Our Legal Heritage

Clare FM will broadcast a major new documentary examining the extraordinary life and enduring legacy of Mr Justice Séamus Henchy, one of the most influential and respected judges in modern Irish legal history.

The Irish Legal History Society is to take part in the Dublin Festival of History hosting a panel discussion on, ‘courts, crime and hidden lives in Dublin’ on 29 September.

Last month, 120 years to the day after Alfred Dreyfus was finally exonerated by a French court, a statue was unveiled outside the court that cleared him and President Macron announced that July 12 will be an annual national day of commemoration of Dreyfus and the injustice that was inflicted upon h

Until last year, I never took an interest in my Ogilvy ancestors, and I wish I had left it that way. Farmers at the head of Glenisla for hundreds of years, they were tenants and kinsmen of the Earl of Airlie. In contrast to my English relations (war heroes and concentration camp survivors), they see

This year marks the 50th anniversary of the end of the Vietnam War. Ronnie Clancy KC takes a look at a legal case that was central to its outcome. For those of us old enough to remember the Vietnam War, Ho Chi Minh (born Nguyễn Sinh Cung) is a very familiar figure. He was the face of opposition to

"Take that, sir. By God, sir, you shall more of this yet!,” cried Scottish banker George Morgan as he struck a merchant on the head with his umbrella. The incensed victim, David Landale, replied through the crisp Kirkcaldy air in measured breaths: "You are a coward, sir, a poor, silly coward."

From Dublin to Dundee and Belfast to Birmingham, the labouring poor of 19th century Britain and Ireland had to contend with the widespread scourge of child-stripping – the theft of their children’s clothing by heartless thieves who faced the full rigour of the law when apprehended. Local

In October of 1739 an Irish merchant vessel, the William, slipped out of Donaghadee harbour near Belfast and sailed into infamy. Its stated goal of collecting Norwegian timber shrouded the dark mission of its master William Davidson — to kidnap Scottish crofters and sell them into slavery in t

Perhaps Ireland's most famous — and unlikeliest — human rights activist, Seán MacBride was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize 50 years ago this week. Born in 1904 to Maud Gonne, the actress, Irish republican icon and long-time muse of WB Yeats, and Major John MacBride, who was executed

Graham Ogilvy tells the story of a remarkable Scottish lawyer who became a reforming lord chancellor, developed the French Riveira and narrowly avoided a damaging sex scandal. The next time you are promenading along the Promenade des Anglais in Nice, spare a thought for Henry Peter Brougham, the bri

In spring 1928, the Ballina Circuit Court awarded damages of £200 with costs and expenses to Mr Patrick Joseph Cunningham for the loss of services of his daughter, Bridie, who had been seduced by Mr John Horan at a farewell party for a local girl who was leaving for America. That case from les

A new display at Kilmainham Gaol Museum marks 100 years since the last prisoners were held in Kilmainham Gaol.

To mark International Holocaust Remembrance Day, Tom O’Connor considers the courageous conduct of two German judges who remained true to their principles and stood up to the Nazis. The shameful conduct of German judges under the Hitler regime was symbolised by the appalling behaviour of the fa

A successful University of Galway graduate once said that a great, but simultaneously annoying, part of being interested in tort law is that one thinks about their liability and that of others in everyday situations. The memorable Supreme Court judgment in the case of Weir Rodgers v The SF Trust Ltd

This has been a historic week for football with Morocco becoming the first African team to reach a FIFA World Cup semi-final. However, the significance of this week in football history was already guaranteed in 1995 when the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) gave judgment in the case of