Northern Ireland

Employment law firm Watershed has appointed Rachel Richardson as an employment lawyer and solicitor (England and Wales). Based in Belfast, Ms Richardson will play a key role in expanding the firm’s work in Northern Ireland and Great Britain.

Northern Ireland firm McCay Legal has promoted Gillian Smyth to operations manager following a period of growth. Ms Smyth has been part of the team since McCay Legal acquired AD McClay & Company Solicitors two years ago.

A proposed increase in Northern Ireland court fees will jeopardise access to justice, the Association of Personal Injury Lawyers (APIL) has warned. The Northern Ireland Courts and Tribunal Service (NICTS) has just closed a consultation on a proposed nine per cent increase in civil court fees, spread

Carson McDowell has been ranked as Northern Ireland's most prolific M&A legal adviser in the first half of 2025. The independent Northern Ireland firm advised on 25 deals in the six-month period, ahead of A&L Goodbody on 18, according to the latest Experian M&A report.

Criminal cases in the Northern Ireland courts took an average of 189 days to complete in 2024/25, according to new figures. The latest bulletin from the Department of Justice, covering the period from 1 April 2024 to 31 March 2025, confirms that case processing times have improved for a second year

Amnesty International has accused the PSNI of breaching human rights law after a woman was arrested for allegedly wearing a T-shirt showing support for banned group Palestine Action. The 74-year-old woman was arrested in Belfast on Saturday, while others received cautions for wearing T-shirts with t

A public consultation is seeking views on proposed changes to an uncommenced legislative provision governing charities operating in Northern Ireland but based elsewhere. Northern Ireland's Department for Communities is currently consulting on changes to section 167 of the Charities Act (Norther

The PSNI has launched a new race and ethnicity action plan which commits the force to "being an anti-racist police service". Human rights campaigners have given the new plan a cautious welcome, warning that its success "won't be measured by words on paper, but by whether communities see real change

A drag queen who was subjected to a campaign of online abuse after hosting a children's storytelling event has instructed Belfast firm Phoenix Law to take legal action. Lady Portia Di'Monte was one of the two drag performers running the family-friendly event at Holywood Arches Library in Belfast as

Northern Ireland's agriculture, environment and rural affairs minister was welcomed to Law Society House this week for a high-level seminar on climate policy and legal engagement. The first-of-its-kind event was hosted by the Law Society of Northern Ireland's climate justice group and featured a mod

A man who lost his job after suffering two strokes is to receive a £100,000 settlement after taking action with support from the Equality Commission for Northern Ireland. Clifford Donaldson accused his former employer, Fraser Partners Ltd, of disability and age discrimination. The case has bee

TLT has appointed commercial real estate expert Jonathan O’Hagan as a partner in the firm's Belfast office. Mr O'Hagan joins TLT from DWF, bringing over 10 years' experience in the real estate sector, and has been hired to help meet growing client demand for cross-jurisdictional real esta

Northern Ireland's Department for Infrastructure has served a notice of appeal against a High Court ruling quashing a decision to proceed with the first phase of the A5 dual carriageway project. Mr Justice Gerry McAlinden ruled at the end of June that the Department for Infrastructure had failed to

A woman who was unfairly dismissed by a packaging manufacturer has been awarded nearly £88,000 by the Industrial Tribunal of Northern Ireland. Rosaleen Conway was employed by JMC Packaging Limited from 1 June 2022 until 20 October 2023, initially as chief financial officer and later as finance

Senior figures in Northern Ireland's criminal justice and human rights sectors are among the newest cohort in the Centre for Democracy and Peace Building's fellowship programme. This year's 28 fellows include Anna McClung of the Department of Justice, Rhyannon Blythe of the Northern Ireland Human Ri