News

An appeal court has ruled that the Fourth Amendment protects the energy consumption data collected by smart meters. The Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit ruled that individuals have a reasonable expectation that this data should remain private, and that the government's access of it cons

Scotland's Former First Minister Alex Salmond, who began crowdfunding his legal fees last night for his judicial review case at the Court of Session, exceeded his target in a matter of hours. Mr Salmond sought £50,000 to cover the fees involved in seeking judicial review of the Permanent Secre

A Crown Court judge who accessed files in a case in which her daughter was a witness has been censured for "serious misconduct", The Brief reports. Judge Karen Holt accessed a record in the case of Cecil McCready, a music teacher facing trial on child sexual abuse charges. He was jailed in Marc

Thieves who stole 42 powerful rifles from a police armoury covered their tracks for around a year by replacing them with wooden and plastic replicas. The police officer in charge of the armoury in Capiatá, Paraguay has now himself been replaced, officials confirmed.

A man who fractured his wrist when he tried to break his fall caused by an uncovered drain at Cork City Fire Station in July 2013 has been awarded €62,482.50 in the High Court. Finding that Cork City Council was in breach of s.12 of the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005 by failing to

The Personal Injuries Commission (PIC) risks starting a "race to the bottom" on damages awards, solicitor Jody Cantillon has warned. Mr Cantillon, partner in the litigation department at Cantillons Solicitors in Cork, told Irish Legal News that the Commission chaired by retired judge Mr Justice Nich

Bloggers and citizen journalists could lose immunity from defamation actions over reports of court proceedings under proposals set out by the Law Reform Commission. The Issues Paper on Privilege for Reports of Court Proceedings under the Defamation Act 2009 invites views on four issues relating to t

A failed challenge to the outcome of the abortion referendum which was likened by Mr Justice George Birmingham, president of the Court of Appeal, to "a frustration of the democratic process", may be appealed to the Supreme Court. Earlier this week, Mr Justice Birmingham upheld the High Court's refus

A Russian national, a publisher and a religious association suffered a violation of their ECHR right to freedom of expression, the European Court of Human Rights has unanimously held. The case concerned anti-extremism legislation in Russia and a ban on publishing and distributing Islamic books.

Kellie O'Flynn, solicitor in the litigation and dispute resolution team at William Fry, writes on the implications of the GDPR for litigation in Ireland. With the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) now in effect, one of the emerging considerations is whether its provisions – specific

Emily Paisley, a solicitor specialising in debt recovery for businesses at Worthingtons Solicitors in Belfast, writes on debt recovery in Northern Ireland. The Financial Conduct Authority’s (FCA) recent survey (Financial Lives 2017) found that personal debt levels in Northern Ireland are the h

Calls have been made to refer Burmese military figures involved in human rights abuses to the International Criminal Court (ICC). Findings of the UN independent fact-finding mission into human rights abuses in Burma were welcomed by the Burma Human Rights Network, which called on the UK an

Lawyers in the private client team at Matheson have joined their colleagues in launching a podcast providing updates on issues impacting private clients. The firm already has an employment law podcast series which has been running since late 2014 and a pensions and benefit law podcast series.

Smokers in Scottish prisons are to be offered vaping kits for free ahead of a ban on tobacco in Scottish jails this autumn. The proposal is part of a plan to help inmates give up smoking and will cost about £200,000.

Belfast firm Francis Hanna & Co Solicitors has published a two-and-a-half-minute video sharing the story of their client Siobhan McLaughlin, whose UK Supreme Court challenge to the rules governing the payment of a Widowed Parent’s Allowance will conclude tomorrow.