It will take place in the King’s Inn’s on 11 June. Registration from 09:30 with the conference starting at 10am and running to 4:30 followed by a light reception for conference attendees and participants. A light lunch will be served. Registration link and programme here

This event continues on from the conferences I would have organised when Environmental Law Officer of the IEN, before the hosting of my project moved and was rebranded as Environmental Law Ireland.

We are honoured to advise that:

• Former Supreme Court Justice, and chairperson of An Coimisiún Toghcháin - the Hon Ms Justice Marier Baker, has agreed to chair the event.
• Prof Áine Ryall, UCC School of Law, and Chair of the UNECE Aarhus Convention Compliance Committee, Co-director of the Centre for Law and the Environment at UCC is delivering the keynote address.

The first presentations and panel discussion in the morning is concerned with moves on access to justice and public accountability here in Ireland, with the evolving landscape for environmental Judicial Review here in Ireland.

To provide some context we will have:

• Mr James Devlin SC & Ms Margaret Heavy BL Presenting an overview of aspects of the current rules in environmental J R
• Mr Tom Flynn SC - Presenting an overview of developments in environmental JR

The panellists for this first discussion on the evolving landscape for JR are:

• Ms Oonagh Buckley, Secretary General, Department of Climate, Energy and Environment
• Mr Tom Flynn SC - Presenting an overview of developments in environmental JR
• Mr David Wolfe KC
• Mr Joe Noonan, Partner in Noonan Linehan Carroll Coffey LLP Solicitors, Cork
• Ms Suzanne Murray SC
• Ms Eilis Barry Chief Executive FLAC Ireland

In the afternoon following on from some reflections from the Conference Chair - 

• Dr Andrew Jackson, UCD Sutherland School of Law will be joining us to present and share insights on key developments, including legal development in the climate change area.

We will then move into the second panel discussion continuing the rule of law focus and with a more internationally focused dimension which currently comprises:

• Blinne Ní Ghrálaigh KC - a leading international law and Human Rights law expert whose advocacy has had a transformational impact on people’s wider understanding of our international law obligations, and who many have come to know recently particularly from her role in representing South Africa before the International Court of Justice in the Case Concerning the Application of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide (South Africa v. Israel).;
• Claudio Francavilla of Human Rights Watch a leading advocate on Human Rights directed towards the EU’s human rights foreign policy, focusing mainly on Asia, the Middle East and North Africa, and on EU trade policy;
• Dr Andrew Jackson, UCD Sutherland School of Law a highly respected academic particular in the field of environmental law and climate change, and a great legal champion in respect of climate change and climate justice; and
• Mr Joe Noonan, Partner in Noonan Linehan Carroll Coffey LLP Solicitors, Cork, a highly respected lawyer in the field of planning and environmental law, and has been involved in key Constitutional challenges, and with significant interest in Human Rights.
• Lynn Boylan, Member of the European Parliament, will provide some insight into the political climate and developments, not just in the context of foreign policy and Human Rights which she is a passionate advocate on, but also on the wider drive for deregulation, the implications for EU values, the trade agenda, and international law obligations, including in the context of trade.

We hope you will be able to join us, and also assist in sharing details of the conference within your networks and contacts appropriately.

Registration link and programme here