Coronavirus

The High Court has ruled that a gin distiller who produced hand sanitiser during the beginning of the Covid pandemic had a legitimate expectation that the product would be free from excise duty. The court held that there was an implied representation by the Revenue Commissioners that no excise duty

The Irish Prison Service has announced plans to lift a number of Covid-related restrictions from Monday. Infection control screens will be removed from physical visiting booths and physical contact between prisoners and visitors will be permitted in line with Prison Rules.

Partners at law firms in England and Wales saw their pay increase by nearly 40 per cent in the first full year of the pandemic, according to new figures. A survey conducted for the Law Society found that median net profits per equity partner increased by 39 per cent from £146,417 in 2020 to &p

Northern Ireland’s High Court has found that a health and social care trust's decision to deny visitation between a breastfeeding mother and her child was correct given the risk of Covid-19 infection. The court noted that the trust had responded proportionately, and had taken steps to ensure t

A distinguished panel of human rights experts will discuss the challenges posed by the use of emergency powers by the executive at this year's Hibernian Law Journal annual lecture. Sinéad Gibney, head of the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission, will be joined on the panel by Jim O'Call

Northern Ireland's High Court has declared several penalties under the Covid-19 regulations unlawful in circumstances where some had not been filled out and where others were filled out incorrectly by PSNI officers who variously entered private dwellings or dispersed protesters. This case involved t

The High Court has determined that a hotel was not entitled to insurance cover for pandemic losses under an RSA policy of insurance. The policy required a notifiable disease to be “manifesting itself at the premises” for the policy to cover any losses. In a 94-page judgment, Mr Justice D

Developers in Northern Ireland will again be required to hold a public event as part of the pre-application process for major planning applications following the expiration of the temporary suspension. The requirement, which has been suspended since 1 May 2020, will be reinstated for proposed of app

An emerging international agreement to waive certain intellectual property rights in relation to Covid-19 vaccines has been criticised by civil society groups as a "half-measure". India and South Africa have led calls since October 2020 for certain parts of the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of

Northern Ireland’s High Court has dismissed an application for judicial review of the Covid-Status certification scheme, finding that the regulations introduced had been a legal, legitimate, necessary and proportionate response to the pandemic emergency. This decision was one of a series surro

Northern Ireland’s High Court has dismissed an application for judicial review arguing that so-called "vaccine passports" breached GDPR and data protection laws, finding that the unvaccinated applicant had insufficient standing for such a claim. This decision was one of a series surrounding re

More than a million audio or video connections have been made for remote and hybrid hearings in the Northern Ireland courts between the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic in March 2020 and the end of December 2021. The Northern Ireland Courts and Tribunals Service (NICTS) said 56 courtrooms are now digi

An Irish lawyer was forced to withdraw face masks with the words "no comment" emblazoned on them after being warned they could fall foul of advertising regulations. The Law Society wrote to Ciarán Mulholland in 2020, early in the Covid-19 pandemic, following a complaint made by a fellow solic

Northern Ireland could be stuck with its current Covid-19 restrictions for some time in the absence of a fully-functioning Executive to make decisions on relaxing them, it has emerged. The Northern Ireland (Ministers, Elections and Petitions of Concern) Act 2022, which came into force earlier this m

Up to three people will be allowed to visit prisoners with effect from Monday, the Irish Prison Service has announced. Prison visits have been subject to various restrictions during the Covid-19 pandemic, but the prison service confirmed that up to three visitors – which may include two childr