Northern Ireland

A former sales assistant at JD Sports has settled a sexual harassment case against her former employer for £65,000 with support from the Equality Commission for Northern Ireland. Jayla Boyd worked part-time in a Belfast store while studying for her A-Levels. During a shift, Ms Boyd was slapped

Funding of £119 million has been set aside by the Northern Ireland Executive to cover costs relating to a major PSNI data breach. An unprecedented PSNI data breach in August 2023 saw the names, roles and other personal details of all serving police officers and civilian staff inadvertently pub

Judge Philip Gilpin has been appointed by the Lady Chief Justice of Northern Ireland as presiding County Court judge and recorder of Belfast. His appointment to the senior judicial posts took effect yesterday and will be for a period of five years.

The UK Supreme Court has upheld an appeal against judgments of the High Court and Court of Appeal in relation to the disclosure in a Troubles-related inquest of “gists” of sensitive information over which public interest immunity was claimed. Delivering judgment for the UK Supreme Court,

Human rights campaigners have expressed disappointment after the UK Supreme Court ruled that the disclosure of evidence in a Troubles-related inquest could be blocked on national security grounds. Judges today handed down their unanimous judgment in a case concerning a decision by a coroner to discl

The UK government has accepted the recommendations of an independent review of the post-Brexit Windsor Framework. Lord Murphy of Torfaen was commissioned by the government in January to lead an independent review of the deal, which was published in September.

A pair of aspiring lawyers have been awarded the Gateley Legal Northern Ireland prize by Queen’s University Belfast’s School of Law. Students Robin Clarke and Tara McFeely split this year’s award, which is given to the student from the Masters in Law course who scored the highest o

A legally comprehensive study of Lord MacDermott, former law lord and Lord Chief Justice of Northern Ireland, has been published for the first time. Lord MacDermott was first appointed to the bench in 1944 and retired from Northern Ireland's top judicial post in 1971, though continued to sit in vari

Northern Ireland's justice minister, Naomi Long, has responded harshly to criminal barristers' strike plans, branding demands for legal aid fee increases "unrealistic and unaffordable". The Criminal Bar Association (CBA) last week confirmed plans to withdraw from all Crown Court cases early next mon

Criminal barristers in Northern Ireland are to fully withdraw from all Crown Court cases early next year in a significant escalation of an ongoing dispute over legal aid fees.

An updated practice direction on third-party disclosure in Northern Ireland sexual offence and serious assault cases will take effect next week. The revised version of Practice Direction No. 2 of 2019 was published by the Lady Chief Justice's Office yesterday and takes effect from 15 December 2025.

Northern Ireland firm Turley Legal has recruited Alan Bissett as a senior member of its corporate and commercial team. Mr Bissett is dual-qualified in Northern Ireland and in England and Wales and brings more than 30 years’ experience advising businesses across a wide range of sectors.

Joan McCoy of Employee Ownership Ireland urges solicitors in Northern Ireland to highlight the continued benefits of employee ownership in spite of UK tax changes. Last month, Employee Ownership Association held its annual conference in Telford. Although the event offered valuable insights and into

Bank of Ireland has been fined £2,000 for breaches of Northern Ireland employment equality legislation. The fine was imposed by Northern Ireland's High Court following a prosecution by the Equality Commission for Northern Ireland.

Northern Ireland firm Carson McDowell is to be led by Orlagh O'Neill and Declan Magee from next year. Ms O'Neill will succeed Roger McMillan as managing partner and Mr Magee will succeed Neasa Quigley as senior partner with effect from 1 May 2026.