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A police officer has been rescued by firefighters after getting his hands stuck in his own handcuffs. The core training sergeant for Northamptonshire's police force, Scott Renwick, admitted in a tweet that he got stuck in the broken handcuffs and had to be rescued by the local fire service.

Jury trials have resumed in Northern Ireland for the first time since the start of the COVID-19 crisis in March. Following physical alternations to allow jury trials to take place in line with public health guidelines, a jury trial has begun in Laganside Court in Belfast, and five more Crown Court v

The UK Supreme Court has ruled that a restrictive covenant given by the developer of a Derry shopping centre in a lease that it granted to Dunnes Stores over part of the centre does not engage the doctrine of restraint of trade. Delivering the lead judgment, Lord Wilson overturned the findings of th

Garda enforcement powers should not be reintroduced as part of the partial reinstatement of COVID-19 restrictions in Ireland, the Irish Council for Civil Liberties (ICCL) has said. The civil liberties group reiterated the position it has held since the beginning of the COVID-19 crisis that public he

The Bar Council of Northern Ireland has recommended following the Scottish framework on personal injury discount rate. The Department of Justice recently launched a consultation on how the discount rate or “real rate of return”, used by the courts to determine the size of personal injury

Ireland's human rights watchdog has written to Justice Minister Helen McEntee to set out ongoing concerns for the safety and well-being of people in the Direct Provision system during the COVID-19 pandemic. Sinéad Gibney, chief commissioner of the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission, w

Our regular round-up of deals involving Irish law firms. Submit your deals to newsdesk@irishlegal.com. Eugene F Collins has advised the management team at Irish PR company Drury Porter Novelli on its management buyout.

Margaret Cordial, litigation solicitor at Smithwick Solicitors, examines recent significant reforms to the Irish legal system. The government has signed commencement orders for the Civil Law and Criminal Law (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2020, which introduces significant reforms to respond to the

A human rights watchdog has published new research into how sexual history and bad character evidence is used in sexual offences trials in Scotland. The findings of the Equality and Human Rights Commission have prompted calls for an urgent review of how courts and prosecutors respond when complainan

The Irish Journal of European Law (IJEL) is seeking expressions of interest for membership for its incoming Editorial Board. The journal is dedicated to the analysis of European law and is published under the auspices of the Irish Society for European Law (ISEL).

The Solicitors Regulation Authority has issued a warning to lawyers after a report highlighted the need for firms to be vigilant when advising on investment schemes following incidents in which poor practice left people at risk of falling victim to dubious schemes. The SRA's report looked at pa

Benjamin Bestgen discusses the rights of animals in his latest jurisprudential primer. See last week's here. Britain is said to be a nation of pet lovers, with an estimated 50 per cent of British adults having a pet – dogs, cats and rabbits being the most popular. But Britain is also a nation

Dog owners in Germany will be legally required to take their pets outdoors for exercise for half an hour at least twice a day. The new draft law proposes to change animal welfare law to ensure pets are not confined to kennels all day and are given enough outdoor exercise, The Times reports.

The Supreme Court has dismissed an appeal taken by James Kenny in a long saga of litigation related to the construction of student accommodation. Background

EU law expert Professor Tobias Lock of Maynooth University Department of Law has been awarded a Jean Monnet Chair in EU law and fundamental rights. Jean Monnet Chairs, awarded through the EU's Erasmus+ programme, are teaching posts with a specialisation in EU studies for university professors.