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A six-part TV drama based on the 2018 Belfast rugby rape trial is reportedly in production. Ireland and Ulster rugby players Paddy Jackson and Stuart Olding were acquitted in March 2018 following a high-profile trial in which they were accused of raping a woman in Belfast in 2016.

Irish equality law should be urgently updated to prohibit discrimination on the basis of socio-economic status, the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission has said. In a policy paper published yesterday, the rights body said this "would recognise that those with a disadvantaged socio-economic st

The climate action plan devised by the UK government is unlawful, the English High Court has ruled. There is not enough evidence of policies in place that would actually reduce greenhouse gas emissions, the court said.

Cavan solicitor Ronan O'Brien has been suspended from practice by the High Court. The Law Society of Ireland sought the suspension after its disciplinary committee found Mr O'Brien, of Ronan O'Brien & Co Solicitors, had "been dishonest" in relation to his handling of client monies.

Foreign nationals — including from other EU countries — appear to be less likely to be granted bail by Irish judges in contradiction to EU guidance on the matter, according to new research. The Irish Council for Civil Liberties (ICCL) today published a research report into the use of pre

A criminal defence lawyer who repeatedly made off without paying her restaurant bills has been struck off. English solicitor Kerry Ann Stevens was convicted of fraud last year in connection with two incidents, one where she left a restaurant with an unpaid £60.91 bill and another where she lie

Ireland should follow the UK in introducing tax advantages for employee-owned companies, a business group has said. The Irish ProShare Association (IPSA) made the call after digital marketing agency Wolfgang Digital became the first Irish-owned company to become employee-owned using an employee owne

Poland's nearly decade-long rule of law crisis is over, the European Commission has declared. Around six months after an election which removed the country's right-wing Law and Order (PiS) party from government, the Commission has said it believes there is "no longer a clear risk of a serious breach

Northern Ireland is set to ban the sale and supply of single-use vapes by April 2025 alongside other parts of the UK. Officials from Northern Ireland, England, Scotland and Wales have been collaborating on a proposed UK-wide ban, which will be enacted through separate legislation being brought in ea

The BBC has instructed lawyers to write to the Investigatory Powers Tribunal (IPT) amid allegations of unlawful surveillance by the PSNI. Former BBC journalist Vincent Kearney believes that the PSNI "may have attempted to identify sources of information" related to an episode of Spotlight focusing o

Patrick Galvin, a Transition Year student at Abbey Community College in Waterford, has been named as the overall winner of this year's National Gráinne O’Neill Memorial Legal Essay Competition.

Changes to dog breeding laws and practices are necessary to deal with Ireland's "dog crisis", according to a new paper from Fieldfisher. The 39-page paper, prepared by Fieldfisher associate Hannah Unger, director Rory Ferguson and solicitor Dearbhla Walsh on a pro bono basis, reviews Irish legislati

Northern Ireland solicitor Michael Glover has been handed an 18-month sentence suspended for two years after admitting he defrauded clients to tune of £120,000. Mr Glover, formerly of Carrickfergus firm Glover & King, pleaded guilty to 29 counts of fraud by abuse of his position and one of

Italy can lawfully reclaim a 2,000-year-old Greek statue from the Getty Museum in California, the European Court of Human Rights has ruled. Victorious Youth has been at the centre of a legal row for years after Italy alleged it had been obtained illegally by the J Paul Getty Trust.

A round-up of human rights stories from around the world. US finds Israeli units committed human rights abuses before Gaza war