News

Ireland is the only jurisdiction in the European Union where judges are not subject to a disciplinary body or regime short of being impeached, a new EU report has found. The 2019 EU Justice Scoreboard notes that the only available process is impeachment by a majority in both Houses of the Oireachtas

More than £9 million has been paid in compensation to 16 people who were wrongfully convicted of crimes in the Northern Ireland courts over a decade. Figures obtained by BBC News NI show that 84 people were wrongfully convicted between 2007 and 2017 of crimes including murder and rape.

Prominent barrister Michael Lavery QC, who represented the families of many Bloody Sunday victims at the Saville Inquiry, has passed away at the age of 84. Mr Lavery, who called to the Bar in 1956 and took silk in 1971, retired in 2017 after a six-decade career.

Julie Sadlier, solicitor at Kieran Mulcahy Solicitors in Limerick, writes on a recent ruling with potential significance for mortgage cases. Earlier this month, a decision from a High Court case was posted on the website of the Courts Service of Ireland. It didn’t warrant any huge public or me

At least two women are expected to bring a legal challenge against new "digital consent forms" being used by police in England and Wales to access the personal data of rape complainants. The measures were introduced by police and prosecutors in response to disclosure failings which led to a number o

Penal reform campaigners have voiced concern over a decline in the number of prisoners being admitted to a successful rehabilitation programme. The number of prisoners taking part in the Community Return Scheme has stayed at around 50 all year, despite being over 100 since 2015, The Irish Times repo

A former Clonakilty solicitor has appeared in court on charges of theft connected to a sum of more than €60,000. Alex Gibbons has pleaded not guilty to the offence, which relates to alleged theft on two dates in January and February 2008, the Irish Examiner reports.

Galway solicitor Bruce St John Blake, a past president of the Law Society of Ireland, has passed away. The retired lawyer was a founder in the 1960s of Bruce St John Blake & Co. Solicitors, which continues to practice in Galway today.

A former pub landlord who converted his premises into a home for his family must now return the property to a drinking establishment, the local authority has said. Robert Easton-Park ran the Tally Ho pub for 25 years but gave up the licence two years ago due to increased costs and a significant

A former lecturer at Trinity College Dublin who was made redundant at the beginning of the 2018/2019 academic year has been awarded €6,144 after it was found that he was unfairly dismissed. Finding that the lecturer had made an almost irresistible connection between the public outcry he created

Justice Minister Charlie Flanagan told a law conference this morning that he plans to bring legislative proposals to the Cabinet this year to codify powers of arrest, search and detention. The legislation will also include statutory codes of practice to ensure full clarity and transparency in the ex

A number of solicitor offices were raided by gardaí this week as part of an investigation into potentially fraudulent insurance claims. The Garda National Economic Crime Bureau (GNECB) believes that a number of targets in the operation have submitted multiple claims, in many cases while using

The number and value of mortgages being drawn down by Irish borrowers in the first quarter of the year has shown "good growth". New figures from the Banking & Payments Federation Ireland (BPFI) shows a nine per cent increase in volume and an 11 per cent increase in value compared to the same per

Derek Walsh, secretary of the Limerick Solicitors Bar Association (LSBA), presented a sponsorship cheque of €1,000 to the Bedford Row Family Project.

Solicitor Hannah Holmes of Belfast firm Mills Selig is running in the London Marathon to raise money for the Public Initiative for the Prevention of Suicide and Self Harm (PIPS). Over 35,000 people are expected to take part in the marathon in central London this weekend.