. The plaintiff had appealed the decision of the High Court, which had awarded her with €265,000 after it was determined that she was 45 percent liable for the accident. On Friday, Mr Jus

New personal injury guidelines which will lead to significantly reduced payouts in most cases have been approved by the Judicial Council. The guidelines were drawn up by the personal injuries guidelines committee, chaired by Ms Justice Mary Irvine, and approved by the Judicial Council on Saturday at

Women make up a majority of all practising solicitors in Ireland but just over a third of those at partner level, the Law Society of Ireland has revealed. To mark International Women's Day, the Law Society is calling for "renewed collective efforts to increase access to leadership roles for women in

Legislation to lift the blanket ban on identifying children who were killed in a criminal offence has cleared the Seanad and will now to go the Dáil. The Children (Amendment) Bill 2020 will amend section 252 of the Children Act 2001, which the Court of Appeal ruled last year prevents the iden

Belfast lawyer Paul Tweed has been profiled in the US edition of Grazia as "the most powerful man in Hollywood". The fashion magazine describes Mr Tweed, partner at Gateley Tweed, as "one of the most formidable defamation lawyers in the world, with a client list that reads like a who's who of the la