Judicial Appointments

Judge Stephen Fowler QC has been appointed as Recorder of Belfast, the most senior County Court judge in Northern Ireland. He succeeds Judge David McFarland QC, who has held the post since 2012 and was elevated to the High Court earlier this month.

The Oireachtas justice committee should include a review of the judicial appointments process in its work programme for 2021, its chairperson has said. Chairperson James Lawless, a qualified barrister and Fianna Fáil TD for Kildare North, told The Irish Times that the committee should make re

Government ministers were not told that a number of sitting senior judges had expressed interest in the vacancy on the Supreme Court before agreeing to appoint Mr Justice Séamus Woulfe, it has emerged. According to The Irish Times, at least three judges applied for the position, but ministers

Barrister David Scoffield QC and Judge David McFarland have been appointed as judges of the High Court. The pair were sworn in before Sir Declan Morgan, the Lord Chief Justice of Northern Ireland, this morning.

The controversy over Mr Justice Séamus Woulfe's attendance at an Oireachtas Golf Society dinner strengthens the case for a lay chairperson on the proposed Judicial Appointments Commission, former minister Shane Ross has said. Mr Ross, the maverick Independent Alliance minister who pushed hard

Barrister Nuala Butler SC has been nominated by ministers for appointment as an ordinary judge of the High Court. Ms Butler will fill the vacancy arising from the elevation of Ms Justice Teresa Pilkington to the Court of Appeal earlier this month.

Lord Justice Stephens has been appointed to the UK Supreme Court. Her Majesty The Queen made the appointment on the advice of the Prime Minister and Lord Chancellor, following the recommendations of an independent selection commission.

Judge Geoffrey Miller QC has been appointed as County Court commissioner in the Northern Ireland Judicial Appointments Commission (NIJAC). He was appointed by First Minister Arlene Foster and deputy First Minister Michelle O'Neill for a five-year term until 11 August 2025.

Ms Justice Teresa Pilkington has been nominated for appointment as an ordinary judge of the Court of Appeal. She has served as a High Court judge since 2018, having previously practised as a barrister in civil law cases.

The former Attorney General of Ireland, Séamus Woulfe SC, has been nominated by ministers for appointment to the Supreme Court. Mr Woulfe, who served as Attorney General until the new government was formed last month, will fill the vacancy created by the retirement of Ms Justice Mary Finlay G

The Law Society of Northern Ireland has written to solicitors to urge them to apply for two vacant positions on the High Court. Rowan White, president of the Law Society, said the appointment of Mr Justice Ian Huddleston in January 2019 "clearly demonstrates" that court advocacy "is not an essential

Ms Justice Mary Irvine has taken up her new role as president of the High Court after making her constitutional declaration in a small ceremony overseen by Chief Justice Frank Clarke. "These occasions are normally marked by a very large gathering of the colleagues, family and friends of the judge wh

Up to four new High Court judges are being sought in Northern Ireland at a time when low pay, pension cuts and the increasingly demanding and unsociable nature of the job are driving a judicial recruitment crisis. The Northern Ireland Judicial Appointments Commission (NIJAC) is currently advertising

Ms Justice Mary Irvine of the Supreme Court has been nominated by government ministers as the next president of the High Court. The Law Society of Ireland and the King's Inns have congratulated her on her nomination to become the first woman to serve as president of the court.

Sir Declan Morgan, the Lord Chief Justice of Northern Ireland, has been ruled out as a candidate for the UK Supreme Court seat to be vacated by Lord Kerr of Tonaghmore on his retirement in September. Lord Kerr is the only justice with knowledge of and experience of practice in the law of Northern Ir