Coronavirus

The Judicial Council has been asked to consider whether or not to publish the completed report by former Chief Justice Susan Denham on Mr Justice Séamus Woulfe's attendance at a controversial dinner which broke Covid-19 rules. The Supreme Court judge and former Attorney General apologised in

Lisa Bryson, partner and head of employment at Eversheds Sutherland in Belfast, highlights the importance of the successor to the Covid-19 furlough scheme. Six months on from the Chancellor’s first major intervention through the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS), Covid-19 is on the resur

Lawyers for a self-employed chef are challenging the UK government's criteria for access to the Covid-19 job retention scheme. Brian Donaldson, the former chef to the Northern Ireland football squad at the Euros in 2016, switched from employee status to become self-employed last year.

Immigration and international protection permissions have been extended for a fifth and possibly final time. Justice Minister Helen McEntee today announced the temporary extension for permissions that are due to expire between 20 September 2020 and 20 January 2021.

A judge who had close contact with somebody with Covid-19 has directed a jury in an ongoing criminal trial from his home. Judge James McCourt, appearing yesterday morning via video link to the Criminal Courts of Justice in Dublin, told the jury that he was socially isolating at home after close cont

The criminal justice system in the UK has handled the COVID-19 crisis worse than countries like South Korea and Spain where more resources are made available, a sitting judge has said. Judge Keith Raynor, who sits in Woolwich Crown Court, sharply criticised the UK government's handling of the pandem

Mr Justice Séamus Woulfe has met former Chief Justice Susan Denham as part of her investigation into his attendance at a controversial dinner which broke COVID-19 rules. Mr Justice Woulfe was accompanied by Michael Collins SC at the meeting, which was also attended by Shane Murphy SC, accordi

The Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission has told Oireachtas members that emergency legislation related to COVID-19 must be used only exceptionally and be subject to strict human rights standards and oversight. Chief commissioner Sinéad Gibney and commission member Sunniva McDonagh

Court business has been temporarily relocated after an individual who was in Craigavon Courthouse yesterday tested positive for COVID-19. The Northern Ireland Courts and Tribunals Service (NICTS) and the Office of the Lord Chief Justice said all business in Courthouse Three had been relocated to Dun

The Department of Justice has revealed that the Northern Ireland Prison Service has had its first positive COVID-19 test. A man remanded into custody to Maghaberry Prison on Thursday 3 September tested positive for the virus.

Grammar school transfer tests are to be delayed until next January following successful legal challenges brought to the High Court in Belfast. The transfer tests set to take place in November and December 2020 after a two to three week delay will now take place in January 2021, lawyers for the Depar

Solicitors will have to collect contact details for contact tracing purposes from all people attending court on behalf of the party they represent under a new practice direction. Practice directions CC 26 and HC 94, which came into effect yesterday, place new obligations on solicitors "in the intere

Plans to introduce new Garda powers to close bars and restaurants which breach COVID-19 health regulations have been unveiled by ministers. The Criminal Justice (Enforcement Powers) (Covid-19) Bill 2020 will provide for three types of closure orders that may be issued to a bar or restaurant in circu

The Bar Council of Ireland has pushed back at claims from the head of the Courts Service that some practitioners have "made a fortune" during the COVID-19 crisis. In an interview published by The Irish Times last Thursday, Angela Denning, CEO of the Courts Service, suggested that while some lawyers

An Garda Síochána's routine use of spit hoods during the COVID-19 pandemic is incompatible with human rights law on torture or other forms of cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment or punishment, civil liberties campaigners have said. The Irish Council for Civil Liberties (ICCL) called